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24 November 2023: Ombudsman honours best banks at resolving complaints The Ombudsman for Banking Services (OBS), Reana Steyn, has shown her appreciation to banks that have best co-operated with her office in resolving customers’ complaints. At the OBS Annual Banking Awards ceremony in Johannesburg on 24 November, Steyn, recognised those banks and their staff that …
BENONI: Kevin Sinclair held off a valiant all-round effort from the South Africa A (SA ‘A’) bowlers with an unbeaten 80...
By Simon Thomas A magic fixture and a bumper crowd Leo Cullen says there was something for everyone in a “magic fixture” as his Leinster team beat champions Munster 21-16 at a packed Aviva Stadium. A crowd of 49,246 turned out in Dublin to see Cullen’s charges gain revenge for last season’s play-off semi-final defeat …
NSRI STN 23 WILDERNESS At Sedgfield Lagoon Mouth a 41 year old local Good Samaritan bystander rescued an unidentified adult male from under the water and on bringing him to shore bystanders initiated CPR efforts and were able to restore a pulse and spontaneous breathing. NSRI Wilderness, Knysna Fire and Rescue Services, WC Government Health …
Dear Editor The recent devastating report by the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund has breathed life into former president Nelson Mandela’s words, “There is no keener revelation of a nation’s soul than the way it treats its children”. The report laid bare how the ANC government’s twisted priorities have undermined South African children. More than 27% …
Jan Hofman, NSRI St Lucia station commander, said: Police divers, assisted by iSimangaliso Wetland Park rangers and NSRI St Lucia are continuing in an ongoing search for a local 17 year old male who went missing in the surf while swimming at Jabula Beach, St Lucia, and who we believe was caught in rip currents …
A successful conversion by big Willem Alberts summed up the Vodacom United Rugby Championship weekend from a local perspective as the three South African sides playing at home ran amok against their visitors from Italy, Ireland and Wales. The 39-year-old Alberts, who played 43 Tests for the Springboks at loose forward between 2010 and 2016, …
The World Photography Organisation is delighted to announce the acclaimed Brazilian photographer Sebastião Salgado as the Outstanding Contribution to Photography recipient of the Sony World Photography Awards 2024. One of the most accomplished and globally celebrated photographers working today, Sebastião Salgado has achieved international renown for his remarkable black-and-white compositions captured over a career spanning …
The solution to toxic masculinity is healthy masculinity – over 300 000 men have learnt how to be good men, fathers, mentors, and role models through Father A Nation’s programmes. 20 NOVEMBER 2023, JOHANNESBURG: A father who was planning his family’s murder and his suicide; husbands who beat their partners; and men who abandon and …
Office of Tax Ombud ready to assist with complaints against SARS
While the Office of the Tax Ombud (OTO) is committed to those seeking assistance with their tax complaints against the South African Revenue Service (SARS), Tax Ombud Yanga Mputa has reminded citizens that the entity is not in the business of helping taxpayers and businesses dodge their tax responsibilities.
Addressing the celebration of 10 years of the existence of the Tax Ombud, Mputa reiterated that the OTO champions taxpayers' rights and tax compliance.
“The office provides taxpayers and tax practitioners with a simple and impartial channel to seek a resolution for a service, procedural or administrative dispute they might have already unsuccessfully tried to resolve through SARS's complaints management channels.
“We play a unique taxpayer complaints resolution role and align with the Public Protector... The Public Protector exists to ensure administrative justice by being a check on the exercise by the government and its agencies of their authority, and on the other hand, the Tax Ombud exists to ensure administrative justice by being a check on the exercise of authority by SARS,” she said on Friday in Pretoria.
Mputa said the OTO is celebrating a decade of making a difference in the lives of taxpayers and a beacon of hope to scores who have tax complaints with the revenue collector.
Taking place under the theme: “10 Years of Making Taxpayers' Rights Matter," the Tax Ombud said until the establishment of the office, there was no independent redress channel for taxpayers, who had exhausted the normal SARS complaints mechanisms.
“The OTO was not a 'nice to have' but a prerequisite institution that has positively contributed to improving our country's tax administration system. Our intervention has saved taxpayers millions of rands, homes and businesses, to mention a few. However, we are not oblivious that we would not have achieved all this without our stakeholders,” she said.
Mputa said one of the important commitments of the Office of the Tax Ombud is the improvement of South Africa's tax administration system.
