AFRICA’S BEST READ November 1 to 7 2019 Vol 35 No 44 @mailandguardian mg.co.za Tito’s ‘mini-budget’: Ask Os du Randt: Harsh reality and A final is how legends hard choices 19 & 20 are born SPORT Cyril in a Gwede THE GOOD NEWS O NPA’s Asset Forfeiture Unit trap recovers nearly R12-billion The O The women healing the divided president needs appeal court the tiger on his O The family finding home team but he cannot on the road ignore the bribe allegations Our stories about the people making South Africa better Pages 6 to 13 Page 3 2 Mail & Guardian November 1 to 7 2019 IN BRIEF Budget Grinch fi nds R1.3bn for NPA ppm Finance Minister Tito Mboweni put in a stel- NUMBERS OF THE WEEK 408.4440 lar bid for the prize of the Grinch with his As of September this is the level of carbon doomsday medium-term budget policy state- dioxide in the atmosphere. A safe number ment speech. But there was a sliver of light, at New Zealand is 350 while 450 is catastrophic least for the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) and its head, Shamila Batohi, who’s South Data source: NASA complained to all and sundry that she doesn’t Africa have enough money to fi ght state capture. The budget chef dug deep into his pantry and Glug, glug, glug – found R1.3-billion to help the caped crusaders. With tales of looting, maladministration and The amount Sasol will sink us blatant theft a near daily occurrence at the Australia Zondo commission, not to mention the daily Finance Minister Tito Mboweni said on The number of countries that Good news! bread of newspapers for more than a decade, Wednesday that the state spends in a have4 won the Rugby World Cup. Sasol has committed to reducing its car- there is surely some low-hanging fruit for the year on cellphones for public servants New Zealand has won it three times, England bon emissions by 10%. This is a company prosecuting authority to go after. Australia and South Africa twice, and England once that was created to turn coal into fuel. So the commitment is something. As is the Malema off the hook John acceptance that it contributes to global for hate speech Witherspoon The age of warming. The equality court veteran actor That’s the end of the good news. has dismissed and comedian The 10% reduction is as absurd as the Public Enterprises 77 John Witherspoon — Economic Freedom Fighters’ election Minister Pravin campaign promise to cut South Africa’s Gordhan’s hate loved as Grandad in the carbon emissions by 5%. Neither are cog- speech case against TV series Boondocks — nisant of the reality of the climate crisis. Economic Freedom when he died this week The United Nations says global car- Fighters leader Julius bon emissions have to drop by 45% by Malema. The red beret leader had called 2030. If they don’t, life on Earth becomes Gordhan a “dog of white monopoly capital”, Happy 50th birthday to the internet — treacherous. among other expletives, during an address the first message over a network of com- The number of buildings South Africa has largely ignored this outside the Zondo commission last year. In puters that would evolve into the inter- 81 000 owned by the department science. In a report released last month its judgement the court found that, although net was sent 50 years ago this week of public works and infrastructure, of which detailing its climate plans, Sasol does a Malema’s utterances promoted hatred of 703 are vacant, according to the Freedom good job of appearing as if it is doing a Gordhan and were “obnoxious” and “juvenile”, great deal to reduce emissions — but then they did not constitute hate speech in its nar- Front Plus. Property taxes are R36m a year it explains why the company can’t actually row defi nition. Gordhan was further ordered do much. to pay costs. For context: Sasol is the second largest The number of years serial rapist, burglar polluter in South Africa; it lobbies for ‘Dodgy’ doc suspended for botched ups and cop killer Bongani Lucky Masuku environmental laws to be watered down The death of a 10-year-old boy undergoing rou- was sentenced to in the Pretoria high and it applies for exemptions to comply tine surgery has raised serious questions about 758court, sitting in the Benoni magistrates court with already weak air quality legislation. the accountability of medical staff . Surgeon Graphic: JOHN McCANN Compiled by: ATHANDIWE SABA Sasol is as bad a petrochemical com- Dr Peter Beale, together with anaesthetist Dr pany as you can get. But petrochemical Abdulhay Munshi were both suspended from companies are collapsing as investors practising at