Global South African News Wrap – 28 September 2012

Journos kicked out of Malema trial

Properties valued at more than R20m are at stake

Malema case: What the Public Protector found

The case against Malema

Mantashe in the pound seats

Rule of law essential: Zuma

Motlanthe lauds SA cultural diversity

Malema’s legal woes could kill Mangaung comeback

No time to waste in e-tolling saga

The SA National Defence Force is on the verge of collapse.

Education flunks test

DA Welcomes Malema Arrest Warrant

Joint Statement By the Ministers of Finance of South Africa and Zimbabwe

Cosatu Congress - a Zuma Moment and a House On Fire

ANC Stalling On Labour Legislation Ahead of Mangaung

Incitement: 'Malema can be found guilty'

Malema won't be arrested, says lawyer

Malema armed with 'hot shot' lawyer

11 000 Eastern Cape teachers may lose jobs

Zuma to address UN

SA committed to helping Zimbabwe

Malema owes taxman R16m

The ANC will soon have to do without Vavi’s wisdom

Date set for Marikana commission to begin hearings

Tripartite leaders in it for the long run

Without ubuntu members of society become hooligans, Zuma says

BASIC group calls for adoption of "Kyoto 2" in Doha

Nine in dock with Juju

South Africa, European Union lock horns

26 September 2012 The New Age Sapa Journos kicked out of Malema trial Dozens of journalists were denied entry into the Polokwane Regional Court where expelled ANC Youth League leader Julius Malema made his first appearance this morning to face charges of money laundering. A reporter from e.tv collapsed during a fracas that broke out at the door of the court before the disgraced former youth leader made his appearance. Karyn Maughar hit the floor on her back during the scuffle and lay there for about 10 minutes before she regained consciousness after journalists from other media houses helped to revive her. "I'm fine and I'm ready to cover the trial," Maughar told The New Age as she stood up and sipped a soda from a plastic bottle. Many other media workers complained about the excruciating heat that engulfed the corridors of the court building, particularly where Maughar had fainted. The shoving and pushing incident started at about 9am when police and court officials ordered all journalists out of the court, saying they first wanted to verify that the journalists who attended the hearing had entry permits. After the verification process, many of the journalists present, including local and foreign camera crews were denied access to the court for not having written permits approved by the magistrate. This was despite the fact that court officials said only camera people could apply for permission. "They said only camera people must apply for the permits but now they bar us from entering. This is totally unfair," shouted one reporter. ANCYL top brass who were already sitting in the court room when the incident happened, included spokesperson Magdalene Moonsamy and Gauteng secretary-general Ayanda Kasa-Ntsobi. Also present were suspended secretary-general Sindiso Magaqa, suspended spokesperson Floyd Shivambu and former chairperson of the National Youth Development Agency, Andile Lungisa. 26 September 2012 Cape Times/ The Star Page 4 Piet Rampedi Properties valued at more than R20m are at stake

JULIUS Malema and his business partner Lesiba Gwangwa stand to lose more than R20 million in known properties and assets if found guilty of fraud, corruption and money laundering.

These include a string of houses in leafy suburbs, plots, farms, an office park and luxury cars owned through their embattled company On-Point and its sister firms.

This is because they were purchased with the proceeds of On-Point’s R52m project management tender that Public Protector Thuli Madonsela slammed as unlawful, fraudulent and corrupt in her provisional report.

The two families could find themselves homeless if the Hawks succeed in proving their case against them.

Malema and Gwangwa directly own the properties and assets, or own them through their companies – On-Point Engineers, Gwama Properties, Segwalo Consulting Engineers, Guilder Investments 59, Qualis Health and Mminathoko Infrastructure.

These are just some of the men’s properties:

l Plot in Palmietfontein Farm (Polokwane) – Malema’s trust paid R900 000 cash in June 2010.

l Schuilkraal Farm (Polokwane): bought in August 2011 for R3.9m.

l Bendor Extension 25: bought in October 2010 for R13m.

l Portion 2 of Erf 4324, Bendor Extension 5: bought in October for R1.4m.

l Welgelegen (Polokwane): acquired for R1.7m.

Fairview, 462, unit 5 (Polokwane): bought for R2.5m.

l Fairview, 462, unit T5 (Polokwane): acquired for R1.5m.

l Clear Waters Extension (Tzaneen): purchased for R500 000.

l De Villiers Avenue, Bendor (Polokwane): for R500 000.

l 623 Bendor (Polokwane): bought for R367 000.

l Ismini Office Park (Polokwane): Gwangwa offered R2.5m for the property.

l Sandown Property (Sandton): worth R8m.

The properties are owned by companies in which Malema and Gwangwa’s family trusts are the majority or sole shareholders.

In her provisional report into corruption allegations against On-Point, Malema and Gwangwa, the public protector suggested that the men’s trusts were nothing but vehicles created to launder money.

The report found Malema had used his Ratanang Family Trust to receive dividends worth R2m from On-Point between November 2011 and May this year.

Madonsela also found the men “improperly” benefited from On-Point’s unlawful and fraudulent tender. She recommended law enforcement agencies and authorities take steps to recoup some of the money.

26 September 2012 Cape Times Page 4 Piet Rampedi Malema case: What the Public Protector found

Public Protector Thuli Madonsela’s On-Point tender fact file:

After receiving three complaints in July last year, Madonsela investigated allegations that the Limpopo Department of Roads and Transport awarded the On-Point tender through corrupt means and that axed ANC Youth League leader Julius Malema used his political position to influence the awarding of the tenders by the department and the Limpopo government in general.

1. The allegations Madonsela probed:

* Was the awarding of the project management unit (PMU) tender by the Limpopo Roads and Transport Department improper and in violation of the provisions of the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act, 2004?

* Was On-Point involved in any corruption in its dealings with other service providers appointed by the department in its management of the PMU?

* Did the Ratanang Family Trust and/or JM Malema benefit improperly from the tender awarded to On-Point?

* Was the awarding of the tender to other companies referred to in the allegations, Sizani Buildit and Arandi Trading Enterprise, improper?

2. Her findings:

After perusing relevant documents relating to the procurement of the tender, interviewing officials, going through newspaper reports, consulting with the National Treasury and analysing relevant laws and records, Madonsela found that:

* The awarding of the tender by the department to On-Point was unlawful, improper and constituted maladministration.

* The bid that was presented by On-Point in respect of the PMU tender consisted of a deliberate and fraudulent misrepresentation in respect of the profile, composition, experience and therefore the functionality of the company.

* It was presented to the department that On-Point was an established and experienced establishment with management teams and professional staff that complied with the requirements of the request for proposal even though, at the time of the bid, the company existed for only a month, and had no employees or several of the purported key management and staff.

* The conduct of the head of the Limpopo roads and transport department, Ntau Letebele, in respect of the awarding of the bid to On-Point was improper and constituted maladministration.

* The conduct of On-Point as PMU of the department to enter into agreements with Mpotseng Infrastructure, Baitseanape Consulting Engineers and HL Matlala & Associates respectively constituted corrupt practices as envisaged under section 12 of the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act, 2004.

* On-Point entered into “back-to-back” agreements in terms of which it received or was supposed to receive payments from contractors for designs which it had drawn in respect of projects that it was contracted to manage and supervise.

* In terms of the law, any person who accepts or agrees to accept any gratification from any other person or gives or agrees to give any other person gratification in order to improperly influence in any way the execution of a contract with a public body is guilty of an offence.

* The shareholders of On-Point, including the Ratanang Family Trust, benefited improperly from the tender that was awarded to On-Point.

* Although no information could be found during the investigation on any involvement of Malema in the procurement process, it was conceded by Lesiba Gwangwa that the company has paid R2 million directly to the Ratanang Family Trust from November 2010 to May 2012.

* Payments were also made to On-Point shareholders Tshiamo Dichabe, the Maketele Family Trust, Guilder Investments and the Gwangwa Family Trust.

3. Madonsela ordered that:

* Letebele take steps to cancel the PMU tender in terms of clause 23.1 (a) of the General Conditions of Contract and Treasury regulation 16A9.

* That the State Attorney institute legal proceedings against On-Point and its share-holders that benefited from the PMU tender in order to recover any amount to which the department is entitled due to On-Point’s fraudulent misrepresentation in respect of its bid and the improper financial benefit.

* Commence the process of imposing a restriction penalty on On-Point and Gwangwa in terms of the provisions or clause 23 of the General Conditions of Contract.

* Recover the total amount of double payments made to On-Point.

* Institute disciplinary steps against officials who served as bid evaluation and bid adjudication members for their failure to perform their functions diligently.

26 September 2012 Cape Times Page 1 Moloko Moloto and Piet Rampedi The case against Malema

Polokwane - Julius Malema will stand as accused number 10 in the dock in the Polokwane Regional Court on Wednesday, the day after his four business associates appeared in the same court on 28 counts of fraud, corruption and money laundering.

The former ANC Youth League leader faces money laundering charges for the R6.4 million that was deposited into his Ratanang Family Trust by companies that allegedly unduly benefited through the Limpopo government’s multimillion-rand tender administered by the controversial On-Point Engineers.

The four who appeared on Tuesday were the CEO of On-Point Engineers, Lesiba Gwangwa, 33, the company’s former director Kagisho Dichabe, 35, Helen Moreroa, 32, the director of Oceanside Trading, and Samson Manthata, 39,

According to documents seen by The Star, it is alleged that Malema offered On-Point’s shareholders R3m to walk when the proceeds of the project management unit (PMU) tender started rolling in. Malema and Gwangwa offered Kagisho Dichabe and the Maketele Family Trust three times the value of their shares in On-Point to get rid of them.

The offer was made in September 2010 when millions started pouring into On-Point’s account from the R52m PMU awarded by the Limpopo Roads and Transport Department. This was despite their shares being valued at R1m.

Malema’s co-accused were each granted R40 000 bail and their case was postponed to November 30.