“Defending taxpayer rights is central to a tax system that follows a voluntary compliance/self-assessment tax system. In a voluntary compliance/self-assessment tax system, if taxpayers believe they are treated or may be treated arbitrarily and impulsively, they may mistrust the tax system and be less likely to comply with the law voluntarily.
“On the other hand, if taxpayers have confidence in the fairness and integrity of the tax system, they will be more likely to comply,” the Tax Ombud said.
In 2022, the Office of the Tax Ombud published the country's first-ever Compilation of Taxpayers' Rights, Entitlements and Obligations.
“This document's main aim is to highlight taxpayers' rights and obligations as contained in various laws, including the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 and the Tax Administration Act, 2011,” Mputa said. – SAnews.gov.za
nosihle
Sun, 11/26/2023 - 10:12
Eskom reduces load shedding to Stage 4
Eskom has seen a significant improvement in its generating capacity due the return of some generating units that were lost to service and the replenishment of emergency reserves at the pumped storage and Open Cycle Gas Turbine (OCGT) power stations.
Due to this improvement, Eskom announced the reduction in the implementation of Stage 6 to Stage 4 load shedding, starting on Sunday from 12pm until 5am on Monday.
“We have seen significant improvement from Friday when we implemented Stage 6 load shedding and on Saturday. We have made progress as a result of the intensification of load shedding. The [diesel] volumes at Ankerlig Power Station… are sitting at 55%, Acacia Power Station at 50% and Port Rex Power Station at about 55%.
“Once they are above these levels we should be able to manage them. In relation to our pump storage at Drakensberg [we have] additional generation hours, it is about 90 hours of generation, Ingula we have 58 hours of generation and at Palmiet 33 hours of generation,” Minister in the Presidency responsible for Electricity, Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, said on Sunday.
He made these remarks while providing an update on electricity generation performance following the implementation of Stage 6 load shedding by Eskom.
The power utility said Stage 3 load shedding will be implemented from 5am until 4pm on Monday, followed by Stage 4 load shedding from 4pm until 5am on Tuesday.
This pattern of implementing Stage 3 load shedding in the morning and Stage 4 load shedding in the evening will be repeated daily until Thursday.
The Minister noted that Matla unit 2 has come back, Arnot unit 3 has come back and Tutuka has come back.
“Two things have happened that we promised. We have replenished our emergency reserves and some units have come back… Kriel unit 3 has come back. There’s an expectation that on Sunday… Medupi 5 [will come back] and [on Monday], we are planning to receive two units, Majuba and Lethabi,” Ramokgopa said.
He explained that on Friday there was a spike in the demand of above by 1 500 megawatts (MW).
“We had to do one of two things - either continue to deploy the emergency reserves, which we were depleting faster than anticipated, so that was not an option.
“The second option - intensify load shedding and that is the option that we followed because it is the most judicious option, with the challenges that were confronting us.
“The major problem started the week preceding the last one where we had significant amount of losses and this meant that we had to engage our emergency reserves,” the Minister said.
Eskom took a decision to engage the emergency reserves because we they were anticipating generating units to come back on time to provide relief.
“Indeed those units that were scheduled to come back were able to come back on time but then we had a significant amount of units that were failing. When we opened the week of 13 November, the emergency reserves were at levels below 70%.
“This includes our pump storage and the OCGT. As we continued to deploy them, there was significant reduction in those reserves, which is the dam levels and OCGT.
“There was a significant dip on 21 November and that significant dip in relation to the emergency reserves coincided with us losing units because we must compensate the megawatts that are lost as a result of the dip.
“Once it [the dip] reached critical levels, our primary preoccupation was to protect the grid and we pulled the emergency reserves back and as we pulled them back, it means that there were less megawatts available,” the Minister said.
He reiterated that if Eskom builds an additional buffer, it means that the country will be less prone to major fluctuations in the intensity of load shedding.
“…That’s why unit 2 and 5 at Kusile Power Station are important. We are targeting those to come back by the third week of December. Once you build that buffer, even if you had to have extraordinary events, there is some degree of buffer and therefore the rate at which we intensify load shedding might not be as severe as we have experienced over the last 30 hours or so,” the Minister said. – SAnews.gov.za
nosihle
Sun, 11/26/2023 - 11:32
Government committed to ending GBV
Deputy President Paul Mashatile has reiterated that government remains committed to work aimed at eradicating the scourge of gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF).
