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Road causes furore Residents fedup with speeding
} Teboho Setena LOCAL residents, who are outraged by speeding motorists in Nkoane Road in Thabong, caused a scene last Friday morning when they barricaded a section of Nkoane Road to stop motorists from speeding. A few angry residents, young and old, utilised all items at their disposal to barricade the street, effectively stopping traffic from moving from either side. Residents wanted the Matjhabeng Municipality to erect at least two additional speed humps to address reckless driving and speeding motorists. The municipality erected two speed humps after residents had embarked on a similar violent protest to barricade the road just days after its official opening for the public last year November. The problematic area of the busy Nkoane Road is a new extension that links Power Road and other main roads heading to Welkom’s Central Business District (CBD) as well as other residential areas. It also connects Phambili Road in Thabong and the road to the St Helena Hospital.
Last Friday morning residents affected by the speeding motorists were up in arms again. They barricaded the street between 07:00 and 07:30 to show their concern. The speed humps sparked conflict between residents and motorists rushing to work and taking their children to school. Swear words were used as tension ensued, forcing police to defuse the situation. In the heat of the moment, drama unfolded when a taxi driver and an old woman, believed to be one of the residents, verbally assaulted each other. This after the taxi driver had jumped from his vehicle to remove some of the rocks in the street and the woman had tried to stop him. The residents say speed humps installed on other roads have had a far-reaching effect in addressing negligence among motorists and have made road conditions safer. The municipality has spent R4 528 540 towards the construction of the section of Nkoane Road that has become a battle field between residents and motorists. ) Watch the video of the brawl at www.express-news.co.za.
TRAFFIC JAM: This woman, who re sides in Nkoane Road, looks at the congestion caused by the barricade on Friday.
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STREET FIGHT: This woman, who resides in a house in Nkoane Road in Thabong, had a fight with a taxi driver over the removal of pieces of kerbing that residents had used to barricade the road to stop speeding motorists on Friday morning. Photos: Teboho Setena
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EXPRESS, WEDNESDAY 5 MARCH 2014
NEWS
Employment the problem – Roodt } Teboho Setena THE well-known economist Dawie Roodt believes the high unemployment rate is a direct result of South Africa’s inability to invest in growing the economy. This comes after Pravin Gordhan, the minister of Finance, tabled the 2014-’15 National Budget on Wednesday. Roodt addressed Goldfields businesses as a guest speaker at the accounting firm PwC’s Post National Budget Presentation Function in Welkom on Thursday. According to the findings, Roodt said the South African government was the only employment agency next to the private sector. He said the trend had the government under immense pressure to deliver to its mandate, resulting in the slow growth of the economy. Roodt finds it dissapointing that opposition political parties also make job creation a government responsibility in their election campaigns. “All political parties made the same promise to create jobs. South Africa does not have unemployment problems, but employment problems. It is difficult to employ people, because the economy is not growing to create employment opportunities – people are also not properly skilled. “This is because of the poor state of the economy. “Political parties have not realised that the difficulty we face is the poor economic growth as apposed to unemployment. The approach by opposition parties to make promises to create jobs is a serious concern, because that will not boost the economy,” said Roodt. He said the general challenge facing South Africans was to find a mechanism to profitably turn around the economy. “The actual challenge is that we have to do something about economic growth and implement things that get the
ECONOMISTS: Guests who attended the PwC Post 2014 Budget Presentation Function on Thursday in Welkom are from the left Dawie Roodt, a wellknown economist who was the quest speaker, Hesna Rheeder, Giel Oberholster and Jeff Radebe. Photo: Teboho Setena economy growing. In South Africa we have few rich people, who in their returns pay over tax to the state, which then spend it on the poor. “Mechanisms have to be put into place to revive the economy and
increase the number of rich people that can invest in the country in order to create employment and alleviate the high levels of poverty we are facing.” According to Roodt, the first step to turning around the economic
situation is that the South African government must consider to reduce personal expenditure, current expenditure and social. “We should strongly consider spending more on infrastructure and capital, as well as to create an
environment that is conducive for investment prospects. “We need an extremely knowledgeable minister of Finance and visionary politicians to turn around the state of our poor economy,” he said.
