As protocol dictates, there will be another public participation process held in May to discuss the new proposed Integrated Development Plan (IDP) and the new Budget for the new fiscal year. The DA in Tzaneen have requested that all role players and members of the public participate in this process as there are, according to them, some concerns regarding the newly tabled budget and IDP.
The IDP adopted by the council of a municipality is the principal strategic planning instrument which guides and informs all planning and development decision making. The IDP is intended to provide an opportunity for residents to put forward their specific needs in line with the development and growth of their town.
The projects within the IDP are also linked to the municipality’s budget and is a vital living document that relies on the continued input of residents and the support of the Council.
On Thursday, the 30th of March, the DA caucus rejected the IDP as well as the budget tabled during a council meeting. According to
the DA caucus leader, René Pohl, the IDP and Draft Budget processes have become a tick box exercise for the ANC-led Greater Tzaneen Municipality (GTM) and do not meet the required standards.
“This is because it was an indiscriminate budget similar to the previous budget and was not project based,” Pohl stated. “The IDP Project phase was not done according to GRAP (Generally Recognised Accounting Practice) and was incomplete due to indispensable projects to address the ongoing failure to provide the residents with basic services under Section 152 of the Constitution. There is an incomplete pump maintenance project, a safety and security strategic infrastructure project, a helpdesk for reporting project and a performance management project.”
Pohl said that despite objections by the DA to the Draft IDP and Budget during the EXCO meeting prior to the council sitting, the items were nevertheless placed on the agenda without changes.
“It is clear the deployed ANC cadres in Tzaneen are not interested in improving the quality of life for all residents. If the amendments are not made as suggested by the DA, further action will be taken to ensure the needs of the community are addressed.”
Furthermore, Bulletin has learned that the GTM cannot adequately recover the rates and taxes owed to them monthly by homeowners in their municipality. We received information that the total amount of rates and taxes owed to the GTM is now more than R1, 032 Billion. We have also regularly received copies of account statements showing homeowners with accounts in arrears by more than R200 000.
We sent an inquiry to the spokesperson of the GTM to find out why these homeowners have not had their services cut off, why the accounts have been allowed to run into these exorbitant amounts and which contractor they appointed to handle the collection of the monthly rates and taxes.
It has been two weeks and we have not yet received a response on the matter.
Jetty 3 might soon be restored to its former glory. This after an announcement earlier this week that a new contractor was appointed by the Department of Water Services (DWS) – and not the Greater Tzaneen Municipality (GTM) – to manage the facilities.
Artorius Leisure was appointed as the DWS lease holder on Tzaneen Dam and Jetty 3. The contractor have since closed down Jetty 3 for renovations thereby declaring Jetty 3 a construction site as of the 22nd of March this year.
According to Artorius Leisure the renovations will be done in different stages and will include the construction of the new ablution facilities, a new gate with its own guard house, repairing the access road, landscaping the picnic areas, and the construction of new braai areas.
“There will be limited movement on site during the construction period,” said Thabo Ramopai in a statement. “Upon completion of the project we will be charging entrance fees at the gate thereby invalidating the permits previously issued by the municipality.”
The entry fees have been set at R100 daily to launch a boat, R30 per adult person per day, R20 per vehicle and R20 per child. The annual, or seasonal tickets are available at R1 500. “We will be introducing the previously approved boat wash bay at R25 per boat and details regarding this will be communicated when we reopen. Annual fishing permits will be available upon meeting all the fishing clubs operating at the dam. We would like to apologise for the inconvenience caused during
Despite the implementation of various street patrol teams in residential areas of Tzaneen, there seems to be no stopping the mysterious gang that has been targeting and vandalizing infrastructure in certain parts of the town.
This week the as yet unidentified gang vandalized a mini-sub in Protea Street during the 21:00 to 01:30 loadshedding slot in area 12 near Van Velden hospital. This caused the entire area to be left in darkness with the GTM stating that they were working on the problem but could not offer an estimated time when the power in that area would be restored. The following evening on Thursday (yesterday) the gang vandalized another mini-sub, this time in area 14 which resulted in the same consequences.
The DA Ward Councillor for the area however
stated that she could not confirm whether the vandalism was the same gang that was targeting the fire hydrants and mini-subs in the area, as there were no witnesses in the latest incidents.
When asked whether the new patrol teams which were launched in Talana two weeks ago had made any impact on the crime in the area, the councillor stated that they had not yet been implemented as they would first be attending a workshop along with the patrol team established in Flora Park on Wednesday evening. She did however view the establishment of these teams as a success.