“We will not rest until our communities are safe for all, especially women and girls. We must report and condemn the perpetrators who reside within our communities,” the Deputy President said on Saturday.
Mashatile presided over the launch of the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children campaign for 2023 at Nsikazi Stadium in Gutshwa, Mpumalanga.
The 16 Days of Activism for No Violence against Women and Children campaign this year will be commemorated under the theme: “Accelerating Actions to end Gender-Based Violence and Femicide: Leaving No One Behind”.
This is a call to action to raise awareness about the devastating impact that gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF) has on women, children and the entire social fabric.
“Since the dawn of democracy, this government has consistently shown commitment to addressing GBV by implementing legislative, policy and other measures to advance equality and empowerment for women, children, and people with disabilities.
“Recently, we passed six pieces of legislation related to gender-based violence and femicide, and the ongoing implementation costing exercise underscores our commitment to ending GBVF,” Mashatile said.
He mentioned that one significant milestone is the recent assent of President Cyril Ramaphosa to crucial legislative reforms, which include the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act Amendment Bill, the Criminal and Related Matters Amendment Bill, and the Domestic Violence Amendment Bill.
“This month marks a historic milestone with the passing of the National Council on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide Bill by the National Assembly. The establishment of the National Council on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide, underpinned by this robust legislative framework, is an urgent and critical task.
“In addition, we have established and capacitated the Rapid Response Teams (RRTs) at provincial and local levels to end the pandemic. This includes the development of the Comprehensive National Gender-Based Violence and Femicide Prevention and the Integrated Femicide Strategic Frameworks, which signal a holistic approach to turning the gender-based violence tide,” Mashatile said.
The Deputy President noted the National School of Government's effort to impart knowledge through a dedicated online course covering gender mainstreaming and gender-responsive planning and budgeting, which exemplifies government's commitment to mainstreaming women's and girls’ priorities.
“The existence of the Intersectional Shelter Policy, the Psycho-Social Support Services (PSSS) Policy, and the Gender-Based Violence Command Centre, which is a 24-hour helpline, demonstrates our resolve to provide essential services and support to survivors.
“Provinces are identifying and refurbishing underutilised buildings for shelters and interim housing. The Thuthuzela Care Centres (TCCs) are being expanded, with three new centres established. Our initiatives primarily focus on bolstering women’s economic empowerment across diverse sectors,” Mashatile said.
He recognised efforts by the South African Police Service (SAPS) in combatting GBV and femicide.
“The recent identification and takedown of 27 sexual predators in the country and the recent sentencing of Mario Giusti to 6 400 years in jail after being found guilty of more than 1 000 charges of child pornography is a step in the right direction.
“Witnessing such law enforcement actions is encouraging, and we hope to observe further arrests of this nature in the future,” Mashatile said.
He called on government, communities and civil society to act on the widespread prejudice against the LGBTQIA+ community and the apathy that allows the victims to be "invisible" and denied basic human rights.
“Moreover, we must understand that sexual violence is not only about sexism. A woman can perpetrate against a man, a man can perpetrate against a woman, and it can happen between same-sex couples as well.
“Today, we must recommit ourselves to ending violence against women and children. We have the ability to shape a future in which women and children are safe and their rights are respected.
“I urge men in our communities to be role models to young boys. Remember, boys are born, and men are made. As men, we can help develop men in our society who respect women; men who do not see women as objects; men who recognise the equality of women,” he said.
The Deputy President also urged traditional leaders to intensify their role as community leaders against unfair inheritance practices and GBVF.
“As custodians of our culture, customs and origin, you must say no to cultural practices that are harmful to women and children, such as ukuthwala, child muthi killings, witchcraft burning, and many other practices.
“Let us join together, leaving no one behind, as a community to accelerate actions to end gender-based violence and femicide,” Mashatile said. – SAnews.gov.za
nosihle
Sun, 11/26/2023 - 09:02
DPWI exploring strategies to improve the management of assets
Public Works and Infrastructure Minister, Sihle Zikalala, says his department is exploring various strategies to improve the management of its assets.
Zikalala said the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) manages an extensive property portfolio of 28 683 registered and unregistered land parcels on which about 77 537 improvements (buildings and structures) are located across 52 client departments countrywide.