Probes welcomed Want to write for the paper? EXPRESS GOLDFIELDS & NFS wants you to write for the paper. Express Goldfields & NFS is looking for volunteer citizen journalists to tell it about events happening in their area. The paper also wants to know about the issues, as well as the good news, in your community. You may have a story you want to share, or you may want to write reviews for the Express Goldfields & NFS website. Maybe you want to offer other drivers traffic reports on your way to work via the mobisite, or maybe you want to start your own blog and become a famous blogger. You may be a keen gardener and want to offer tips on gardening via the website, or you might have a fascinating local story to tell. As long as it is local and original, Express Goldfields & NFS is interested. Register on the website www.express-news.co.za and join the team as a citizen journalist.
Attend oneday seminar BUSINESS VENTURE: Local private businesses within Welkom held a oneday seminar on the formation of a solid Black Economic Empower ment (BEE) partnership on a legal basis last Thursday. The event was held in Welkom. In attendance are from the left Debbie Venter, Fredrich Liebenberg, Sonja Meyer and André Styger. Photo: Teboho Setena
THE Portfolio Committee on Higher Education and Training has welcomed the parallel probes on the alleged racist incident at the University of the Free State (UFS) by the South African Police Service (SAPS) and South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) which is the key custodian of human rights in the country. The committee believes the involvement of and investigations currently conducted by the two agencies will assist in finding a long-lasting solution to these persistent acts of intolerance and hatred among racial groups. The committee chairperson, Adv. Ishmael Malale, said they believe these parallel probes would help to restore the image of the university and the academic environment in general. “As a country we still have a long way to go to eradicate these traumatic racial discrimination practices, unless we join hands as a
society to say enough is enough,” he said. The committee also welcomed the announcement by the University of KwaZulu-Natal to overturn their earlier decision and reinstate two medical students whose applications for admission were marred by technical errors on their race. “As much as we say no one should be financially or racially excluded, the committee equally maintains that no student should suffer the consequences of the administrative errors or blunders committed by the institutions. “We are also proud that through our intervention this year at the Rhodes University a number of late applicants were admitted who had performed well in gr. 12, but who are financially needy. The NSFAS has heeded our call and allocated an additional amount of R4 million to ensure that students are provided with all necessary academic support,” said Malale.
Five men, teenager sentenced for murder FIVE young men and a 17-year-old teenager from Wesselsbron will serve long prison terms after the Kroonstad High Court found them guilty of murdering a 19-year-old teenager, Velaphi Siroro. Of the six accused five have been sentenced to life imprisonment while the 17-year-old teenager will spend 15
years in jail. Those sentenced to life imprisonment are Samson Lungisa (28), Lefu Mofokeng (22), John Mogoje (24), Samsa Bovu (21) and Tefo Hlalele (21). They were sentenced for the brutal murder at their appearance in court last Thursday. Siroro was murdered last year in April.
The accused had been in custody after the state denied them bail. The assailants used dangerous weapons that included pangas, knives and golf clubs to murder the victim in the Wesselsbron’s township of Monyakeng on 27 April. They are said to have caused a scene when trying to attack
police members who were at the crime scene, the forcing police to call for back-up to restore order. In the event the police fired a warning shot to disperse the group. The accused then fled on foot after the police had called back-up. Their arrest and prosecution followed in-depth investigation.