Separately, Gwangwa represented On-Point Engineers, Segwalo Consulting Engineers and Gwama Properties, the three companies that also face similar charges. Moreroa also represented her company Oceanside for the same charges.

A draft charge sheet details a series of payments into Malema’s family trust account between January 2009 and November last year. Oceanside paid R1m in March last year, and Segwalo Consulting Engineers deposited the same amount in June last year, according to the draft charge sheet.

Moreroa’s husband, Selby Manthata, is accused number 7, but he did not appear in court. It is unclear if he will appear alongside Malema on Wednesday. Moreroa is the business partner of Limpopo Premier Cassel Mathale and his wife, Mokgadi Dolly Kgohloane, in different companies.

Moreroa and Kgohloane are also business partners. Mathale and Kgohloane are not facing any criminal charges.

On Wednesday, the state said On-Point Engineers, of which Malema owns shares through his family trust, misrepresented facts when applying for the R52 million tender in the Limpopo Roads and Transport Department. The state argues that On-

Point claimed it had nine years’ experience, it was proven to have been registered in 2009, and the same year it bid to administer the department’s programme management unit.

On-Point Engineers “provided names of persons as part of the executive and senior and key management teams, when in fact some of the said persons were never employed by or associated with On Point”, the charge sheet states. It “included a tax clearance certificate of a shelf company purportedly as the tax clearance certificate of On-Point”.

The State says On-Point would not have been awarded the contract “had they provided the correct information” when it bid for the tender. Vested with the control over the department’s R52m unit, On-Point was in pole position to influence the awarding of subcontracts to specific companies for road designs and construction projects.

One such company was Oceanside, which allegedly did not meet the “NQF certificate qualifying requirements, but was, despite that shortcoming, not disqualified by the department’s Bid Evaluation Committee”.

The prosecution said On-Point Engineers sat on the evaluation committee. Oceanside was paid R6.1m and On-Point had received R43m from the department to date. Part of this money helped to buy Malema’s black Mercedes-Benz Vito and farm outside Polokwane.

“And whereas an amount of R3.9m that was deposited into Ratanang Trust account was meant for the purchase of a farm for Ratanang Trust, as represented by accused 10 [Malema], however, by arrangement [with Malema], Gwama Properties, represented by Gwangwa, ended up being the purchaser of the said farm.”

For this, the State alleges that proceeds of unlawful activities were acquired, possessed or used in contravention of the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act 12 of 2004.

The Maketele Family Trust was co-founded by Thomas Rasethaba, a relative of Malema’s ally Sello Rasethaba.

Sources close to Malema and Gwangwa confirmed the offer for Malema’s and Gwangwa’s family trusts to remain sole shareholders.

The Star understands that part of the R3m was paid out to Dichabe and the Maketele trust in eight instalments deposited into the account of Kopania Engineers.

Blasted by Public Protector Thuli Madonsela’s provisional report as unlawful and apparently corrupt, the PMU and the Hawks’ own investigations have been used to secure warrants for the arrest of Malema, Gwangwa, Dichabe and others.

Manthata’s flagship company, Selby Construction, and On-Point are among companies owned by Malema’s and Mathale’s allies that have been blamed for the province’s R2.2 billion cash-flow crisis. They have received the majority of lucrative Limpopo government and municipal contracts since Mathale took over as premier in 2009.

26 September 2012 The Times Page 7 S'Thembiso Msomi Mantashe in the pound seats

LONG before they put on their Che Guevara berets and embarked on what they believed to be a revolutionary road to economic freedom, Julius Malema and his followers had one ambition: to remove Gwede Mantashe from his post as ANC secretary-general.

This was in early 2009, many months before Malema publicly turned on President Jacob Zuma and the ANC Youth League began to talk of Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe as their preferred candidate for the ANC top job, come Mangaung.

Yet, with less than a week to go before the ruling party finally allows its branches to officially nominate candidates for the December conference, no ANC leader is in so comfortable a position as Mantashe.

When Malema and his comrades began lobbying for Mantashe to be removed, their campaign seemed to have the support of many ANC leaders who were not happy with the former trade unionist's shoot-from-the-hip style of leadership.

Despite having worked for the ANC underground during the days of illegality, and having served on some of its structures once it was unbanned, Mantashe is generally viewed as an outsider by his ANC detractors.

He does not understand the ANC, they often say.

His role at Luthuli House was further confounded by the fact that he also wore another leadership hat - that of the South African Communist Party national chairman.

So when there were disputes between the ANC and its allies - like the one that arose out of Cosatu and the Communist Party's demand for a bigger say in the running of both the alliance and state - Mantashe's opponents often accused him of taking the side of the ANC's leftist allies.

To Mantashe's credit, there was often similar frustration within Cosatu where many of his unionist comrades accused him of taking hardline positions against the federation.

But that didn't please his ANC critics and, for a long while, it looked as if Malema would succeed in having the former National Union of Mineworkers secretary- general replaced by Minister of Sport and former Youth League president, Fikile Mbalula, in Mangaung.

How things have changed.

With just under three months to go before the national conference, it is looking increasingly unlikely that Malema will have any real influence over who gets elected to what position.

His main occupation over the next few months, no doubt, will be to fight off corruption charges.

The ANC Youth League, an organisation that has fashioned itself as an ANC kingmaker over the past two decades, is now in tatters following Malema's expulsion from the ruling party as well as the suspension of two of his most trusted lieutenants.

Although the organisation, which enjoys the status of a province during ANC conferences, will send a group of voting delegates to Mangaung, this delegation will be too small to make any major impact on its own.

It will have to rely on tactical alliances with the likes of Gauteng and others agitating for "change" to be effective.

And therein lies the problem for Malema and the ANC Youth League.

Assuming that the ongoing behind-the-scenes horse trading between those who want Zuma replaced and those who want him retained does not result in a deal, Mantashe's name looks highly likely to feature on both election "slates".

Zuma backers are pushing for the status quo to remain, which will mean that Mantashe would keep his current post.

Even hardliners in this group, who argue that the current ANC top structure is too weak and divided to successfully steer the titanic party out of its current crises, argue that if changes are made, Mantashe, Zuma and Motlanthe should be retained.

Those lobbying to have Motlanthe as the new ANC president, on the other hand, have little option but to have Mantashe on their slate - even if it is for a position that is different from that of secretary- general.

ANC structures in the Eastern Cape, the party's second-largest province in terms of membership, are said to be broadly supportive of the movement for change as long as Mantashe - who is currently the most senior party leader from the province - is part of the new Top Six collective.

Now, without the support of the Eastern Cape, those lobbying for change in ANC leadership would have to throw in the towel.

With KwaZulu-Natal the province expected to overwhelmingly back Zuma's re-election bid, the president's opponents need the Eastern Cape to have a fighting chance of defeating him.

This means that, whereas the whole succession battle was sparked off by the ANC Youth League's unhappiness with Mantashe, it will now have to back his return to the Top Six if it hopes to secure the Eastern Cape's support going to the national conference.

So far, outside of the ANC Youth League, the only other alliance structure that agrees with the idea of replacing Mantashe is the militant National Union of Metalworkers - a Cosatu affiliate.

But that union, like the rest of Cosatu, has no direct voting rights at ANC conferences. All it can hope for is to influence those of its members who are ANC members to campaign against Mantashe's retention at branch meetings.

However - given the fact that most of Cosatu's affiliate favour a scenario in which Mantashe, Zuma and Motlanthe, if not all Top Six officials, are retained - this, too, would be an uphill battle for the mining union.

Mantashe is seemingly so confident of making it to the ANC Top Six in December that, this past July, he stepped down as Communist Party chairman to focus on his duties at Luthuli House.

Evidently, he has every reason to be confident of re-election.

24 September 2012 The New Age Sapa Rule of law essential: Zuma The rule of law was essential in creating a better world, President Jacob Zuma said in a speech prepared for delivery at the 67th sitting of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in New York on Monday. South Africa's foreign policy aimed to contribute to a better South Africa, Africa and world, which could only become realised via a global commitment to the rule of law and human rights, said Zuma. He said South Africa was comfortable participating in such a discussion as South Africa was a democratic nation founded on the rule of law, human dignity, equality, freedom and the supremacy of the Constitution. Supremacy of the law, and equality, accountability and fairness before the law were required principles to adhere to the rule of law, Zuma said. "It also entails participation in decision-making, legal certainty and the avoidance of arbitrariness, as well as procedural and legal transparency." He said the rule of law was an integral concept in the work of the UN Security Council, with the rule of law and human development inextricably linked. Zuma said lifting standards of living for the disadvantaged through providing essential services and fulfilling socio-economic rights was part of promoting the rule of law. Africa continued to play a role in maintaining peace, dependent on the rule law, through avenues such as bilateral and trilateral agreements, and mediation efforts around the world. Promoting the rule of law at an international level was just as important as

maintaining rule of law at a national level, Zuma said. If this did not happen, the UN was open to accusations of hypocrisy. Zuma said, "We need to consider the fairness of the rules of international law." One means of doing so was reviewing the composition of the Security Council, as its present form was undemocratic and unrepresentative, which undermined its legitimacy regardless of its decisions. "It is common cause that the current configuration of the Council is unfair. It does not reflect the contemporary geo-political realities especially with respect to Africa," said Zuma. As long as the Security Council, the UN's primary organ for maintaining peace, was unrepresentative and undemocratic, it had to be asked whether its decisions were fair. Zuma said there was a need to ensure greater accountability for actions taken in the name of the Security Council. He encouraged greater use of the International Court of Justice, the UN's primary judicial organ, especially regarding complex legal questions. "Let me emphasise that South Africa remains committed to the global promotion of the rule of law, and will continue cooperating with the UN system to ensure success of the international human rights architecture," Zuma said. -Sapa 25 September 2012 The New Age Michael Appel Motlanthe lauds SA cultural diversity South Africa is a melting pot of languages, ethnicity, cultures, and races, but what unites us all is our commitment to embrace our diversity. Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe said this in his address at a Heritage Day celebration in Upington in the Northern Cape yesterday – one of many official heritage events around the country, including the Western Cape where a road was renamed after Steve Biko and in KwaZulu-Natal where the premier distributed food parcels in Chatsworth. In the Eastern Cape, AmaRharhabe Queen Noloyiso Sandile was among those who attended the provincial event at the Mngqesha Great Place outside King William’s Town. Motlanthe urged South Africans to embrace all languages and cultures to better appreciate the richness of the country’s collective cultural heritage. “No culture in South Africa is pristine and no language is unaffected by the multilingual experience that has been the melting pot that is South Africa. “The Afrikaans diction has been heavily influenced by indigenous languages as the indigenous languages themselves reflect English and Afrikaans influence in many