There is really no clarity at the moment as to what the plan is to combat the gang of vandals who are said to be driving a green Fiat Uno and are believed to be residing in a house in the vicinity of Flora Park.
construction and thank you in advance for your cooperation,” Ramopai added.
Further to this, Ramopai said that the DWS was encouraging the implementation of NEM:BA Regulations relating to alien invasive species like carper and bass.
“Catch and release is being discouraged in all inland dams where these fish have been introduced so we all need to take a decisive decision regarding the catch and release especially during competitions,” he said. “These fish are a big draw card for fishermen at our dam so the approach to this regulation needs to be cautious, while engagements with different fishing clubs are underway, we will be discouraging the release back into the water of weak or struggling fish. These fish end up dead in the water thereby polluting the dam. We therefore will set up a point where such can be dropped off and will be donated to the needy if the club has no plans for them.”
Bulletin has learnt that the facilities will be rented by Artorius Leisure for an amount of R51 742 per year and the agreement between Artorius Leisure and the Department of Water Services is for a period of nine years and 11 months.
The lease entitles the lessee to use the property for recreational purposes that may include horseback riding, cycling, boating, and access to the dam for swimming, rowing, canoeing, fishing. water skiing and any other water sports as zoned for Tzaneen dam.
For any further inquiries, the public can contact Thabo Ramopai via email at thaboar@gmail.com or telephonically on 076 209 8476 or 071 508 5024 or 076 970 1100.
■ Joe Dreyer
You can tell a lot about the character of a person by the people they surround themselves with. Equally, one can tell a lot about a person’s motives by paying close attention to the manner they conduct themselves when nobody else is around.
It sounds cliched, true, but someone once told me that clichés are cliched because they are usually true. If you surround yourself with drunkards, even though you may not drink a drop yourself, people will judge you as a drunkard, hang around with weirdos and you will be considered weird.
The opposite rings true as well. Hang around with the successful, well mannered morally upright and you too will be judged accordingly. It is never a good idea to adopt the credo “let them talk” when you are attempting to build a career on the perceptions of those people.
Nowhere have I seen a more clear cut example than this past week at Stanford Lake College during our time working there. Every one of the pupils of every one of the attending schools oozed an air of success and confidence apparent by their willingness to help and their absolutely spotless manners. Spending a day among the many parents, pupils and staff there, almost left me with no option but to feel confident and driven myself. It was automatic.
The people I mingled with this week, may or may not be truly content with themselves and may or may not be as truly confident as they appear, but nobody will ever know, and everybody around them will contract their confident positive fever. I must say that I did not mind the infection, and I hope that technology never becomes the vaccine that cures us of it. If you chose to surround yourself with the unambitious who feed off your energy, you will soon be left void of any yourself. Choose your circle wisely or it will be chosen for you.
■ Ben Theunissen
Elke hond kry sy dag. So sê hulle. Of dit nou waar is al dan nie, hulle sê so. Katte is weer geneig om in die donker geleenthede te skep. Dit weet die meeste van ons.
Dit is nie wat hulle sê nie. In hierdie dae waarin ons leef, het die katte ‘n groot voordeel aangesien daar met beurtkrag baie meer geleenthede geskep word. Die meeste katte word in die donker geknyp. So, die katte en die knypers is heel gelukkig met die toedrag van sake.
Weyers is toe van mening dat die knyp van ‘n kat in die donker, ernstige nadelige gevolge kan hê. ‘n Kat is geniepsig en kan skrik wanneer dit geknyp word...in die donker. Jy kan vir ‘n geruime tyd letsels dra van die geknypery.
As daar nie krag is nie, is dit die kat se beurt.
André de Ruyter, die ex-baas van ‘excom’, het daarop gesinspeel dat daar ‘n ‘sindi-kat’ bedrywig is wat megasakke vol note per maand uit ‘excom’ se kasregisters verwyder, en dit sonder toestemming, wat bevestig dat die ‘sindi-kat’ elke maand toeslaan...dus ‘die kat kom weer’..om ‘n randjie of wat af te knyp van die inkomste van ‘Goliat’ die kragreus. Hy wou egter nie die name bekend maak van al die betrokkenes nie, want ‘watts in a name’?
