The Mercury - April 24, 2025

In this issue

April 24, 2025

eThekwini faces R35bn consumer debt crisis

A RECENT report detailing the state of consumer debt in the eThekwini Municipality has sparked concerns that ratepayers are deeply overstretched and unable to pay their municipal bills and could fall even further behind with the new tariffs coming into effect in July.

3 mins

Report reveals dire state of KZN police stations

THE Portfolio Committee on Police oversight report on police stations in KwaZulu-Natal revealed shocking details of the state of the police stations in the province.

2 mins

NPA considers appeal in Timothy Omotoso case

THE National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) has announced that it has appointed a Senior Counsel to evaluate and advise on the possibility of appealing the Timothy Omotoso judgment.

1 min

Media silence on assassination attempt raises alarm

MEDIA reports over the Easter weekend carried very ominous news that Deputy President Paul Mashatile has recently survived an assassination attempt when the convoy he was travelling in was shot at.

1 min

ANC must stop the ideological wars on its people

WHEN you go onto YouTube or any news channel lately, what do you see? If it’s not a hoo-ha being made of the EFF in Orania, it’s the Joshlin Smith court case which is demanding everyone's attention.

2 mins

DA protests VAT but ignores Cape Town tariff hikes

I WAS surprised to observe that the DA, which is part of the Government of National Unity (GNU), expressed its unhappiness with the proposed 0.5% increase of Value Added Tax (VAT) by the minister of finance by organising wide-spread protests, and is even prepared to fork out huge sums of money to go to the High Court to stop its implementation.

1 min

The future of globali- sation in Trump's era

AFTER the World War II in 1945, the US redesigned the world order and provided appropriate conditions for peace, co-operation, and prosperity.

1 min

Am I of sound mental health?

IT’S ALL about ZOOM...

1 min

It's the Corgi Derby

READERS in this country might have missed reports over Easter of a classic race in Scotland with royal antecedents. It's the Corgi Derby, run at the Musselburgh Racecourse, outside Edinburgh, according to Associated Press.

1 min

Teachers march against austerity measures

TEACHERS affiliated to the South African Democratic Teachers’ Union (Sadtu) took to the street yesterday, demanding the scrapping of government-imposed austerity measures, which they claim are crippling the education sector and driving teachers to resign due to excessive workloads.

2 mins

SIU expands state capture probe into 'New Age' media breakfasts by SABC

THE SIU will widen its scope of investigation to include five state institutions in connection with the Gupta-owned New Age newspaper (TNA) media breakfasts hosted by the SABC about a decade ago.

1 min

Umalusi raises alarm over declining quality of TVET exams

UMALUSI has sounded the alarm on the declining quality of TVET (Technical Vocational Education and Training) examinations, revealing that nearly a third of the question papers used in the November 2024 exam cycle were marred by grammatical errors.

1 min

Over 17 000 arrests in SA Easter blitz

POLICE arrested 17605 suspects across the country in just one week, with KwaZulu-Natal emerging as a major hot spot during a series of high-impact operations, including Operation Shanela and blitzes targeting illegal liquor outlets over the Easter weekend.

2 mins

Centralising registration of wills could ease burden

MY SISTER Nosive passed away on April 4; she was a kind, funny person who had only just celebrated her 39th birthday. It was a horrible shock for the whole family and, in the following days, we were all together on WhatsApp group conversations and conference calls trying to come to terms with her sudden illness and death.

3 mins

VAT OUTCOME SPELLS DISASTER FOR GNU

WHATEVER outcome the Western Cape High Court delivers on the application to challenge the decision to hike VAT, the Government of National Unity (GNU) faces an existential threat.

1 min

Pope Francis was the voice of solidarity against indifference

The moral demands he laid upon us remain

4 mins

WEF confirms probe on Schwab

THE World Economic Forum (WEF) confirmed yesterday that it had launched an investigation into allegations made against its founder, Klaus Schwab, that reportedly prompted his resignation this week.

2 mins

Disgraced movie mogul’s retrial starts

HARVEY Weinstein’s retrial on rape and sexual assault charges was set to proceed yesterday with opening statements before a Manhattan jury, a year after New York's highest state appeals court overturned the disgraced movie mogul's conviction

1 min

S Korea to seek tariff solution

South Korea's Industry Minister Ahn Duk-geun said yesterday that Seoul would seek a speedy solution over auto tariffs in trade talks with US counterparts, and was also prepared for the prospect of Washington bringing up the issue of defence costs.