respects. “The clicks of the Khoisan people are found in the Nguni and Sesotho dialects. Hindi and Zulu influenced each other in interesting ways in KwaZulu-Natal,” said Motlanthe. He quoted former president Nelson Mandela in 1996 when the government decide to proclaim September 24 a public holiday by saying: “The democratically-elected government decided to make Heritage Day one of our national days. We did so because we knew that our rich and varied cultural heritage has a profound power to help build our new nation.” Culture and heritage were not static forces explained Motlanthe, who said that fluid and inter-dependent social processes help shape national consciousness and the cultural personality of a nation. “It is for this reason that the South African Heritage Council has endorsed the Braai4heritage campaign supported by among others, Nobel Peace laureate Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, who said, ‘Hierdie ding ons doen saam’ (This thing we do together),” said Motlanthe. Motlanthe said corruption undermines the ability of government to provide services to the people. “Resources that are meant to improve conditions and lives of our people are diverted by the few, well-positioned individuals to feed their insatiable greed” he said. 25 September 2012 Business Day Page 3 Sam Mkokeli Malema’s legal woes could kill Mangaung comeback

JULIUS Malema’s problems have converged on him, delivering a legal migraine that is set to make his political resurrection at the African National Congress’s (ANC’s) Mangaung conference difficult, if not impossible.

Mr Malema is about to be hit with a R16m tax bill. At the same time, the public protector’s investigation into Limpopo government procurement affecting him is complete, while the National Prosecution Authority (NPA) has issued a warrant for his arrest.

This all happening to a man who has been isolated by his former comrades in the ANC. He is not Jacob Zuma, whose comrades pulled out all the stops to make sure his political career trumped all legal obstacles. Mr Malema lacks political credibility of the kind that allowed people to gather around Mr Zuma during his trying times.

While there is a precedent in Mr Zuma’s legal troubles of a political campaign used to pile pressure on the legal system and collapse the case, Mr Malema’s situation is different. The former youth league leader simply does not have that stature in the ANC, and the little spell he has had in the ruling party has been about costly rabble-rousing and trouble making.

Since his expulsion, the list of his backers has not grown. Even those who benefit from Mr Malema’s politics have folded their arms, taking no firm steps to help him in his comeback bid.

In the final national executive committee meeting that sealed his fate earlier this year, only about 10 of the 86 members supported Mr Malema’s cause. The rest kept quiet or supported Mr Zuma as he closed the curtain on Mr Malema, rejecting a request that the committee review his disciplinary case.

Since then, the ANC’s Mangaung politics have been coalescing, without Mr Malema being an influence.

The camp that wants Mr Zuma replaced in Mangaung has taken shape, despite its lack of unity. The only thing they now have in common with the Zuma camp is that, to them too, Mr Malema is history.

The ABZ (Anyone But Zuma) camp has been trying to preserve the little credibility it has by not allowing Mr Malema’s brand — chaos and rabble-rousing — to taint it. "Nobody wants to be associated with chaos," says a member of this faction.

The group is hoping that Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe will accept a nomination to take on Mr Zuma in Mangaung. Mr Malema has also been campaigning for Mr Motlanthe to become president. But Mr Motlanthe did not save the 31-year-old when disciplinary processes were set in motion in the ANC last September. In fact, Mr Motlanthe is a member of the ANC top six committee that was the official complainant in his disciplinary case.

While the appetite for Malema-style politics is lacking, it has not stopped him from trying to launch a comeback. He is behaving like someone who does not comprehend that he is history in the ANC. That "never say die" attitude allows him to run around tirelessly. But all that noise and action is not being echoed where it matters most — among members of the ANC and its allies.

The argument that his case is a political ploy to silence an enemy will not hold sway at this stage of the proceedings. He has been saying that for two years.

Mr Zuma’s success against myriad of legal obstacles was based on a broad campaign, and an ANC that did everything to bring down his opponents, including recalling then president Thabo Mbeki, and letting go prosecutions head Vusi Pikoli, who admitted the NPA was about to move on Mr Zuma’s prosecution.

Then, dubiously obtained tapes suggested there was political gerrymandering. Their contents allowed the charges against Mr Zuma to be dropped.

But for Mr Malema, backers are few. The biggest blocs in the tripartite alliance have closed ranks.

Even the unions that used to dance to his music have been silent on his expulsion from the ANC. It is highly unlikely that they will now defend him against a three-pronged legal attack.

Reports of Mr Malema’s unexplained wealth have been gnawing away at his political credibility for the past two years — effectively preparing the political market for the inevitable prosecution.

The youth league is duty bound to defend its former president. But the voices from the league — as they state the predictable and the obvious — have been thinning out. Confusion and division in the youth league since Mr Malema was kicked out have weakened it, taking away its ability to run credible political campaigns — and leaving him exposed.

25 September 2012 Business Day Page 10 Editorial No time to waste in e-tolling saga

IF EVER there was an example of how important it is that government policy be cleanly and deftly implemented, the continuing saga over e-tolls and paying for the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project would be it.

Last week, the Constitutional Court set aside an interim interdict granted by the North Gauteng High Court in April, which prevented the South African Roads Agency (Sanral) from charging tolls for the use of some of Gauteng’s major roads. The basis of the judgment was that the high court had not given enough consideration to the separation of powers between the judiciary and the executive. This week, the government will meet various parties for what is hoped will be a final round of talks that will settle the dispute once and for all.

For each day that this process has ground on, the costs have mounted. The delay arising from the granting of the interdict has already cost R2.7bn, 40% of Sanral’s estimated revenue for the current financial year. Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan has already warned that without tolling, the average monthly expenditure on the freeway project — a cool R601m for the current year — would have to be paid by the National Treasury.

Aside from the loss in revenue, the interdict has had other financial consequences, such as a two-notch downgrade in Sanral’s credit rating by Moody’s. Doing away with e-tolling will have a negative effect on the government’s ability to borrow internationally and curtail the state’s social and developmental agenda. Ultimately, the government’s clumsy handling of this matter has hit the pocket of every South African.

Sanral CEO Nazir Alli was absolutely correct from the outset to argue that the "do nothing" option was not an option. There was no question that Gauteng’s roads had to be upgraded and those upgrades would somehow need to be paid for. However, to make an executive decision without the buy-in of the Gauteng motoring public and careful analysis of prevailing social and economic sentiment was a foolish mistake.

To be fair, Sanral is in most other respects a model state agency — South Africans complain about potholes and maintenance backlogs, but our national road network does well in an international comparison, particularly when it comes to developing economies.

We cannot simply ignore the errors made in this instance, though — the manner in which it went about implementing the freeway improvement project was not thought through properly. Sanral argues that it jumped through all the necessary hoops, but doing the bare minimum of public consultation on a project of this magnitude is not sufficient.

Sanral has never clearly made the argument for why a national ring-fenced levy on fuel is not a viable option to pay for the upgrade. Doing so might have swayed pubic opinion in favour of e-tolling option. Furthermore, Mr Alli’s resignation after the high court judgment in April to delay tolling, followed by an announcement by Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe that Mr Alli would withdraw his resignation, only added to speculation and public discontent.

Should tolling be abandoned completely, the cash flow Sanral needs to meet its interest obligations would evaporate. Although the government has guaranteed the R19bn debt held by Sanral, coming up with the cash would deplete the fiscus and add to the budget deficit, which is exactly what ratings agencies have warned against.

Last year, Moody’s placed SA’s A3 credit rating on a negative outlook, warning that populist pressure on economic policy and strains within the African National Congress (ANC) could undermine official commitment to low budget deficits and existing debt targets. Although last week’s Constitutional Court judgment set aside the previous interdict delaying e-tolling, the success of civil society groups such as the Opposition to Urban Tolling Alliance in delaying the process must be immensely worrisome to ratings agencies and international investors alike.

In the midst of the drama, it seems to have been forgotten that e-tolling is government policy and Sanral is simply an agency of the state. Urban tolling is by no means a recent development; it was first put before the cabinet in 2007.

There is no question that the failure of the government to more carefully consider the broader social, political and economic context when going ahead with e-tolling has resulted in the problems that we are now experiencing.

Tolling has become a lighting rod for broader public discontent. Poor service delivery coupled with a persistent public perception that the government has failed to tackle corruption has led to general dissatisfaction, which has been easily hitched onto the tolling saga. There is no question that prevailing poor economic conditions have made matters worse. Better perception management, and clear and decisive political leadership, would have helped the situation immensely.

It is not surprising that, in this context, astute political agents have taken advantage of the groundswell of opposition to the introduction of e-tolling. The Congress of South African Trade Unions in particular has used it to its advantage. Earlier in the year, it leveraged support and reinforced its position within the tripartite alliance by calling a joint strike to protest against e-tolls. Although the government did not back down on the issue, the federation’s opposition certainly gives it additional muscle in the build-up to the ANC’s elective national congress in Mangaung in December.

Whatever happens, the debt has to be paid. Going forward, whether the government decides to forge ahead with e-tolling, reverts to manual tolls or chooses to increase the fuel levy, it must happen soon. Some of the damage has already been done, but

a debt downgrade and Gauteng transport policy left in limbo can and must be avoided.