EXPRESS, WEDNESDAY 5 MARCH 2014
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HELPING HAND: Last Wednesday the Department of Correctional Services in Hoopstad, with the support of the private sector, donated bread to the needy as part of a community project. With the beneficiaries is Dirkie Kotze (left), the acting head of the department. Photo: Supplied
Donation thanks to partnership THE Department of Correctional Services’ Social Reintegration Office in Hoopstad has teamed up with a baking company to help scores of local residents and centres caring for children in Hoopstad and Bloemhof. This joint initiative is part of an
ongoing community outreach programme. Through this project the Social Reintegration Office donated bread to the local Early Childhood Development Centre of the Leseding Crèche and some residents on the Bloemhof Municipali-
Tension rising } Teboho Setena IT is feared the death of two suspected illegal gold miners may cause tension amongst illegal gold mining syndicates. This is after the Welkom police found the naked bodies of two unknown men underground at Harmony’s Eland Mine in Welkom last week. The murders of illegal gold miners involving Lesotho nationals cause conflict and tension. Police spokesperson Stephen Thakeng said: “The deceased had serious head injuries. Their facial features could not be recognised. It is suspected that an unknown sharp object was used.” The men are between 20 and 40 years old. Thankeng said investigation would reveal if the killing of the two men was related to mining syndicates dealing with illegal gold mining and those digging gold dust at redundant mines in Welkom. “However, the investigation will reveal a more detailed report,” he said. In June 2009 the bodies of 76 illegal miners were discovered at Harmony Gold’s Eland shaft in Welkom. Early in January, a man, suspected to be an illegal miner, was found buried in a shallow grave at an old shaft of the President Steyn Gold Mine in Welkom. Thakeng said they could not link the two incidents thus far. The police appeal to anyone who has lost his or her brother, father or any male person to come to the mortuary to identify the bodies or contact the investigating officer, Mokgejane Khutsoane, of the Welkom Detectives on 057-391-6259 during office hours or on 083-940-1743.
ty dumping site last Wednesday. Dozens of loaves of bread were donated to the beneficiaries of the small township of Boitumelong. “We donated 70 and 60 loaves of bread to the crèche and to the people of the dumping site respectively.
“This project is a community outreach project with Sasko as a partner. We are grateful to have the bakery as a partner, because without them it was not possible to render this project,” says Dirkie Kotze, the acting community corrections officer.
AL I C E SP TIL N U D VALI RCH A M 15 2014
He says the project focuses mainly on these two towns and is done on a monthly basis. “We want to inspire our community and members of the public to also reach out to people in need. We do this in the good spirit of Batho Pele,” says Kotze.
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EXPRESS, WEDNESDAY 5 MARCH 2014
NEWS
Inexcusable tardiness LATE AGAIN: This group of learners of the Leseding Technical Secondary School were late again for school last Thursday. The learners found the schools’ gates locked on arrival after 08:00. Photo: Teboho Setena
Sports success starts with kids My view
IT came as music to my ears that Athletics South Africa (ASA) and the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) had reached an agreement that ASA’s executive step down to give way for the interim committee to remedy the sport. The interim body, consisting of seven members, is headed by Daan du Toit. In the Lejweleputswa region some years ago, off-spring of the neighbouring mine villages (Skomplaas) were groomed to become athletes at an early age. They were trained by capable and experienced mentors. Their planning was long term. Such products shone at their post-primary school institutions both here at home or at boarding schools. The incoming ASA board should bring unity, form development structures and train coaches to be better world leaders. Last year, the South African team emerged from the IAAF championships held in Moscow having registered a single bronze medal from Johan Cronjé in the men’s 1 500 m. We have in the past failed to win medals at the world championships. However, the scarcity of South African athletes at the finals and the failure of up and coming talent reinforces a deepening thought that South African athletics is fast becoming obscure on the global stage. This is an underachievement given our relative resources wealth. Most sports, particularly the Olympic codes, fight the same battles. Every second year our performance results in the same disappointing acquisitions in the Commonwealth Games and Olympics.
A solution does not lie in the current sporting underperformances, but it is in the present-day practices. The problem with our sport as a nation is that we neglect athletes between the ages of 10 and 15. Like in the mining industry in the past, that is the generation that must be trained at proper facilities with relevant training equipment. Money is part of the game, however, this is not the only challenge. Today’s problems are greedy officials who are in sport for their personal interests. Unity is the most important ingredient and development is important for success. We are the first to boast about big money sponsorships. That in itself is not an answer. Kenya and Jamaica are underresourced but always win no less than ten medals each at major athletics events. ) Express Goldfields & Northern Free State welcomes members of the public interested to contribute free to the weekly column as public observers or citizen journalists. There is no payment for writers of the column. Send your opinion piece (not exceeding 450 words) for publication to teboho.setena@volksblad.com.