Addressing the Western Cape Property Sector engagement in Cape Town on Thursday, Zikalala said at present, the immovable asset portfolio under the custodianship of the DPWI comprises approximately 30 000 land parcels or 4.7 million hectares of land on which roughly 90 000 facilities (equivalent to 33.9 million m² of floor space) are located.
The DPWI is a custodian of the Government Immovable Asset Management Act, 2007 (GIAMA) which provides a regulatory framework of basic principles in terms of which national and provincial departments must manage the immovable assets that they control in executing their mandates.
“We can have a revitalised, attractive state owned property where there is optimal utilisation of state owned buildings, curbing of illegal occupation of buildings, reduced reliance on private leases while promoting longer term lease arrangements that will contribute to property upgrades, and improve energy efficiency.”
Zikalala said in collaboration with industry, the department has an opportunity to put state owned properties into good use to create value, generate income to support the ailing economy, provide sustainable employment, and drive transformation.
“To effectively deliver on our legislative mandate as the real estate agent of the state, we seek to leverage on available expertise, resources, and innovation within the property sector for the benefit of users of the accommodation space.
“We have seen, for an example, how [a] lack of maintenance results in dilapidated buildings and invites social ills such as crime and environmental degradation which in turn affects business; improper surroundings fail to attract investments.
“We only have one country and it is in our hands to work together for the common good. The ‘us and them’ paradigm only creates tensions and misunderstanding and as a result all parties suffer in the process,” the Minister said.
Zikalala said many parts of South Africa lose economic opportunities as a result of the failure to maintain and commercialise state buildings.
“Failure to adopt proactive asset management strategies in the public sector and lack of maintenance of existing buildings speed up their deterioration process.
“As you would know, several government buildings are old and some are more than 100 years old, and the number of vacant buildings is growing. Such vacancy increases the costs of maintaining and upkeep of these buildings without a return on investment,” Zikalala said.
DPWI’s focus is on public land and building assets and infrastructure and the way in which they can be utilised to stimulate and sustain economic growth in the built environment. – SAnews.gov.za
Edwin
Fri, 11/24/2023 - 10:23
Ample space available for children in need, KZN assures
The KwaZulu-Natal Social Development Department has reassured the public that there is ample space available to accommodate children in need of care and protection in uMgungundlovu District.
This follows recent reports circulating in some media outlets suggesting that there is a lack of space in Child and Youth Care Centres (CYCC) in uMgungundlovu District.
“We wish to clarify that our CYCCs in the uMgungundlovu District are not operating at full capacity. Recent headlines conveyed misinformation, implying that children were left without shelter due to space constraints in facilities.
“The department categorically dismisses these claims and wants to reassure the public that there is ample space available to accommodate children in need of care and protection. This marks the first instance of encountering such misinformation, considering our longstanding commitment to providing safe and nurturing environments for children across the district,” the department said in a statement.
According to the department, Social Development maintains a strong working relationship with private children's centres, and none of them have raised concerns about space shortages, as they know that when children first come to them, they can contact State facilities.
The department, which is the custodian of children’s rights, has called on citizens with children in distress to contact its office.
“Our CYCCs have a commendable track record, consistently upholding the highest standards of care for the children entrusted with our care. We urge the public to rely on accurate information and refrain from spreading unfounded panic.
“The department is fully equipped to handle cases involving vulnerable children and there is no shortage of space in our CYCCs. It is crucial that individuals encountering children in distress immediately contact our State social workers to ensure proper placement,” the department said.
The provincial department has also encouraged the public to collaborate with them by utilising the State CYCCs to collectively provide a secure and caring environment for children facing challenging circumstances.
“Dedicated to promoting the well-being of individuals, families and communities in the province, the department focuses on child and youth care, operating CYCCs to ensure the safety and protection of children in need,” the department said. – SAnews.gov.za
GabiK
Fri, 11/24/2023 - 10:34
Nine judges in three courts have now ruled that Ezulweni Investments had a binding contract with the ANC
On the weekend of 10 November 2023, Treverton College organised its first orienteering and rogaining event. In the subject of Outdoor Pursuits, we do have the students doing these events, but this is the first one that was open to the public. Garry Townsend, the head of Outdoor Pursuits at Treverton, organised the event in …
Eskom working on returning lost units back to service
With the implementation of Stage 6 load shedding, Minister in the Presidency responsible for Electricity, Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, has assured citizens that Eskom is working to ensure that generating units that have been lost are returned to service and that the emergency reserves are replenished.