25 September 2012 The Times Page 4 Graeme Hosken

SANDF in big trouble

The SA National Defence Force is on the verge of collapse.

With dwindling budgets, an exodus of highly-skilled technical staff and reduced spending on training and equipment, the defence force - according to military experts - can barely meet its constitutional obligations.

Increasing international demands and frequent internal deployments - such as the recent presidential announcement of the deployment of hundreds of troops on crime fighting operations over the next four months - is putting further strain on the already overstretched armed services.

The army has nearly 2000 troops on peacekeeping missions in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sudan, and military trainers in the Central African Republic and the DRC.

The defence force has military observers deployed under the AU and UN flags in Ethiopia and Eritrea. The navy has a frigate, and air force personnel and aircraft, in the Mozambican channel and Mozambique deployed on anti-piracy operations.

Military analyst Helmoed Heitman said the defence force was now collapsing.

"We have huge sections of the budget spent on salaries, with equipment and training left lacking. We are hopelessly short on manpower - 20000 troops too few - and porous borders that cannot be guarded properly," he said.

"We have pilots who can't fly [sufficient] hours, troops who have been given limits on the amount of ammunition they can use in training, and equipment, such as our frigates, which cannot be maintained because there is no proper budget.

"The defence force is collapsing. If drastic action is not taken soon, in the next three years it will be beyond recovery."

The Defence Department received just over R34-billion last year from the Treasury. Its current budget of R37-billion is expected to increase to R39-billion in the 2013-2014 financial year. Professor Renfrew Christie, dean of research at the University of Western Cape, said the military's budget needed a drastic increase.

"We spend 1% of our gross national product on defence. We need a military capable of looking after our country with the time now coming to increase spending to 2% of

GDP," Christie said. "To do our duty, we need a bigger and better equipped military. The option of downscaling our involvement north of our borders is not an option.

"Protecting our country and its borders is far bigger than just putting up fences," he said.

Retired admiral Chris Bennett, the former naval chief of staff, said the massive "poaching" of technical staff had led to numerous crises in the navy.

"Our military, especially on the technical side, is being bled dry by both public and private industries, as well as by foreign militaries.

"Though the navy until now has managed to stay afloat, things are beginning to bite," he said.

"The right funding has not been given to the military [which is] being required more and more by parliament to do things [parliament is] not prepared to pay for.

25 September 2012 The Times Page 5 Nashira Davids Education flunks test

The education system is teetering on the edge of disaster - horror stories about dysfunctional schools hog the headlines.

And if things do not change, the country is in for a "very bleak" future, said the CEO of the Federation of Governing Bodies of South African Schools, Paul Colditz.

The federation has 1451 governing bodies as members .

Colditz said he believed that close to 90% of schools were dysfunctional.

"You will find such schools in all provinces, though there certainly are fewer in the better-functioning provincial systems such as those of Gauteng and Western Cape," he said.

Colditz said all members of his federation agreed that the rot was worst at education departments' district offices, which act as intermediaries between schools and provincial education departments .

NGO Section 27 will be battling the National Department of Basic Education in court for the second time next month to secure the completion of the delivery of school textbooks in Limpopo and an adequate catch-up plan for Grade 10 and foundation phase pupils.

Colditz said the federation of governing bodies was satisfied with its relationship with the national education department.

"The national department is responsible for policy. The implementation of policy is at provincial level, which is where the problem lies.

Colditz said the most successful schools were those that had good governance, a strong governing body and parents who were involved in bettering their children's education.

Adding to the dire situation in the Eastern Cape's education department - which, along with the Limpopo department, has been placed under national government administration - is the possibility of the dismissal of 11000 teachers because of inadequate finances.

The DA's Annette Lovemore said one of the reasons for the shortage of money was the failure of the province to control expenditure on paying employees.

The province spends 91% of its entire budget on salaries.

Lovemore said unions had determined that "excess" teachers would not be moved to other schools where they were needed.

"This resulted in excess teachers being paid for doing very little and temporary teachers being employed to do the job "excess" teachers should be doing - thus bloating the salary bill," said Lovemore.

"With the exception of Western Cape, and possibly Gauteng, the education system is at the point of implosion."

NGO Equal Education is gearing up for a court battle with Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga in November.

It wants her to implement "norms and standards" for school infrastructure.

21 September 2012 All Africa Press Release DA Welcomes Malema Arrest Warrant

The DA welcomes the reports that a warrant has been issued for the arrest of expelled ANC Youth League Leader, Julius Malema.

Malema is reportedly expected to appear in court next week to face charges relating to the activities of his Ratanang Family Trust and its shareholding in On-Point Engineering, a company that won a number of lucrative contracts with the Limpopo government.

In July 2011, the DA requested that the Public Protector investigate tender irregularities involving Malema and deposits made into the account of his family trust by various people and businesses that subsequently won tenders in Limpopo.

We have since received the confidential draft report on this matter from the Public Protector and have given our input on that document as the complainant. We have been told that the public release of the document is imminent.

The warrant for arrest issued today appears to have originated from a Hawks investigation into the same matter.

The South African public are sick and tired of politically connected individuals abusing public procurement to line their own pockets.

Now that Julius Malema is outside of the ANC fold he clearly lost the protection from law enforcement agencies that he once appeared to enjoy.

We will be writing to the Public Protector to determine the exact date of the release of her report and hope that her findings will be considered when this case is heard in court.

21 September 2012 All Africa Press Release Joint Statement By the Ministers of Finance of South Africa and Zimbabwe

The Ministers of Finance of South Africa and Zimbabwe, Honourable Pravin Gordhan and Honourable Tendai Biti, met today to discuss ways of deepening cooperation between the Governments of South Africa and Zimbabwe.

The discussions centred on the resolution of the Extraordinary Summit of the SADC Heads of State and Government held at the Lozitha Palace, Kingdom of Swaziland, on 30 March 2009, to provide support to Zimbabwe's Short Term Economic Recovery Programme (STERP).

At the Summit, South Africa pledged to explore a number of possible support measures for Zimbabwe, including:

Budget support grants;

A line of credit; and

Export credit facilities.

The two Ministers recognised Zimbabwe's positive recovery from a period of hyper-inflation and the successful implementation of STERP.

However, they noted that the country continued to face significant economic constraints, including cash flow challenges arising from revenue collections that are below target, a high debt over-hang, an uncompetitive business environment, infrastructural deficits, and limited access to lines of credit for business.

The Ministers of Finance of the two countries also acknowledged the reform measures that Zimbabwe has been undertaking to achieve fiscal sustainability and overall economic recovery.

These include:

Revenue enhancing measures, including an increase in fuel taxes, coupled with the incorporation of the Zimbabwean Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) into the diamond value chain, as well as closing tax loopholes and slippages;

Strengthening the budget process to better support fiscal management, planning and control of spending;

Continued restructuring of the balance sheet of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe;

Tightening of financial markets regulation and banking supervision;

Implementation of the Zimbabwe: Accelerated Arrears Clearance, Debt and Development Strategy (ZAADDS) and limiting non-concessional borrowing; and

Supporting improvement in the business environment and the reduction of the cost of doing business.

The Ministers agreed to consider the following:

The facilitation of a line of credit;

A request for further budget support, which will be aligned to South Africa's 2012 budget process;

Encouraging the participation of development finance institutions, including the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA), to invest in infrastructure projects, particularly in energy and roads; and

Strengthening the collaboration between the South African Revenue Service (SARS) and ZIMRA, with particular focus on the harmonisation of customs systems and procedures and investments in Beitbridge Border Post infrastructure.

South Africa further committed itself to continue supporting Zimbabwe's efforts to normalise its relations with multilateral financial institutions.

21 September 2012 All Africa RanjeniMunusamy Cosatu Congress - a Zuma Moment and a House On Fire

Johannesburg — Cosatu will lodge a Section 77 notice to embark on protest action to demand a "radical economic policy shift", is ready to take on government on e-tolling and labour brokers, and says it wants "decisive leadership" in the ANC. But even though all this indicates dissatisfaction, Jacob Zuma should remain president. After four days of squabbling, the only thing certain is that the Cosatu congress happened at the worst possible time and the federation's war with itself has left it damaged.

"Sihamba noMsholozi, Sihamba noPresident (We are going with Msholozi, we are going with the president)", Cosatu delegates sang on the closing day of their 11th

national congress. The song indicated that the delegates supported Jacob Zuma's (Msholozi is his clan name) bid for a second term as ANC leader at the ruling party's national conference in Mangaung in December.

Then, later on Thursday, they bestowed the "worst employer" award to Aurora Empowerment Systems, whose directors include Khulubuse Zuma, the president's nephew, for breaking "every record in terms of dodging responsibility" and "starving workers".

It was one of many bizarre contractions of the four-day Cosatu congress, which the federation's re-elected president Sdumo Dlamini opened on Monday saying, "We must never compromise principle to achieve short-cut solutions". But in order to prevent the congress being completely deadlocked over a litany of contentious issues, they had to resort to the biggest short-cut solution of them all: to defer all contentious decisions to Cosatu's central executive committee (CEC).

All political matters, including Cosatu's stance on the ANC leadership question, its role in the alliance, corruption and non-delivery, and transforming the state, were kicked into touch until a special CEC meeting is convened in early October. Details of the "Lula moment", Cosatu's catch-phrase for a radical economic policy changes based on the Brazilian experience, will also have to be worked out by the CEC.

The CEC is made up of all national office bearers and senior representatives from Cosatu's provincial structures and affiliate unions, and meets behind closed doors. Cosatu prides itself on holding its national congresses in the full glare of the media, but decided that all fiery issues are best handled in private, where warring unions can tear into each other away from the public eye.