THE entries for Welkom’s Got Talent 2014 are officially closing tomorrow. An amazing cash prize of R20 000, as well as a professional talent video and photo shoot by Black Media Promotions Incorporated to the value of R10 000, is up for grabs this year. If you believe you have what it takes to win the biggest talent show in the Goldfields, you need to get to the Goldfields Mall as soon as possible. Free registration forms are still available at the Goldfields Mall Guest Relations Desk tomorrow until
15:00. Contestants may either enter as individuals or as a group with a maximum of six members per group and there is no age limit for the competition. All judging will be done on an equal basis, therefore groups and solos will be judged together. Each round will be adjudicated by a minimum of three judges. There is no age limit for the competition. However, children under the age of 18 must be accompanied to each round by their parent or a legal guardian.
Moeti Molelekoa Social observer
Tsamaya ka kgotso Dups A POLITICAL veteran and Workers (NUM, 998 to 2002), unionist from the Goldfields, the national deputy chairperMothlanka “Dups” Bethuel son Health and Safety (1998 to Ndubula, has passed away. 2002) and he also co-chaired He died on 21 February at the Anglo-Gold Employment the Bongani Hospital followEquity Forum negotiations on ing a long battle with behalf of the NUM. diabetes. He was 53 years old. Politically he was an ANC Ndubula wore many hats branch chairperson between while occupying prominent 1992 and 1994, he was an ANC positions in both local regional (Goldfields) executive government as well as on committee member between district level. 1995 and 1998, an ANC “Dups” Bethuel regional executive committee He was appointed as the Ndubula. district municipal manager member West Rand from 1998 Photo Supplied in 2002, a position which he to 2000 and an executive occupied until 2005. He was member of the Harry Gwala also the managing director of Siziza ANC branch from 2012 to the time of Ukhanyo CC in this period. Between his death. He was also a member of the 2009 and 2011 he was the executive Economic Development Committee of director: corporate support services of the Lejweleputswa ANC region from the Matjhabeng Municipality. 2012 to the time of his death. Ndubula was an active member of the Ndubula was born on 23 April 1960 in ANC and served as councillor during Kimberley to Kesentseng Edith Sebela. the interim phase of local government He graduated from the Tshireleco High between 1994 and 1998. School in 1979 and received a diploma He served on several boards including in Geology in 1985 from the Mabopane Phakisa Motor Sports (1997 to 1999), the East Technicon. Free State Goldfields (FGF) Development In 1987 he obtained a National Higher Centre (1995 to 1998), the Free State Diploma at the University of the Marketing Board (1998 to 2002) and Witwatersrand in B Tech Geology. Rand Mutual (2001 to 2003). He was the Subsequently, he attained his status as deputy chairperson of the ANC execua professional natural scientist at the tive committee from 1994 to 1997, he was University of Pretoria in 2004. the chairperson of the Goldfields Ndubula started working at Freddies District Council (GDC) (1997 to 1998) and Gold Mine in Odendaalsrus in 1984 and he served in the Free State Local he remained employed there until 1998. Government Association as member of He was then the Savuka Mine geology the management committee and treasurmanager from 1999 to 2002 in Carletoner from 1993 to 1998. ville. Ndubula served as national office Ndubula was laid to rest in the the bearer of the National Union of Mine West End Cemetery, Kimberley.
Enter Goldfield’s biggest talent search Auditions for this competition will commence at the Goldfields Casino Conference Centre on Saturday from 09:00. Unfortunately no entries will be accepted on the day of the auditions. Contestants must meet in front of Ackermans in the Goldfields Mall 30 minutes prior to the start of their assigned audition time. Contestants must perform one item not exceeding 45 seconds. On Tuesday, 11 March, contestants will be notified telephonically if their act will proceed to ‘call back auditions’. This round
will also be hosted at the Goldfields Casino Conference Centre on 15 March. Any instruments, backtrack, props, etc. should be provided by the contestants themselves and the music must be supplied in an audio CD format. Cellphones, USB’s and iPods will unfortunately not be accepted. For any queries, contestants may contact Judy Moran on 057-352-4251 during office hours. Also keep a close eye on Vista and Express Goldfields & NFS as they will provide you with information weekly.