Netcare and Life Healthcare clin- compound was bombarded move their money to assets that care ics after Zayyaan Sayed died following surgery to ensure it doesn’t become TWEET OF THE WEEK about the future. So Sasol has to be seen at Joburg’s Park Lane Clinic. Beale reportedly a shrine for followers and to be doing something. Its climate change has a number of negligence complaints against Baghdadi’s remains were report — Positioning For Resilience In him with questions now being asked about the dumped at sea. Military a Lower-carbon Future — starts with effi ciency of the Health Professions Council of commanders would not an admission of the scale of the climate South Africa (HPCSA), which is tasked with confi rm that Baghdadi was crisis: “The next decade is deemed criti- investigating these claims. The Economic “crying” and “whimpering” cal for emissions reductions to prevent Freedom Fighters have also now stepped in, in the moments before his further natural disasters and ecosystem insisting the HPCSA suspend Beale — the fact death, as claimed by Trump. impacts, and to safeguard the quality of that Sayed is a colleague of Malema’s tobacco life for future generations.” smuggling associate Adriano Mazzotti is of Payback of VBS At the heart of the report is an admis- course a coincidence. plunder under way sion of Sasol’s real problem — its polluting The former chief executive business model cannot exist in a world IS leader blown up, of VBS Mutual bank has where carbon emissions are dramatically buried at sea lost his bid to interdict the seizure of his and become the fi rst to put his hand up for the job reduced. The company notes: “This [10% With the “‘fake news his wife’s assets. Andile Ramavhunga was of interim party leader. The party is facing a reduction] target is challenging for a media” constantly at the helm of the bank from which more Damascus moment after a series of prominent carbon-intensive petrochemicals business spinning new than R2-billion was stolen, with Economic events, including the election of Helen Zille with limited alternative energy sources.” fables about the Freedom Fighters leaders Julius Malema and to the role of federal executive chairperson In the medium term, the company genius in the White Floyd Shivambu repeatedly implicated in the and the subsequent resignation of Mmusi admits it will have to shift “our portfolio House, Donald theft in recent months. Others implicated in Maimane from the party entirely. With some towards operations and businesses that are Trump needed a the large-scale plunder of the bank include sharply divergent political views playing out compatible with a lower-carbon economy”. break. That came in the auditors KPMG, municipal council offi cers in this remnant of “the blue machine”, pundits The Sasol of today cannot exist in the form of the United States Special Forces, and senior bank managers. The money from have been poring over the carcass of the DA. future. But this is a country where dif- whose renown as tracker dogs knows no the sequestration of the bank offi cials will But perhaps the best analysis thus far has fi cult decisions are rarely taken — espe- bounds. Not ones to give up on a bone, they go towards repaying creditors of the now- come from Steenhuisen, who described his cially when it comes to the climate crisis. tracked down Islamic State (IS) leader Abu defunct bank. party as a “big blue wobbling jelly with noth- — Sipho Kings Bakr al-Baghdadi to a compound in northern ing holding it upright”. Allaying fears that the Syria. US authorities say that when Baghdadi Jelly baby DA looking for a spine DA was reverting to an all-white leadership, was cornered, he blew himself up, together Newly elected Democratic Alliance (DA) Natasha Mazzone, she of the dark father, has with two children under the age of 12. The parliamentary leader John Steenhuisen has been appointed as chief whip. Published by M&G Media Ltd, SUBSCRIPTIONS Eighth Floor, Metal Box, Inquiries: 011 447 0696 or Right of reply: Lindinkosi Ndibongo 25 Owl Street, Braamfontein SMS “subs” to 34917 Werf, Johannesburg, South Complaints: 0860 070 700 Africa. On April 5 2019 the Mail & Guardian pub- The full version of the press ombud fi nd- Regardless of my rank, I stood fi rm against PO Box 91667, Auckland Park, DISTRIBUTION lished an article with the headline “Staff ing can be located at presscouncil.org.za/ what I considered to be the abuse of power 2006. TO SHOPS Website: www.mg.co.za M&G Media Ltd is now back ‘moonlighting’ manager”. 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