South Africans have been battered by power shortages for several years. These have worsened to the point that towards the end of 2022 the country’s electricity utility, Eskom, had only half of its power generation capacity operational. This has forced Eskom to escalate its rotational power cuts. By mid-January 2023, users were typically without electricity […]

After narrowly escaping a harrowing mob attack on Wednesday near Hoedspruit in Limpopo province, well-known wildlife filmmaker John Varty has taken to social media to share his experience and concerns for the governance – or lack thereof – of South Africa. Varty says: “I fear for myself, I fear for my family, I fear for South […]

The repurchase rate (repo rate) in South Africa reached 7.25% after the SA Reserve Bank’s (SARB) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) agreed to a 25 basis points hike. The increase means that the repo rate will now be 7.25% per year from 27 January 2023, with prime now at 10.75%. SARB Governor Lesetja Kganyago made the […]

Invest Africa CEO Rob Hersov had the crowds chanting ‘Voetsek ANC, Voetsek Luthuli House’ today (Wed 25 Jan), as South Africans joined DA Leader John Steenhuisen in the Power to the People March to the ANC’s headquarters in Johannesburg. Steenhuisen said it was inspiring to see so many people who “still have the spirit for […]

About 60 people marched from Church Square across Pretoria to the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA) and the Union Buildings on Friday. They were demanding an end to load-shedding and objecting to the recent electricity tariff hikes authorised by the regulator. Not In My Name (NIMN) in partnership with Mamelodi Nellmapius Eersterust Shareholders […]

Today, hundreds of Capetonians are expected to join the DA in the Western Cape in taking to the streets of Cape Town to tell the ANC: “Enough loadshedding! Enough cadre deployment! Enough price hikes! Enough corruption!” The DA says: “We will march to the ANC’s provincial head office in the Western Cape to voice our […]

As media outlets around the world report on South Africa “openly siding with Russia” as the countries prepare for a maritime exercise together with China, SA’s Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor accused critics of having double-standards. Appearing to ignore Russia’s ongoing war with Ukraine, Dr Pandor said “all countries conduct military exercises with friends worldwide”. She […]

President Cyril Ramaphosa has moved to assure South Africans that government is using every means and resource at its disposal to get more capacity onto Eskom’s grid “as a matter of extreme urgency” with the Energy Action Plan at the core. The President was addressing the nation through his weekly newsletter after South Africans have […]

The DA is today fighting in court in Pretoria to have “cadre deployment corruption” declared unconstitutional and unlawful. DA Leader, John Steenhuisen and DA Shadow Minister of Public Service, Dr Leon Schreiber, are at the North Gauteng High Court where the DA is arguing that the abolishment of cadre deployment is a fundamental prerequisite if […]

Home Affairs Minister, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, has welcomed a High Court Gauteng North judgment confirming that Atul Gupta is a fugitive from justice and therefore does not qualify for a South African passport, as the Department had contended. The Court issued the judgment on Friday. On 25 September 2018, having fled South Africa in the […]

Here’s what’s coming up on Carte Blanche this week. You can watch the show today, Sunday 22 January in South Africa on DStv Now OR stream it overseas in most countries on Showmax from Tuesday 24 January if you’re abroad. The Piano Prodigy The piano is one of the most difficult musical instruments to play, […]

The South African government says it has acknowledged the frustration of South Africans, due to a combination of factors, which have led to sporadic protests that occurred on Monday in Parys, Kroonstad, Randfontein and Phoenix. It also called for calm as a series of protests were reported in parts of the country on Monday. In […]

President Cyril Ramaphosa has cancelled his travel plans to Davos, Switzerland, in order to deal with the current load-shedding crisis in South Africa. Although South Africans have been to this rodeo before – when the president cut short his UK trip and cancelled the New York leg to return home last year to address the […]

Here’s what’s coming up on Carte Blanche this week. You can watch the show today, Sunday 15 January in South Africa on DStv Now OR stream it overseas in most countries on Showmax from Tuesday 17 January if you’re abroad. The Art of Neglect It was a flagrant heist: a man walks into a prestigious […]

The decision by the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA) to increase electricity tariffs by 18.65%, despite consumers spending over 120 days in darkness in 2022, with indefinite stage 6 loadshedding already in 2023, is official sanctioned daylight robbery against consumers… writes Ghaleb Cachalia MP – DA Shadow Minister of Public Enterprises. It is […]

JUST IN: Nersa has approved 18.65% Eskom tariff increase. (See video below.) I have written to President Ramaphosa to request an urgent meeting about Eskom and the growing power crisis, which now has South Africa on stage 6 until further notice… writes DA Leader, John Steenhuisen. I want to hear from him first-hand why his government […]

The DA notes the expressed intention of the governing party to move Eskom away from Public Enterprises to the Ministry of Energy… writes Ghaleb Cachalia MP – DA Shadow Minister of Public Enterprises The DA is implacably against this move and will fight it, tooth and nail, with all the levers at our disposal. We share […]

Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment Minister, Barbara Creecy is expected to visit the South African Antarctic Programme’s Research Station, known as SANAE IV, in Queen Maud Land. In a statement, the department explained that South Africa has had a presence in the Antarctic since 1960 and has contributed to scientific knowledge in the area and […]

South Africa has issued a statement strongly condemning the events that took place in Brazil on Sunday. Rioters stormed the Congress and Supreme Court buildings in the capital city, Brasilia. According to media reports about 1,500 people have been held over Sunday’s riots. They came a week after President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was […]

The KwaZulu-Natal provincial government has denied reports that it spent R50 million on the funeral of Kwaito and Gqom musician, Mandla “Mampintsha” Maphumulo. According to the government, a fake statement was released in the name of a former KZN Premier in order to sow seeds of division between the ANC and artists. KZN-based musician Mampintsha […]

South Africa’s Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) has announced that the price of both grades of petrol will decrease by R2.06 per litre, while diesel is to drop by between R2.68 (500ppm) and R2.80 (50ppm). The new prices, effective from today (Wednesday 4 Jan), mean that a litre of 95 unleaded petrol will […]

The Gqeberha High Court today ordered that the mayoral committee and the multiparty coalition remain in government in Nelson Mandela Bay. The coalition said in a joint statement: “We are delighted that the first leg of justice has been served.” The coalition government said it believes that the interdict, which will later be heard in […]

South African police have been called upon to leave « no stone unturned » in the pursuit of criminals who kidnapped two engineers in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) last week. The Department of Water and Sanitation said the hijacked engineers had been contracted by the Mhlathuze Water Board. They were apparently working to restore water infrastructure in […]

TotalEnergies, the French energy giant, intends to drill up to ten exploration wells for oil and gas in the deepwater Orange Basin along the west coast, as well as conduct sonar surveys and vertical seismic profiling, among other operations. The explorations will span from 188 kilometres offshore to 340 kilometres from the coast. French energy […]

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – South African President Cyril Ramaphosa was re-elected leader of the governing African National Congress (ANC) on Monday, overcoming the “Farmgate” scandal (referring to the robbery and subsequent cover-up at his Phala Phala farm) and paving the way for him to contest the presidency again at 2024 elections. By Kopano Gumbi, Alexander Winning […]