The bad blood between the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and metalworkers union (Numsa), Cosatu's two biggest affiliates, was palpable throughout the congress as they assumed opposing positions on most issues. The two unions fall into different factions in the ANC, and while Numsa is Cosatu's most militant affiliate pushing for radical policy change, the NUM is an ardent defender of government and wants to preserve the status quo in the ANC leadership.

One of the contradictions of the congress is that both the NUM and Numsa think they came away from it better than the other. The NUM thinks it triumphed by working with others to block the discussion on ANC leadership at the congress, despite Numsa's fervent and repeated attempts to open the debate. Numsa thinks it got its way with the congress's adoption of a path towards a "radical economic shift in line with the demands of the Freedom Charter". This includes strategic nationalisation, macro-economic policy change and transformation of the Treasury.

In the run-up to the congress, the NUM wanted it to be known that they did not support Cosatu general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi to be re-elected, but were fully behind Dlamini remaining president. Numsa publicly declared its support for Vavi but said it did not want Dlamini back. On Monday, both unions stood down on the candidates they opposed and allowed both Vavi and Dlamini to be re-elected. The two men will have to carry the federation for the next three years, aware that they do not enjoy universal support internally and their actions will be under intense scrutiny.

Vavi and Dlamini tried to present a united front at the end of the congress, both preaching unity of the federation. When their re-election was formally announced on Thursday, delegates hoisted them onto their shoulders and carried them to the stage,

while others sang and danced in their praise. Vavi held up an NUM signboard as he was carried aloft, perhaps a goodwill gesture to show he held no hard feelings against the mineworkers.

He did not have an easy time at the congress. Although the political report he presented to the congress was ostensibly a document of all the office bearers, including Dlamini, Vavi was challenged by his detractors on several issues, particularly the use of the word "crisis" to describe the situation in the country. Vavi has always been forthright in describing problems in government and the ANC, and constantly warns of the dangers of not addressing these. Several of the affiliates, as well as the ANC and SACP, want him to stop doing so.

Addressing the media at the end of the congress, Vavi said he was not backing off from saying South Africa was in crisis as the statistics on unemployment, poverty and inequality proved this as fact. But ANC secretary general Gwede Mantashe was not happy about this, telling Daily Maverick the phrase seemed to be "stuck in his (Vavi's) head".

The congress declaration, read by Vavi during the closing session, acknowledged that there were several areas of crisis including in the public health system, education and mining. While the congress adopted the declaration, NUM general secretary Frans Baleni said the CEC should be tasked with "massaging" some of the formulations in the document which some affiliates might not be happy with. It is not known which sections in particular he was referring to.

This was a clear indication that while the declaration proclaimed that Cosatu was "stronger and more united than ever", the reality is far from it. It also stated: "We know that we cannot afford to fight silly battles against one another when the house is on fire. We have agreed that a radical agenda of socio-economic transformation must be the core element of the second phase of our democratic transition. We call this our Lula moment to speak to a successful transformation that has changed the lives of millions of workers and peasants in Brazil."

But even in this there is contradiction. Former Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva embarked on radical measures during his second term in office to accelerate economic growth and upliftment for the poor.

Cosatu now wants to force government into radical changes by, among other things, lodging a Section 77 notice at the National Economic Development and Labour Council (Nedlac) to embark on protest action on:

The role of Treasury, monetary policy and the Reserve Bank; State intervention in strategic sectors including through nationalisation; Measures to ensure beneficiation, such as taxes of mineral exports; Channelling of retirement funds into productive investment; Comprehensive land reform, and measure to ensure food security; and The more effective deployment of all state levers to advance industrialisation and the creation of decent work on a large scale.

Vavi said at the media briefing that Cosatu had decided that the "macro-economic framework was "not working for us" and should change. He said Cosatu would also push for the removal of people in key positions in the state who were impediments to development.

Cosatu seems to think that by going on strike and trying to strong-arm government into these radical changes, Zuma's administration will miraculously metamorphosise during his second term to mimic the Brazilian example. Surely the "Lula moment" - or "Zuma moment" as Mantashe called it on Thursday - requires the person in charge to champion the transition, not to be goaded into it through strikes and ultimatums.

It also means Cosatu is patently aware that despite their backing Zuma's re-election in Mangaung, he is not going to accede to their demands without a fight. This is why they are also preparing for a new round of skirmishes with government over e-tolling and labour brokers.

The issue of nationalisation remains a matter of confusion. Despite the ANC insisting that nationalisation was rejected at the June policy conference, Mantashe told the Cosatu congress on Thursday that strategic nationalisation was contained in the policy resolutions to be discussed at Mangaung. He invited Cosatu to make inputs as to what strategic minerals be nationalised, saying this would make "the Zuma moment a reality".

Dlamini said in his closing speech that Cosatu was going to prepare for Mangaung - presumably at the all-important CEC meeting where all the major decisions would have to be taken - and wanted the ANC conference to emerge with "decisive leadership". Perhaps after the CEC, South Africa will get to find out who exactly fits that bill.

Considering the myriad of contradictions and concessions at the congress, Cosatu was clearly ill-prepared to confront all the issues and internal battles it had to manage this week. The CEC should have met first to thrash out the issues of contention and resolve internal battles instead of letting it all hang out at the congress.

The timing of the congress, three months before Manguang, and parallel to the strife in the mining sector, also did not help matters. Cosatu has never before looked so indecisive and clumsy, and it remains to be seen how long the awkward truce will hold.

24 September 2012 All Africa Press Release ANC Stalling On Labour Legislation Ahead of Mangaung

The ANC is delaying serious discussions on politically uncomfortable bills in the run-up to Mangaung.

Persistent absenteeism by ANC MPs is causing delays in the discussions on the labour amendment bills currently before the Portfolio Committee on Labour.

The DA suspects that ANC committee members have lost interest in the discussions after private deals around the bills were allegedly struck between COSATU and the ruling party outside of the formal deliberations. We also believe that the ANC is trying to avoid discussions on the bills because it may curb the power of majority unions and introduce a greater level of democracy in union decision-making.

I will be tabling this as a discussion point in the committee and will be asking the committee chairperson for a firm timeline on how discussions on the bills are to proceed.

The committee has only deliberated on the bills for two days following the public hearings in July 2012.

A detailed account of the Labour Committee's deliberations on the bills since early August looks as follows:

7 August: Early adjournment because a parliamentary report on the public hearings of July 2012 was not yet available.

8 August: No meeting was held since the report on the public hearings was still not available.

14 August: Meeting cancelled as the report on the public hearings was still outstanding.

21 August: Meeting was adjourned after 35 minutes due to the late circulation of the report. Members were not able to study the report before the meeting.

22 August: A briefing by the Department of Labour in response to public hearings took place.

28 August: The meeting was cancelled with no reasons given. The meeting was supposed to have been moved to the afternoon because of the reception for the Olympic Team.

4 September: Early adjournment/postponement because there was not a sufficient number of MPs present.

11 September: The committee did meet and started to discuss the bill on the Basic Conditions of Employment Act.

18 September: Meeting was not quorate - it was only attended by the chairperson (ANC), both of the DA's committee MPs and the member from COPE (who arrived at tea-time).

The DA strongly suspects that the no-show by ANC MPs on 18 September has everything to do with the fact that these members were too busy being wined and dined by COSTAU at its national congress.

As the next two weeks see MPs occupied with their constituency obligations, the Labour Committee will not meet again until the 9th of October.

After the events at Marikana, you would think that elected officials would jump at the opportunity to transform South Africa's labour regime.

ANC MPs disregard for their responsibilities is unacceptable at best and at worst, could contribute to another Marikana.

21 September 2012

News 24 Sapa Incitement: 'Malema can be found guilty' Johannesburg - Expelled ANC Youth League leader Julius Malema could be found guilty of inciting mineworkers to violence, regardless of whether he influenced them, an expert has found. Former University of South Africa criminal law lecturer Carel Snyman concluded that Malema, who is due to appear in court in Polokwane next week on unrelated charges, did not have a valid defence to the charges of incitement. Snyman was commissioned by trade union Solidarity to compile an expert view on the matter. The union earlier filed criminal charges of incitement to violence and intimidation against Malema, following comments he made to striking mine workers urging them to make the mines "ungovernable". Solidarity deputy general secretary Dirk Hermann said on Friday that Snyman had found Malema did not have a valid defence. "It is... immaterial whether or not the mine workers had in any way been influenced by Malema's utterances," he said in a statement. "Incitement to commit any crime is punishable. The definition of incitement does not distinguish between successful and unsuccessful incitement." Hermann said the report had been given to the Hawks to assist in their investigation of the charges against Malema. Earlier, an arrest warrant had been issued for Malema. "We were notified today that a warrant of arrest was issued for Mr Malema," his lawyer Nicqui Galaktiou told Sapa. "We don't know which court and when it will happen, but we are engaging with authorities on that. It will be in Polokwane." She said Malema had not yet been arrested. "No, he hasn't. My understanding is that he won't be arrested." She said the charges against her client were unknown. "We do not know what the charges are and we don't have a copy of the warrant." A City Press report said that Malema faced charges of money laundering, corruption and fraud relating to his Ratanang Family Trust and its share holding in On-Point Engineering, a company that allegedly made millions from Limpopo government tenders. Authorities refused to comment or confirm the warrant.

