The Abu Dhabi-based airline Etihad will run a flight to Johannesburg for three months over the northern hemisphere summer, filling the gap left when embattled carrier South African Airways cut the route from its offerings last month. These will be added to the flights to the region already operated by Qatar Airways and Emirates, which both […]

In a day of mounting criticism of President Jacob Zuma, a heated and long debate in Parliament, and unusual partnerships to get him removed from power, the opposition parties saw a motion to impeach Zuma fail against an ANC majority. At the same time, respected former finance minister Trevor Manuel said it would be in the interests of the […]

Shouting “traitors” at ANC MPs still sitting in their seats, opposition parties left the house en masse on Tuesday, after losing a motion of impeachment against President Jacob Zuma 143 to 233. Upon hearing the results, Democratic Alliance leader Mmusi Maimane, who had proposed the motion, immediately stood up and said that the DA as opposition […]

The impeachment debate against President Jacob Zuma had barely got underway on Tuesday when the opposition with one voice asked that the speaker of the house, Baleka Mbete, who is often seen as an ally of Zuma’s, be removed from the chair and be replaced by someone who could be fair and impartial. Members of […]

Democratic Alliance leader Mmusi Maimane is scheduled to speak first, Deputy Justice Minister John Jeffery next, then Economic Freedom Fighters leader Julius Malema.

What would it take for President Jacob Zuma and the African National Congress (ANC) to understand that South Africa is a constitutional democracy, and provide desperately needed leadership to protect this fundamental principle? President Zuma’s apology and the ANC’s acceptance and defence of it are missed opportunities to reclaim credibility and the moral high ground. […]

Countless adventurers have jumped, abseiled and done a free-fall off the iconic Orlando Towers, and now the famous old power station in Soweto is going to get some new art. A competition is underway to select whose it will be. A panel comprised of visual artist Helen Sebidi, illustrator Karabo Poppy Moletsane and fine artist Bambo Sibiya will oversee the […]

From early childhood, electronics whizz Boswell Mhlongo spent his time tinkering with TVs, broken irons and kettles. In adulthood, after being sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of a policeman, Mhlongo discovered he was also a computer boff – a talent that enabled him to access an on-line dating site from the confines of […]

JOHANNESBURG – Global accountancy firm KPMG and South African investment bank Sasfin have severed ties with a company owned by the Guptas, a family of Indian-born businessmen, due to a scandal over their relationship with South African President Jacob Zuma. In an email to KPMG staff seen by Reuters, local chief executive Trevor Hoole said […]

The funeral of murdered activist Sikhosiphi Bazooka Rhadebe took place on Saturday amid calls to bring the perpetrators to justice. Two journalists as well as members of the community were reportedly attacked during the service. Rhadebe was killed two weeks ago when assailants posing as police officers arrived at his home and gunned him down in […]

Khulubuse Zuma, businessman nephew of President Jacob Zuma, is one of the many names apparently mentioned in the millions of newly leaked documents that show celebrities and politicians around the world who have shady offshore investments. The so-called Panama Papers, which were leaked to media around the world,  come from the files of the Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca with details […]

The number of politicians, organisations and media calling for President Jacob Zuma to step down has mounted considerably since Thursday’s momentous court decision saying he had failed to defend or respect the constitution – although senior African National Party members have either dismissed the idea of his resignation or said it would only create more problems. Sunday Times […]

A day after President Jacob Zuma made his much-derided and much-criticised apology to the nation over Nkandla, one of his ministers was booed off the stage at the Cape Town International Jazz Festival. Arts and Culture Minister Nathi Mthethwa came on stage before the performance of SA duo Mafikizolo on Saturday, but was quickly met with […]

Want sun in your house all day? Look no further than this two-storey for sale in Helderberg, Somerset West, which turns. What’s more, access to the top floor can be cut off by lowering or raising a walkway at will.  The 625-square-metre house, which is on the market for R25 million, has a ground floor with a separate entrance […]

The office of President Jacob Zuma has rejected as “preposterous and malicious” an allegation by EFF leader Julius Malema that Zuma carried R6 billion to Dubai for the Gupta family. “Mr Malema’s allegation has no basis in fact,” the Presidency said in an unusual statement posted on Saturday, two days after Malema made the allegation on […]

Cliff divers Orlando Duque and Jonathan Paredes went in search of a challenge – and found it at Victoria Falls, Zambia, one of the seven natural wonders of the world. “This is one of the most beautiful places,” says Duque, who, with 13 cliff-diving world titles, two Guinness world records and more than 20 years […]

President Jacob Zuma has (finally) apologised for the Nkandla affair, but said that he had never deliberately intended to subvert the constitution. Zuma addressed the nation in a quickly arranged address on Friday night (which was only announced an hour before it was delivered), a day after the Constitutional Court ruled that Zuma had failed […]

While “Batman v Superman” plays out on movie screens, South Africa has some real superheroes who have swooped in during the presidency of Jacob Zuma to save the day. You might love them or disagree with them, but they deserve recognition and admiration. Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng The chief justice, who brought an end to the […]

After producing the more exclusive Roadster, Model S and Model X electric cars, Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced on Thursday that a five-seater sedan selling for a lot less – $35,000 – would come off the production line in 2017. Within 24 hours of the announcement, orders had reached 180,000. The car, which was launched in […]

“Buy local,” deputy president Cyril Ramaphosa exhorted a summit sponsored by Proudly South African this week in Sandton, Johannesburg. And we couldn’t agree more. “If we want our economy to grow,” he said, “then we need to buy more local goods and services. If we want new jobs and better opportunities, then we need to buy more local goods […]

The world premiere of the documentary about a South African woman who became an Israeli Mossad agent and an assassin took place in Ra’anana, Israel, on Tuesday. “Sylvia: Tracing Blood” is the story of Cape Town-born Sylvia Rafael, who was, as one review puts it, “a woman with a secret life, comprising triple identities, who […]

SA National Parks said it has successfully darted Sylvester, the lion that escaped from Karoo National Park earlier this week – for the second time – and whose plight generated a frenzy online when people heard that SANP was going to euthanise him. “SANParks search team has successfully darted the escaped lion from #KarooNationalPark outside […]

Political parties and politicians (and everyone with a Twitter account in South Africa) was quick to react to the Constitutional Court’s judgement against President Jacob Zuma and the National Assembly for failing to hold Zuma accountable, as well as the highest court’s insistence that the public protector was there to protect the constitution and the […]

JOHANNESBURG – The Constitutional Court, in a unanimous decision, on Thursday came down hard on President Jacob Zuma and the National Assembly for second-guessing the public protector Thuli Madonsela over her report about security upgrades at Zuma’s Nkandla home and demanding that remedial action be taken against the president. Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng said Zuma had failed […]

A group of Economic Freedom Fighters MPs turned up at the Unisa graduation ceremony on Wednesday to support their newly graduated party leader, Julius Malema. Malema graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Human and Social Studies. A trim-looking Malema was dressed in the official graduation garb and cap, forsaking EFF red for the evening.