Addressing a media briefing on Friday, the Minister said the implementation of Stage 6 load shedding is a significant setback but government remains confident in its ability to resolve the energy security challenge.
Stage 6 load shedding was implemented from 12pm today and is expected to end on Monday at 5am due to the loss of five generating units over the past 24 hours, the need to replenish emergency reserves and an increase in demand.
“We think that in the next two weeks, we will have an additional buffer. We are expecting Unit 2 of Kusile to come online by the end of this month and we expect Unit 5 at Kusile to come online by the third week of December,” Ramokgopa said.
He said Eskom is sitting at about 14 590 megawatts (MW) of unplanned capacity loss factor (UCLF) and the vacuum losses are about 807MW.
“If you put it together, we are talking about 15 300MW. That is not out of the norm if you look at [it in relation to] the winter plan. We had over committed our reserves for purposes of protecting the grid.
“We need to ensure that we continue to protect reserves so we are not going to engage them at a high intensity and as a result, you don’t have the benefit of the 4 600MW that you would ordinarily draw from our emergency reserves.
"By not engaging the reserves, it means that Eskom will be replenishing those reserves and we are going to draw from the grid.
“That’s why we need the additional capacity. That is why that capacity is not be made available to the average consumer. It is for Eskom to consume for purposes of replenishing the dam levels.
“As a result of engaging the emergency reserves, we are depleting them and they perform a very important function, which is the protecting of the grid. If things were to go bad, we will draw from the emergency reserves.
“At any given point, [you want] to be able to draw from the emergency reserves in instances of extreme occurrences, which we have not experienced and don’t anticipate to experience. We continue to work with the team at Eskom to ensure that we improve the situation,” the Minister said.
Eskom Group Executive: Generation, Bheki Nxumalo, said the demand increased on Friday and it is continuously above by 1 500MW.
“The low reserves caused for intensified stages of load shedding. The units that we have lost between Thursday and Friday include Duvha Unit 4, Majuba Unit 3 and Lethabo Unit 6,” Nxumalo said. – SAnews.gov.za
nosihle
Fri, 11/24/2023 - 16:57
Culinary Alchemy: Vusi Buthelezi takes the helm as Executive Chef at @Sandton Hotel @Sandton Hotel is delighted to announce the appointment of Vusi Buthelezi as the Executive Chef of the hotel., Chef Vusi shared brings his wealth of culinary expertise and innovative flair to the hotel, which is located on Benmore Road in a prestigious …
Have your say on Scrap Metal Policy
The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (the dtic) has published a request for comments from interested parties on key aspects of the Scrap Metals Policy.
These aspects include:
On 15 June 2023, a trade policy directive and notice were published that ferrous and non-ferrous waste and scrap metal may not be exported from South Africa for six months from June to December 2023.
In addition, the International Trade Administration Commission of South Africa (ITAC) suspended the operation of the Price Preference System for the exportation of ferrous and non-ferrous waste and scrap metal for the same period.
The trade directive and notice forms part of Phase 1 of the Policy Implementation Actions on Measures to Restrict and Regulate Trade in Ferrous and Non Ferrous Metals Waste, Scrap and Semi-Finished Ferrous and Non Ferrous Metal Products to Limit Damage to Infrastructure and the Economy published in Government Gazette No. 47627.
Last year Cabinet considered and approved a comprehensive package of measures to address damage to public infrastructure and the economy by restricting the trade of waste scrap and semi processed metals.
Below is the link to the new gazette:
http://www.thedtic.gov.za/wp-content/uploads/Scrap-Metals-Gazette-49765.pdf
Comments can be hand delivered to the Director General of the dtic at 77 Meintjies Street, BlockA, 1st floor, Sunnyside, Pretoria or via email on scrapmetalpolicy2023@thedtic.gov.za. – SAnews.gov.za
Edwin
Fri, 11/24/2023 - 10:42
Afrika Tikkun and Microsoft Unite South African Businesses to Revolutionise Youth Employability and Close the Skills Gap Some of the country’s largest corporations at a recent roundtable discussion co-hosted by youth development group, Afrika Tikkun (AT) and Microsoft have questioned whether SA’s unemployment challenges are truly about job availability rather than a mismatch in skills …
Afrika Tikkun Services (ATS) in partnership with HSBC Bank hosted the 5th Annual Alumni Entrepreneur Network (AEN) Business Summit, on 11 November 2023, celebrating their ingenious entrepreneurs. The Summit provided young entrepreneurs with an opportunity to pitch their innovative business ideas or present their existing businesses to a panel of judges and a chance to …
HARARE: The SA Emerging Women levelled the ongoing six-match T20 series against Zimbabwe 2-2 following a 12-run victory in the fourth...