Unshaken The SA Revenue Service said it had nothing to do with the warrant. "...We want to state categorically that any and all reports that SARS requested that a warrant be issued for Mr Malema's arrest are completely untrue and without foundation," it said in a statement. "Sars is not involved in the criminal investigation into and prosecution of this matter." The Hawks said it did not issue warrants. "The Hawks don't issue warrants, so we don't comment on that," said Hawks spokesman McIntosh Polela. Asked if the unit was planning to arrest Malema, he said: "Even if we were planning to arrest him, we won't tell you." Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa's spokesperson, Zweli Mnisi, referred queries to provincial police. Gauteng police spokesperson, Brigadier Neville Malila, said he knew nothing about an arrest warrant for Malema. Justice department spokesperson Mthunzi Mhaga could not immediately be reached for comment. Malema's close colleague, suspended ANC Youth League spokesperson Floyd Shivambu could not be reached for comment. On Tuesday, Malema told reporters in Johannesburg if he was arrested, it would be done illegally. "If we are illegally arrested tomorrow, we would have been arrested by [President] Jacob Zuma," Malema said at the time. He said he was willing and ready to go to jail, and was not intimidated. "I have nothing to hide... I only have my convictions. Nothing will stop me from fighting for economic freedom, not even my death... We are unshaken." Malema said he had it "on good authority" that there were instructions "to get rid of some us..." At the time, presidential spokespersonsman Mac Maharaj said: "The presidency is aware that this person is prone to making wildly unsubstantiated and unwarranted claims and statements, and we do not wish to dignify them." 21 September 2012 News 24 Sapa Malema won't be arrested, says lawyer

Johannesburg - Expelled ANC Youth League leader Julius Malema will appear in court in Polokwane next week, his lawyer Nicqui Galaktiou said on Friday.

"We were notified today that a warrant of arrest was issued for Mr Malema," she told Sapa.

"We don't know which court and when it will happen, but we are engaging with authorities on that. It will be in Polokwane."

She said Malema had not been arrested.

"No, he hasn't. My understanding is that he won't be arrested."

She said the charges against her client were unknown.

"We do not know what the charges are and we don't have a copy of the warrant."

The City Press reported earlier that Malema faced charges of money laundering, corruption and fraud relating to his Ratanang Family Trust and its share holding in On-Point Engineering, a company that allegedly made millions from Limpopo government tenders.

Earlier, authorities would not comment on the matter or confirm the warrant of arrest.

On Tuesday, Malema told reporters in Johannesburg if he was arrested, it would be done illegally.

"If we are illegally arrested tomorrow, we would have been arrested by [President] Jacob Zuma," Malema said at the time.

He said he was willing and ready to go to jail, and was not intimidated.

"I have nothing to hide... I only have my convictions. Nothing will stop me from fighting for economic freedom, not even my death... We are unshaken."

Malema said he had it "on good authority" that there were instructions "to get rid of some us..."

At the time, presidential spokesperson Mac Maharaj said: "The presidency is aware that this person is prone to making wildly unsubstantiated and unwarranted claims and statements, and we do not wish to dignify them."

22 September 2012 News 24 Sapa Malema armed with 'hot shot' lawyer Johannesbuurg - With news of his imminent arrest, expelled ANC Youth League president Julius Malema is armed with a "hot shot" lawyer to see him through the legal battle, it was reported on Saturday.

The Star newspaper reported that attorney Nicqui Galaktiou had previously and successfully defended among others Gijima, SA businessman Robert Gumede and former Zambian president Rupiah Banda's son, Henry Banda.

She is a director at Brian Kahn Incorporated Attorneys. She has 12 years experience in motion and trial work and disputing resolution matters and is head of the Commercial Litigation and Dispute Resolution Department.

Galaktiou is also a member of the International Bar Association.

Malema was expected to appear in a Polokwane court next week after a warrant was issued for his arrest.

The City Press reported on Friday that Malema faced charges of money laundering, corruption and fraud relating to his Ratanang Family Trust and its share holding in On-Point Engineering, a company that allegedly made millions from Limpopo government tenders.

22 September 2012 News 24 Sapa 11 000 Eastern Cape teachers may lose jobs

More than 11 000 Eastern Cape teachers are in danger of losing their jobs because of a financial shortfall, the Weekend Post reported on Friday.

The newspaper reported that a proposal to fire the teachers next year because of a R3.4bn shortfall was being considered by senior officials of the Eastern Cape education department, including MEC Mandla Makupula.

The department has to finalise next year's post allocation by Friday and opposition parties have urged the department to beg, borrow or make a deal to secure the money.

Education committee members said they had been told by superintendent-general Mthunywa Ngonzo that the department could potentially cut 11 287 (17.4%) of teaching posts from the provincial system for the 2013 school year because of a shortfall of R3.42bn to fund the existing 64 752 teaching posts.

The possibility of firing thousands of teachers was first discussed at a heated meeting in St Francis Bay on 2 September - attended by Makupula and senior education staff - and again at the legislature's education committee meeting this week.

Education experts warned the likelihood of the department sourcing the funding was "minimal at best" and that the axing of teachers would invariably cause an "uproar" among parents.

While opposition parties and department officials said the department was considering the move, Ngonzo denied that it was discussed in Bhisho this week.

"There is no such thing. I never said that [in the Bhisho meeting]. The indication is that pupil numbers are going down and we know for a fact that there will be a budget cut," he said.

Ngonzo did concede that 10 proposals had been put forward regarding next year's teacher basket allocation as a result of budget constraints.

"The two critical driving factors are pupil numbers and budget availability."

He declined to go into detail about the proposals.

According to Democratic Alliance MPL Edmund van Vuuren, at the 2 September meeting in Cape St Francis, the issue of mass retrenchment was discussed at length.

"Senior officials from the department were there, including the MEC. There were a number of proposals put forward but the bottom line is that unless the education department finds the money by next Friday, these teachers could be without work," he said.

Education analyst Graeme Bloch said if the department went ahead with the axing it would spark a storm.

"Parents will be in uproar. It is a crazy, ridiculous and an unviable option."

The department has made little progress in complying with a Eastern Cape High Court order to permanently fill more than 6 000 vacant teacher posts by 2 November, having appointed 4 402 teachers temporarily by 3 September.

This was the second deadline in the latest of a string of court orders against the beleaguered department, the Weekend Post reported.

22 September 2012 News 24 Sapa Zuma to address UN President Jacob Zuma will lead South Africa's delegation to the sixty-seventh sitting of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly, the department of international relations and cooperation said on Saturday. The theme for debate was "Bringing about Adjustment or Settlement of International Disputes of Situations by Peaceful Means," said spokesperson Clayson Monyela in a statement. Zuma was scheduled to address the General Assembly on Tuesday afternoon, the first day of debate. South Africa strongly supported reform of the UN, specifically the security council. "Reform will strengthen the UN as a democratic, accountable and representative body, which is responsive to the needs of all its members," said Monyela.

South Africa was also supporting Palestine's coming request for enhanced status as an UN observer state, and participating in meetings on the margins of the General Assembly. Zuma would be accompanied by International Relations and Cooperation Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane. 21 September 2012 Fin 24 Sapa SA committed to helping Zimbabwe Johannesburg - South Africa will continue helping Zimbabwe in its economic recovery programmes, the finance ministers of the two countries said on Friday. "South Africa further committed itself to continue supporting Zimbabwe's efforts to normalise its relations with multilateral financial institutions," the ministers said in a joint statement. The statement followed a meeting in Pretoria between South African Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan and his Zimbabwean counterpart Tendai Biti, aimed at deepening co-operation between the two governments. The discussions in the meeting were centred on the resolutions of the extraordinary summit of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) heads of states held in Swaziland in 2009. The resolutions were to provide support to Zimbabwe's Short Term Economic Recovery Programme (Sterp). At that summit, South Africa pledged to help Zimbabwe through budget support grants, a line of credit and export credit facilities. Gordhan and Biti recognised Zimbabwe's positive recovery from a period of hyper-inflation and the successful implementation of Sterp, the statement said. However, both ministers noted that the country continued to face significant economic constraints, including cash flow challenges arising from revenue collections that were below target, a high debt over-hang, and uncompetitive business environment. Other challenges were infrastructural deficits and limited access to lines of credit for business. The ministers acknowledged that Zimbabwe had been undertaking reform measures to achieve fiscal sustainability and overall economic recovery. The measures included increase in fuel taxes coupled with the incorporation of the Zimbabwean Revenue Authority (Zimra) into the diamond value chain, as well as closing tax loopholes and slippage. Budget processes had been strengthened to improve support for fiscal management, planning and control of spending.

Both ministers agreed that Zimbabwe would receive the facilitation of a line of credit, and further budget support which would be aligned to South Africa's 2012 budget process. Development finance institutions would also be encouraged to participate, including the Development Bank of Southern Africa, in order to invest in infrastructure projects, particularly energy and roads. Collaboration would be strengthened between the SA Revenue Service and Zimra, with particular focus on the harmonisation of customs systems, procedures and investment in Beitbridge border post infrastructure. 23 September 2012 Business Day Staff writer Malema owes taxman R16m

THE National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) is still engaged in talks with the Chamber of Mines about a new collective bargaining agreement, amid ongoing labour unrest in the mining industry.

The meeting was convened on Friday between the union and mine managers from the gold and coal mining sectors, under the auspices of the Central Bargaining Council, with the aim of discussing new wage demands from mineworkers for their monthly salaries to be increased to R12,500, following Lonmin’s settlement to give its employees increases of up to 22%.

Frans Baleni, the NUM’s general secretary, met mine managers from the coal and gold sectors at the chamber, in Johannesburg. By 5pm on Friday afternoon the talks had still not been concluded.

The strike at Gold Fields’ KDC West mine in Carltonville continued into day 12.

Willie Jacobsz, Gold Fields spokesperson, said the company was waiting for the outcome of talks between the NUM’s leadership and the mineworkers.

The outcome of the meeting will inform the company’s decision on whether it will issue the mineworkers with a final warning to return to work or face dismissal.

The wave of illegal strikes that has hit the mining sector has spread to AngloGold Ashanti, after workers at the Kopanang mining operation embarked on a wildcat strike on Friday.

NUM spokesman Lesiba Seshoka said the workers downed tools, similarly to Gold Fields workers, and demanded R12‚500.

"The company is following the necessary procedures and an update will be provided at the appropriate time‚" it said.

The Kopanang mine produced 90‚000 ounces of gold in the first half of this year‚ which was about 4% of AngloGold Ashanti’s total production over that period.