Dawid sê toe dat sy vrou glad nie van katte hou nie, veral nie die wat in die donker geknyp wil word. Daar is ook voordele vir die knypers en die katte in hierdie tye van beurtkrag. Jy kan eerstens die skedule volg en jou knyp beplan en in groot geboue waar nie ‘n kragopwekker beskikbaar is nie, kom daar ook meer donker tye voor.
‘n Gevolg van die knypery in die donker is natuurlik dat die ander helfte van die kat wat geknyp word, skielik ongenooid sy verskyning kan maak en jou katswink moker. Meerkatte hou ook minder daarvan om geknyp te word en is nie so geredelik beskikbaar in die donker nie.
So van katswink gepraat…meer ernstige gevolge kan intree, indien jy gevang word waar jy die kat knyp. Dit kan veroorsaak dat jy jou einde gaan ontmoet...soos ‘n jagter wat bokveld toe is, ‘n bakker steek lepel in die dak, ‘n bankklerk verwissel die tydelike met die ewige, ‘n melkboer skop die emmer, ‘n predikant leef tot sovêr, ‘n rower gaan daarmee heen en ‘n begrafnisondernemer sien sy eie gat.
Tzaneen has an entry into the Miss Limpopo 2023 pageant. The young Abbygail Terblanche (16) never planned on being a model but when friends and family members convinced her to enter into the pageant, she did, and much to her surprise, made the cut.
In an interview with Bulletin, Abby explained that she realized she could use the pageant to change the lives of people closest to her, as well as those in her broader community. And not in the cliched beauty pageant entrant manner either.
“I think that the best way for me to inspire others, is by helping the young girls out there to realize that they really can reach even the dreams they thought would never realize, just by trying. I mean, I never thought I would actually make it to the Miss Limpopo pageant, but here I am.”
Abby spoke about the “Poverty Sucks” lollipop campaign that she has partnered with and said that it has been an eyeopener to the poverty most people in her community live under. “Its really a great initiative. You buy a lollipop for R10 and we take that money and use it to buy food and other basic necessities which we then distribute to the needy. There are so many people who live in poverty in our neighbourhoods which we would never expect need help. This campaign helps to aid them, without them feeling embarrassed.”
Abby said that the Miss Limpopo pageant is set to take place in August in Polokwane and she was quite nervous about it. “I have never done anything like this before, so I’m a little excited and a little nervous at the same time. I don’t know what the future holds after this, but I will take it as it comes.”
Bulletin will stay in touch with the delightful youngster in the months to come and keep our readers involved in her various charitable endeavours. Thus far she garnered the support of Boas Engineering from Phalaborwa who donated R1000 towards her Poverty Sucks lollipop drive.
Any businesses or individuals who wish to contribute to Abby’s cause can do so by contacting the Bulletin on 064 650 7123 or via email at admin@farnorthbulletin.co.za
Stanford Lake College’s Easter Sports Fes tival kicked off on Thursday (yesterday) with some fantastic netball and rugby match es being played on the courts of the mountain badgers. The festival will see top class netball and rugby on display today (Friday the 7th of April), tomor row (Saturday the 8th of April) and Monday (the 10th of April) schools from as far afield as Gauteng.
Schools participat ing in the festival includes the hosts Stanford Lake College, Ben Vorster, Tom Naudé, Maragon Mooikloof, Red dam Helderfontein, St Peters College, Eric Louw, Louis Trichardt and Beaulieu College. All the netball and rugby games are live streamed by Bulletin’s sister com
pany, Far North Broadcasting Corporation (FNBC) over their two Youtube channels available (here) and (here). Our valued Facebook subscribers will be able to view and download action photos from the festival in the galleries available in the exclusive subscriber lounge.
To access the subscriber benefits, simply visit our Facebook page @farnorthbulletin and click on the “subscribe” button and follow the prompts. A subscriotion is only R17 a month and can be cancelled at any time. Your subscriptions helps keep your only independent media house open.
8 April
The Tzaneen Parkrun is held every Saturday (April - September) from 08:00 and starts at Safari Pub & Grill. Visit www.parkrun.co.za
For more information email tzaneen@parkrun.com
15 April
The Galaxy Bingo Wolfpack 4 in 1 will be held on 15 April 2023 at Merensky High School from 05:30
Enter online
For more information contact Tracey van den Dool on 083 968 0902 or email tracey@ warriors.co.za
15 April
Joe Niemand is performing on 15 April 2023 at The King’s Court Christian School from 18:00.