President Ramaphosa opens Dr Pixley Ka Isaka Seme Memorial Hospital
The opening of the Dr Pixley Ka Isaka Seme Memorial Hospital is a reflection of government’s commitment to advancing the call of the Freedom Charter.
The Charter calls for free medical care and hospitalisation to be provided for all and for the health of women and children to be prioritised.
President Cyril Ramaphosa said this at the official opening of the Dr Pixley Ka Isaka Seme Memorial Hospital in Kwa-Mashu, KwaZulu-Natal, on Friday.
“This facility has been built in response to the growing pressing healthcare needs of the approximately 1.5 million residents of Kwa-Mashu, Inanda, Ntuzuma and the surrounding communities in northern Durban.
“It will relieve pressure on the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Hospital and Addington Hospital, and will cater for inpatients at a regional level, with referrals from surrounding district level facilities,” he said.
The President highlighted that data from the Census 2022 points not just to a growing population, but confirms that the vast majority of South Africans rely on the public sector to meet their healthcare needs.
Another report published this month by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) furthermore points to the growing healthcare burden of non-communicable diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, chronic lower respiratory diseases, cancers and others.
“With more people living with non-communicable diseases, it is essential that healthcare systems respond accordingly at a primary healthcare level, particularly with regards to regular screening to ensure timely diagnosis and treatment. This facility will play a critical role in this regard,” he said.
He added that it is pleasing to note that the hospital has an active primary healthcare outreach programme that is bringing much-needed healthcare services closer to the people.
Services
The commissioning of the hospital was implemented in a phased approach from August 2021. First radiology was commissioned, followed by optometry and dermatology, and the migration of Internal Medicine from Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Hospital.
In January this year, the Emergency Department commenced with providing services. Currently all emergency cases in the north of eThekwini are taken directly from the scene, from primary healthcare centers, community healthcare centers and district hospitals.
The facility offers an impressive range of services including critical care, dental, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, psychological services, dietetics, audiology, social work and many more.
The hospital also has a strong academic and research component and is one of the centers for postgraduate medical training, as well as providing rotation for final year medical students from the University of KwaZulu-Natal.
This hospital is also the first government hospital in the province to adopt an insourced model in components such as security, cleaning, laundry and food services.
With respect to human resources, out of the approved hospital establishment of 1 513, a total of 1 383 posts have already been filled as of end September 2023. The construction of the facility itself supported job creation and small business development.
The President said he had no doubt that the hospital will improve the health outcomes of all the communities it serves.
“We have no doubt that the people of this community and of this province know that we are [a] government that prioritises the needs of all, but especially of society’s most vulnerable.”
President Ramaphosa further said he was honoured to be present at the official opening of the hospital and that there can be no more befitting a name for this facility than that of the great Dr. Pixley Ka Isaka Seme.
He lauded him as a man who was the moving spirit behind the formation of the African National Congress, the oldest liberation movement in the African continent.
“He was a committed Pan-Africanist and a humanist, who famously spoke of a brighter day rising upon Africa; and of an Africa whose sons and daughters who would one day walk in the light of progress, freedom and equality.
Healthcare for all
President Ramaphosa added that the hospital stands as a testament to government’s commitment to ensure that the right to life, the right to quality healthcare, and the right to equality will never be qualified, or determined on the basis of where you live, or how much or little you have.
As the country will mark 30 years of democracy next year, the President said it will be a time to reflect on how far we have come in realising the aspirations of the Freedom Charter, the Constitution with its Bill of Rights, and the National Development Plan.
“That we are a country that is able to provide quality healthcare services, free, to the population can certainly be counted as amongst our greatest achievements.
“That we are moving ahead with the introduction of National Health Insurance that will further democratise access to healthcare services, is something of which we can be proud,” the President said. – SAnews.gov.za
DikelediM
Fri, 11/24/2023 - 14:21
Dear Editor The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Johannesburg has received official confirmation that our motion to dissolve the Johannesburg Council has been successfully cleared by the programming committee and is set to be tabled by the end of November. This pivotal development marks a critical juncture for the political landscape of the city. Johannesburg has …