AngloGold Ashanti’s South African operations accounted for approximately 32% of total group production during the first half of the year.

Approximately 5‚000 workers are employed at Kopanang‚ which is situated near Orkney — roughly 200km southwest of Johannesburg.

Anglo American Platinum (Amplats) said only 20% of its 26,000-strong workforce pitched up for work at its Rustenburg operations.

Amplats said on Friday that the strike was illegal and it had given its workers notice that they were required to return to work by Monday evening, or it would take legal action.

Amplats workers went on strike last Tuesday‚ demanding a salary increase. They demanded R17‚000 but said they were prepared to accept R12‚500.

The situation was tense at Sondela‚ near Amplats’s Jabula Shaft‚ in Rustenburg on Friday.

21 September 2012 Business Day Anthony Butler The ANC will soon have to do without Vavi’s wisdom

THE 11th national congress of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) drew to an unhappy close in Midrand on Thursday. A divided Cosatu leadership was re-elected unopposed in order to prevent an open rupture. The price paid is policy indecision and three more years of conflict between general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi and president S’dumo Dlamini.

It is probably just as well that frontal confrontation was averted. Tensions between Vavi and Dlamini are not primarily personal but rather reflect deeper underlying conflicts between the interests and affiliations of activists. Cosatu data indicate that 25% of its members are active in African National Congress (ANC) branches and that a big majority of South African Communist Party (SACP) members also belong to Cosatu. It is, therefore, potentially highly influential in the alliance, but it also imports wider political divisions into its structures.

Vavi’s secretariat report papered over some of the cracks in the union movement’s facade of unity. But he launched attacks on ANC president Jacob Zuma and implicitly condemned Zuma’s allies in Cosatu.

The full report details a "multiple crisis" with "the potential to result in an organisational implosion and social explosion". The ANC is "wracked by factionalism, patronage and corruption". There has been "constant political zigzagging between different positions", nepotism, and "declining political morality". Meanwhile, the state is "increasingly ineffective or even dysfunctional" as a result of fiscal constraints, endemic corruption and failures of leadership. The result has been an "emerging crisis of political legitimacy" in which the poor and dispossessed are turning to "right-wing populist alternatives", to xenophobia or to "tribalism".

To avert disaster, the government must introduce anticorruption measures and "strategic" state interventions of the kind pioneered (on Vavi’s account) by former Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Such a decisive advance, however, requires a "leadership collective with the necessary political will to challenge entrenched interests in the movement, state and capital" — in other words, the hopeless Zuma must go. By condemning "slate voting" on two occasions, Vavi signals his support for Kgalema Motlanthe’s campaign.

Two obstacles have blocked Vavi’s path. First, public-sector unions such as the National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu) and the South African Democratic Teachers’ Union (Sadtu) have enjoyed patronage under Zuma in the form of unsustainable pay rises, immunity for poorly performing public servants, and high office distributed to union barons. Second, what Vavi calls the "demon of tribalism" is resurgent in national and trade-union politics. Unfortunately the two factors reinforce each other in internal Cosatu politics because public-sector unions broadly reflect national ethnic demographics.

Vavi’s words found a crude echo in Julius Malema’s simultaneous claim that Zuma "is a proud proponent of tribalism and tribalist politics". A recent online treatise by fellow economic freedom fighter Floyd Shivambu argues that Cosatu and the SACP in KwaZulu-Natal have jettisoned "correct Marxist-Leninist analysis" and instead support "the disaster Zuma" on the basis of "tribal loyalty" and "the language he speaks and sings".

The pro-Zuma National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) is a special case, organising mainly in the private sector and lacking a significant membership in KwaZulu-Natal. But the actions of the NUM can be explained in other ways: as the outcome of its penetration by a faction of the SACP; and by the political ambitions of its previous general secretaries.

Union politics is multidimensional and there is little prospect of persistent ethnic blocs or a decisive public-private rupture. The course of Vavi’s career, however, must nearly be run. Leaders from public-sector unions represent the future of the federation. In years to come, the ANC will no longer be able to draw upon the corrective moral and political wisdom that Cosatu has hitherto expressed and that Vavi has personally exemplified.

21 September 2012 Business Day Wyndham Hartley Date set for Marikana commission to begin hearings

THE commission of inquiry into the violence and 46 deaths at the Lonmin Marikana mine will begin holding public hearings into the tragedy on October 1, Justice and Constitutional Development Minister Jeff Radebe said on Friday.

The six-week strike at Marikana lasted for more than six weeks and was only resolved earlier this week. A month ago police shot and killed 34 workers and injured another 78 as tension at the Lonmin mine escalated.

In all, 46 people have been killed, and the labour unrest also spread to other mines.

Addressing a news conference, Mr Radebe said that the commission, headed by retired Supreme Court of Appeal judge Ian Farlam, had begun its work with meetings with the parties involved and the investigative work would begin next week.

He also announced that five top advocates had been appointed to lead evidence during the public hearings of the commission.

Mr Radebe said: "We will be guided by the commission regarding persons it may wish to appoint as investigators and discussions in this regard are at an advanced stage. It is anticipated that the researchers will commence with their investigative work in this coming week.

"The commissioners have commenced with their work and have had a few meetings, including the meeting with parties. Public hearings are scheduled to commence on October 1 2012. The commission will announce their directives and timetable soon to give details of its schedule for public hearings."

He said the Rustenburg municipality had made its civic centre available as the seat of the commission and public hearings held there would be beamed to the Marikana community hall so that those who were unable to travel to Rustenburg would be able to watch the proceedings live.

"The commissioners were taken to the civic centre yesterday to view the facilities and are satisfied with the premises. In addition to the venue in the civic centre in Rustenburg, the Rustenburg municipality has offered the Marikana Hall in the Marikana informal settlement for use by the commission," he said.

"The president will soon promulgate regulations which will confer powers on the commission to enable it to execute its allocated task. As with the terms of reference, the regulations will be published in the English, Sesotho and isiXhosa after they have been promulgated by the president.

"These regulations will enable the commission to conduct its work and investigation in a meaningful and proper way. The regulations will also empower the commission to gather evidence by conferring on it such powers as are necessary, including the power to enter and search premises, secure the attendance of witnesses and compel the production of documents."

The advocates named to lead evidence are Mbuyiseli Madlanga, SC; Mathew Chaskalson, SC; Geoff Budlender, SC; Johannes Nxusana; and Charles Wesley.

21 September 2012 Business Day Stephen Grootes Tripartite leaders in it for the long run

THIS week’s move by the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) to retain the same top-six national leaders fits in with the dominant pattern of this year’s politics. This appears to be leading to a situation in which the current political personalities, and the systems and agendas they bring with them, are being consolidated.

This could lead to an entrenchment of the current political personnel in the African National Congress (ANC), Cosatu and the South African Communist Party (SACP) alliance, which could be to its detriment in the long run.

While many people expected that this year could see wholesale political change, as all three members of the alliance were having national congresses, this has not been the case. With two of the three leadership election processes out of the way, there has yet to be any serious change.

Cosatu’s leaders have emerged unchanged at this week’s congress. Earlier this year the SACP saw only slight change to its national leadership. The key positions — that of general secretary and deputy general secretary saw Blade Nzimande and Jeremy Cronin retain their jobs. While one new position was created, that of second deputy general secretary, it went to Solly Mapaila. He’s seen as close to Mr Nzimande and the appointment could be seen as an entrenchment of Mr Nzimande’s power.

This also means that the leaders of these two organisations will have very lengthy tenures. By the end of their terms in 2017, Mr Nzimande will have been in the same job for 19 years and Mr Vavi for 18. If they were the leaders of states, the length of their tenures would indicate dictatorial tendencies.

The net result of their lengthy stay in power has been that it is becoming harder and harder for anyone they oppose, to take over from them.

Thus when the names at the top do finally change, the actual politics or agendas they espouse will not.

It also means that what Cosatu refers to as "social distance" between leaders and members will continue to grow. The longer someone has been a leader, the less they are likely to remember being a mere member. As a result, the distance between the grass-roots and the upper echelons will grow.

It also means that there is very little space for people coming up through the ranks. As the members grow frustrated, they will either have to learn to cool their heels and accept the status quo — in policy and in leadership — or leave the organisation.

This trend may be beginning to trickle down.

The National Union of Mineworkers, an affiliate of Cosatu, also saw an election this year in which its general secretary, Frans Baleni was retained. It was shortly into his current term that the Marikana shootings exposed what appears to be big shortcomings in the way the union has developed over the past few years.

This trend is also happening in the ANC. Kgalema Motlanthe was secretary-general for ten years before becoming deputy president. President Jacob Zuma has been in the top six national leaders since the mid-1990’s.

There are several provincial leaders who have been provincial secretaries for more than ten years. That is partly so because the national leaders do not give way easily and therefore their choice is to either stay put, or to give it all up.

The increasing distance between members and leaders could open space for other organisations, or youthful individuals, to capitalise on mistakes made by the alliance.

21 September 2012 Business Day Staff writer Without ubuntu members of society become hooligans, Zuma says

ITHOUT respect and ubuntu, members of society become hooligans, President Jacob Zuma said in Alexandra on Saturday.

"We believe that all human beings are equal and important ... that they must be respected by virtue of their humanity.

"Once we lose respect for one another and ubuntu, what type of society will we be?

"If we build a society without these two, we are building a society of hooligans," he told the Alexandra township centenary celebration.

Mr Zuma criticised those who spoke recklessly against others just because they did not share the same views.

"If we do not agree as people, let us argue with respect and not by violence, saying whatever we like to people.

"That does not build a nation. South Africans are not hooligans. We are a nation of very proud respectful people who stand up for their rights but do so without losing dignity and ubuntu," Mr Zuma said.

He urged the community of Alexandra not to join the violent service delivery protests which engulfed some parts of the country.