EXPRESS, WEDNESDAY 5 MARCH 2014
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SOCIAL PHOTOS Discuss budget
Golden voice
AT BUDGET OCCA SION: From the left are Margaret Ramu fothole, Mannuku Ramakhale and Car ly Mahlatsi of the Goldfields FET Col lege who attended the PWC post 2014 budget presenta tion in Welkom on Thursday.
RIGHT: Prodigy Daphne Mthembu of the Unitas Se condary School showcased her tal ent in music per forming at the De partment of Educa tion’s welldone function held in Welkom last Friday.
Photo: Teboho Setena
FUTURE SCIEN TISTS: The projects of four gr. 5 pupils of the Boase Primary School in Virginia were chosen as the top and most inno vative among their peers. They had to create a human skeleton. They are from left Sibusiso Stuurman, Busisi we Maikgosho, Samkelo Nyila and Rethabile Seduku; back: Thabiso Molise, deputy prin cipal and Natural Sciences and Tech nology teacher. About 120 gr. 5 learners participat ed in the project as part of their study of the subject.
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CSA shares vision
Partnership holds big possibility
CRICKET SOUTH AFRICA (CSA) and Spec-Savers recently unveiled a formal partnership that makes the latter the official optical supplier to the sporting federation. The partnership extends to domestic cricket as well where Spec-Savers will play its part in all third umpire review decisions. “We’d like to officially welcome Spec-Savers to the CSA family. It is a sign of confidence that the commercial world is still readily keen to partner with CSA and we believe there are massive mutual benefits to this relationship,” said Haroon Lorgat, CSA’s chief executive. Bryan Dowley, the sponsor’s chief executive officer, expressed his delight at the newly formed partnership. “Not only is this recognition as the official optometry partner for CSA a wonderful accolade for our brand, Spec-Savers, but it also opens up new opportunities for CSA as we intend spreading this relationship to grass roots cricket with CSA. “We have been looking for a home for our sponsorship since curtailing our support for Ironman South Africa and CSA has now provided us with the correct platform to allow our support to improve the game with better camera technology and reach the people that need our services,” concluded Dowley.
GRAEME SMITH (right), the Proteas test cricket captain, and Bryan Dowley, the chief executive officer of SpecSavers.
Thomas a rising star in karate THE rising karateka star Thomas de Klerk (9) of the Virginia Volkskool Primary School was chosen as Express Goldfields & NFS’s Let’s Play Sports Star of the Month for February. This sports enthusiast was selected for his excellent achievements in athletics, rugby, cricket, tennis and karate. In March 2013 Thomas scooped numerous karate achievements, including winning gold medals at the Northern Free State karate championships in both kata and kumite for his age division. Thereafter he competed at the South African karate championships where he won a gold medal in kata and a silver medal in kumite. Thomas’s sterling performance last September saw him compete at the Welkom karate championships where he won three bronze medals for kata, kumite and free fighting, proving he is championship material.
Thomas’s ster ling perform ance last Sep tember saw him compete at the Welkom karate championships. He is currently training at the Goldfields Karate Club in Virginia under Sensei Chris Swanepoel. Thomas also excels in athletics. Recently he obtained first place in the 1 200 m race at the Riebeeckstad athletics meeting and the Virginia athletics meeting held last month. His motto is If you don’t try, you won’t succeed. Send your nomination for SuperSport’s Let’s Play Sports Star of the Month competi-
tion. Nominations received after the 20th of every month will be carried over to the next month’s selection. The SuperSport Let’s Play Sports Star of the Month competition runs from February to November. You can email your nomination to supersport@zpr.co.za or fax it to 086-552-4922. For more information contact Lynne or Juanré at Z PR on 051-522-9574.
STAR OF THE MONTH: Thomas de Klerk.
Photo: Supplied