Tickets available at Quicket For more information contact 082 934 8562 or email admin@ tkcschool.co.za
22 April
Die EG Kerk Tzaneen bied ‘n visvangkompetisie aan op 22 April 2023 by die Piesangdam Letaba Landgoed vanaf 05:00 tot 16:00 teen R100.00 vir 2 hengelaars.
Vir meer inligting skakel Thys Steynberg by 076 410 9503.
29
The Haenertsburg food & wine festival will be held on the 29th and 30th of April. For more information contact Kurt on 083 326 5836 or email kurtwacker182@gmail.com
Wisani Burial Society 24 Hour emergency numbers 083 513 4988 helene@wisani.co.za
Pest Control Specialists Workplace readiness solutions. Protect yourself, your staff and the health of your customers. 015 307 4065
Stay Home & Make Money Online.
Uniwisp Fibre to the home and business. 015 590 1200 marinda.durand@uniwisp.co.za
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Die tafel was gedek vir interessante en opwindende rolbal tydens Tzaneen Rolbalkub se jaarlikse klubkampioenskap vir voorgee mans- en vrouespelers. Hierdie kampioenskap, gehou op Saterdag die 1ste en Sondag die 2de April, was uiteindelik deur Theo Wolmarans en Sue Morrison gewen. Beide spelers was ook die verdedigende kampioene in hul onderskeie afde-
Die mans se eindstryd het het vir heelwat afwagting gesorg. Die huidige voorgeekampioen, Wolmarans, het teen die klub se driemalige en agtereenvolgende kampioen, Stoffel VerWolmarans het egter bewys dat hy veel wyser geraak het sedertdien hy sy eerste voorgeekroon in 2022 as ‘n nu-
weling gewen het. Verlede jaar het hy sowat vyf maande tevore eers begin om rolbal te beoefen.
Hy het bonop as nuweling in daardie kampioenskap ‘n aantal van die klub se meer ervare en senior spelers met sy spel verras. Beide Wolmarans en Vermaak het hul mede klublede en besoekers wie die wedstryd aanskou het vanjaar met aanskoulike spel vermaak.
En soos die toeval dit wou hê, het vanjaar se vroue klubkampioen, Morrison, weer verlede jaar se naaswenner, Elsjé Beyers, om die kroon vir die vroue se voorgeekampioenskap uitgeknikker.
Die rose van die klub se afdeling is in ‘n rondomtalie formaat beslis. Morrison het meer van haar wedstryde as Beyers gewen wat so aan haar weer die voorgee-titel besorg het.
Tzaneen se rolspelers gaan op die 15de April na Polokwane reis om aan die Limpopo dubbelspel kampioenskappe deel te neem. Dié klub beoog om sowat tien spanne vir deelname na hierdie kampioenskap te stuur.
The Insect Science Mountain Bike (MTB) pairing of Arno du Toit and Keagan Bontekoning finished a fine 16th place overall on last week’s 2023 edition of the Absa Cape Epic. It took them 28 hours, 45 minutes and 36 seconds to complete seven days of grueling stages.
Mechanical calamities during one of the seven stages prevented du Toit and Bontekoning from not only finishing higher up on the final results sheet, but also from claiming the top spot for the Africa Jersey classification.
The PYGO Euro Steel team of Phillip Buys and Alexander Miller took an eighth place overall and the win for the Absa African Jersey. Behind them, in second for the Africa Jersey and in 12th place overall, were Marco Joubert and Pieter du Toit from the Imbuko Type DEV-team. They were the winners of the jersey last year.
It was thanks to team-mates Alan Gordon and Herman Fourie who helped out with spare parts and so ensured their team-mates a place on the podium for the Africa jersey.
The Cape Epic is the largest full-service mountain bike stage race in the world. From the day the race starts, riders need only look after their bodies and continue racing. Everything else is taken care of.
The Cape Epic route team takes two years to plan exactly where in South Africa’s rugged Western Cape riders will test themselves with a distance of around 700km and 17 250m climbing. The route is a well-kept secret until it is announced each year. Guaranteed each year are challenging traverses of iconic fynbos valleys, majestic mountains ranges, deep ravines, indigenous forests, spectacular coastlines, and flourishing vineyards.
The terrain is as varied as it is harsh - dusty and demanding gravel roads, strenuous rocky climbs, thrilling technical descents, refreshing river crossings, and fast forest singletracks. The Cape Epic route gives riders and fans the opportunity to experience the historic and scenic towns in the Western Cape, many of them off the beaten tourist track, and more than 40 towns have been visited by the Absa Cape Epic since 2004.