The violent protests, Mr Zuma said, reversed what had already been achieved through the struggle and by the democratic government.

"We must never allow anger to reverse the gains we have made through decades of struggle. The new violent protests ... have no place in a democratic society. We cannot destroy that which we have built ourselves."

Mr Zuma applauded progress made by the Alexandra Renewal Project which was launched 10 years ago to rebuild the township and remove the legacy of its past.

The project started with a budget of R1.3bn and last year this was increased to R2.2bn.

Mr Zuma earlier met Alexandra community leaders who submitted complaints over the issuing of title deeds in the area.

He committed himself to return to the township in October but urged the residents to celebrate what the township had achieved thus far.

Mr Zuma urged workers not to follow the path taken by striking Lonmin workers in Marikana when they refused to use recognised trade unions and caused negotiation process to be stalled.

"Let Alexandra be a mother, teaching people how they can solve their own problems."

21 September 2012 Reuters BASIC group calls for adoption of "Kyoto 2" in Doha Ministers from Brazil, India, China and South Africa called for an extension of the Kyoto Protocol, the world's only treaty that forces countries to cut greenhouse gas emissions, which expires at the end of the year. The emerging economies, who form the BASIC bloc, met in Brazil's capital Brasilia on Thursday and Friday to discuss their common negotiating position for the upcoming climate talks in Doha, Qatar, in November. They said a new Kyoto commitment period should start on January 1 and that a decision on the treaty's fate should be "a key deliverable for Doha and an essential basis for ambition within the regime." The EU and poorer nations have said they want to extend the treaty, which set binding targets for 37 industrialized countries and the European community, but still remain split over how to do so. A Kyoto resolution, as well as advancing talks on how to agree in 2015 a deal to force all nations to cut emissions starting in 2020, will be major priorities at the Qatar talks. "The idea is that the results from the Durban conference, which were carefully balanced, should be fully implemented," said Brazil's Foreign Relations Minister Antonio Patriota. COMMON BUT DIFFERENTIATED At last year's U.N. climate talks in Durban, South Africa, the EU-led efforts to get a tentative deal that would get all emitters, including the BASIC countries, to set emissions reduction targets. While the BASIC group recognized that all countries "should participate in an enhanced global effort to be implemented after 2020" it stressed that its countries should not take on the same level of commitment as industrialized countries. The BASIC countries said the new agreement should "respect the principles of equity and common but differentiated responsibilities," referring to their view that rich countries should take on more of a burden to reduce emissions because of their historical contribution to global warming. The U.S., which did not sign the Kyoto treaty because major economies, such as China and its BASIC partners, did not adopt binding targets, has said it expects the countries to do so in a 2020 agreement. The BASIC members also addressed the controversial issue of Europe's inclusion of international airlines in its carbon cap-and-trade system, expressing "concern" about what they called its "unilateral action."

"This approach undermines confidence and weakens efforts to tackle climate change on a multilateral basis," they said. The BASIC countries will hold their next meeting in China in November just before the Doha climate talks. Along with Patriota, Brazilian Environment Minister Izabella Teixeira, Xie Zhenhua, Vice Chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission of China, Edna Molewa, Minister of Environmental of South Africa, and Bellur Shamarao Prakash, Ambassador of India to Brazil, participated in the meeting. Argentina, Algeria (chair of the Group of 77 and China), Barbados and Qatar were also represented as invited parties. 23 September 2012 The Times Sapa Nine in dock with Juju Expelled ANC Youth League leader Julius Malema will answer to charges of fraud, corruption and money laundering in a R100-million graft case that aims to bring down the so-called "Limpopo mafia".

The Sunday Times can reveal that Malema is listed as "accused No 10" on the charge sheet. He is accused with five individuals and four companies, and will appear in the Polokwane Magistrate's Court this week. He is likely to be formally charged and released on bail.

Among those who will join Malema in the dock are:

• Malema's business partner, Lesiba Gwangwa; • On Point Engineering, of which Gwangwa is a director and in which Malema

holds shares through the Ratanang Family Trust; • Selby Manthata, the business partner of Malema's ally, Limpopo premier

Cassel Mathale; • Malema-linked company Gwama Properties, which Malema and Gwangwa

used to buy a number of properties, including houses, farms and open plots; • Segwalo Consulting; and • Oceansite Trading.

Mathale and his wife are not among the accused.

According to insiders, Malema has been charged individually. His family trust fund, Ratanang, is not an accused.

His arrest warrant was issued on Friday.

He has already claimed that the warrant was politically motivated in a bid to silence him.

This has implications for Malema's properties, as he could lose some of them if Gwama Properties is successfully prosecuted.

On Point Engineering won a contract with the Limpopo Department of Roads and Transport, which effectively put the company in charge of directly influencing tenders.

The case is set to pit President Jacob Zuma's government and the ANC against the ANC Youth League, which has vowed to stand by its former leader.

Malema's supporters are planning to camp outside the court in support of the former youth leader - in scenes reminiscent of when Zuma faced corruption charges.

ANC Youth League spokeswoman Khusela Sangoni said Malema's arrest was "politically motivated" and meant to silence him. She said the timing of the criminal charges, a week before the official opening of ANC nominations for leadership positions, was curious. "We will never allow state resources to be used for political expediency. It cannot be that, a few days before nomination [for ANC elections], Julius is arrested.

"This issue is politically motivated and is being used to intimidate those who want change. We have been waiting for this. We knew it was inevitable," said Sangoni.

The Friends of the Youth League (FYL) - a group led by Malema and suspended youth league leaders Floyd Shivambu and Sindiso Magaqa - also accused Zuma of abusing state machinery to settle political scores.

"Our firm view is that the manufactured case against Malema is a conspiracy against the vision defined by his generation ... of economic freedom in our lifetime, in particular nationalisation of mines and strategic sectors and redistribution of land without compensation," said the FYL.

"We are convinced that the conspiracy is done by Jacob Zuma and his security-cluster ministers, led by Jeff Radebe and Nathi Mthethwa, and this conspiracy is aimed at de-focusing and silencing us from our genuine mission and from demanding leadership change in Mangaung."

It said it was convinced the courts would absolve Malema, accused by ANC leaders of seeking to destabilise the country.

Malema was not available for comment. Manthatha said: "I don't know anything so far."

Malema's lawyer, Nicqui Galaktiou, said they had been cooperating with the authorities. "What we've done since this information came to our attention was write letters to the highest authorities within the Hawks and NPA [National Prosecuting Authority] to offer our full assistance with any questions they may have ... and we assured them that there was no need for him to be arrested, but that he will present himself to court when required," she said.

Hawks spokesman McIntosh Polela said they did not comment on warrants, and NPA spokeswoman Bulelwa Makeke refused to confirm the warrant.

She said: "Please be aware, we will get involved when, and if, he indeed appears in court. Until then, we would rather not contribute to speculation."

23 September 2012

Sunday Times Business Times Page 1 (Lead) Jana Marais South Africa, European Union lock horns

European Union officials and business leaders are "disappointed" and "very concerned" about South Africa's decision to cancel investment protection agreements with the EU, the source of more than 80% of foreign direct investment in South Africa.

Last week South Africa terminated an investment treaty with Belgium and Luxembourg when it expired. In total, South Africa has 13 agreements with EU member states, which will all be cancelled as they come up for renewal.

Existing investments will enjoy the same protection for a sunset period of 10 years, but new investments will not be covered by the agreements, which guarantee compensation should expropriation or damage be suffered by investors.

"South Africa's timing couldn't be worse in the light of the Marikana situation. Also, one cannot help but wonder whether these agreements are being cancelled in case South Africa decides to nationalise certain key sectors in the economy," one European businessman said on the sidelines of the SA/EU summit in Brussels this week.

Karel de Gucht, EU trade commissioner, said he was "disappointed" that the treaties were being terminated without having new ones in place.

"It certainly will affect the investment climate," he said at the summit. "It is difficult to argue that the present investment agreements haven't worked very well. The EU is by far the biggest investor in South Africa."

Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies said South Africa was getting "plenty of investments" from countries such as the US without having bilateral investment treaties in place.

However, European business leaders said they require bilateral agreements to get affordable insurance needed to raise capital for ventures abroad.

"It does matter for investors," said Adrian van den Hoven, director at industry body BusinessEurope.

The economic crisis in Europe and Africa's status as a new growth frontier, makes South Africa an attractive market for European CEOs, Davies said.

"If there are investors who stay away because they feel that we don't have old-style, dated, antiquated bilateral investment treaties in place, I can assure you there are plenty of other investors from other parts of the world who are happy to come and don't insist on this.

''And, if they want to make that decision [to stay away], well, they'll be keeping themselves out of an economy which is part of a growing continent and that's their choice," he said.

South Africa has been reviewing its investment protection framework and a new regime is likely to take the form of legislation, which should be in place in less than five years, Davies said.

The review was sparked by a long-running lawsuit brought by Italian mining investors in 2006.

They argued that a new mining law, which requires 26% black ownership, caused damage to their investment and that they should be paid compensation in terms of investment treaties between South Africa, Italy and Luxembourg. The case was settled in 2010.

European business leaders attending the summit expressed concern over the delays in South Africa's renewable energy bid process, the lack of a trade agreement covering services and the lack of co-ordination between government departments, which hampers infrastructure roll-out programmes.

EU businesses see significant opportunity for investment in broadband, energy, shale gas, roads and other infrastructure programmes, Van den Hoven said.

With the exception of ArcelorMittal, no European mining companies attended the summit. Telecommunications, oil and gas, renewable energy, food and agriculture and pharmaceutical companies dominated the list of European attendees.

South African sugar and canned fruit industry bodies urged EU officials to improve access to the EU market for agricultural products.

Bongani Linda, chairman of the SA Sugar Association, said the country is losing sugar jobs and investment to other countries in the region, such as Mozambique, which enjoy duty-free and quota-free access to the EU.