1 min

Iraq ‘should not be dragged into conflicts’

FRANCE’S foreign minister said yesterday that Iraq should not be pulled into conflicts in a turbulent Middle East during his first visit to the country, which has suffered from decades of instability

1 min

Official announces new autism research

A TOP US science official on Tuesday backed away from a bold promise made by Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy jr to reveal the cause of autism by September.

1 min

Crime, fear stalk M23-run areas

EVERY morning, the Congolese city of Bukavu, now under the control of the Rwanda-backed M23 movement, counts its dead.

3 mins

Judge denies defence's request for acquittal

THE Western Cape High Court has denied applications brought in terms of Section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Act for the discharge of the accused in the Joshlin Smith matter.

2 mins

Newzroom Afrika takes journalist off air

NEWZROOM Afrika has placed journalist and anchor Aldrin Sampear on a break following his involvement in a road rage incident that has since gone viral on social media. The broadcaster is conducting an internal review of the matter.

1 min

Mashatile's security detail reinforced

THE country's security cluster has beefed up President Cyril Ramaphosa and deputy president Paul Mashatile's security detail.

1 min

Ratepayers concerned over double-digit tariff hikes

RATEPAYERS in the eThekwini Municipality have voiced their concern over double-digit increases in tariffs and how their money is spent in the Integrated Development Plan (IDP) budgets for 2025 and 2026.

3 mins

Parental burnout: how to turn exhaustion into empowerment

PARENTING is often portrayed as a joyful, fulfilling journey and it is.

2 mins

IMF warns of soaring global debt levels as countries face tough economic choices

THE International Monetary Fund (IMF) has issued a stark warning that over one-third of countries are set to experience an increase in public debt by 2025, compared to the previous year.

2 mins

South African fund managers adopt cautious optimism as gold positions rise

SOUTH African fund managers are preferring a high gold positioning as the country’s economic growth outlook and confidence in reforms dim, Bank of America (BofA) data showed on Wednesday.

2 mins

PIC greenlights Zahid Group's R23bn takeover of Barloworld

Governance issues remain as PIC sets conditions for public interest to be addressed

2 mins

Interest rates to stay high despite inflation plunging to 5-year low

CONSUMERS reliant on credit may have to endure an extended period of restrictive monetary policy before the South African Reserve Bank (Sarb) considers cutting interest rates later this year, despite recent data showing inflation has plummeted to its lowest level in nearly five years.

1 min

Legal expert suggests MTN financial statements misrepresent risk of United States terrorism cases

THERE are concerns that MTN Group may have misled its shareholders about the nature of ongoing terrorism litigation in the United States in the recently published Annual Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 2024.

2 mins

Mashatile calls for transparency and inclusivity in the 2025 Budget process

DEPUTY President Paul Mashatile on Wednesday said the 2025 Budget process has instilled important lessons, relating to improving transparency in decision-making processes and that the current budgetary process is not transparent and inclusive enough.

2 mins

BankservAfrica's indices reveal mixed signals for South Africa's economy in March

BANKSERVAFRICA'S much-anticipated Take-home Pay Index (BTPI) is set to reveal a small dip for March 2025, marking a slight retreat in the wage landscape of South Africa.

2 mins

Africa Travel Indaba expected to surpass 2024 figures, raise more than R300 million for KZN

MINISTER of Tourism Patricia de Lille has said that the 2025 Africa Travel Indaba (ATI) was expected to surpass the figures it drew last year and generate more than R300 million for the economy of KwaZulu-Natal.

2 mins

Vedanta weighs US listing to raise $1bn for Zambian copper assets

VEDANTA Resources, is considering a US public listing for its Zambian unit Konkola Copper Mines as one of its options to try to raise about $1 billion for mine development, three sources familiar with the details, told Reuters.

2 mins

Capitec Bank reports 30% surge in earnings, diversification bears results

CAPITEC, the digital bank with more than half of South Africa as clients, increased headline earnings 30% to R13.7 billion as its diversification initiatives over recent years started to unlock value for its clients and the bank.

3 mins

High gold prices may not boost South African producers amid cost pressures, warns Fitch

HIGH costs could inhibit benefits of high gold prices for South African producers of the precious metal although there is optimism that its auto makers will register growth this year, analysts at Fitch Solutions said on Wednesday, highlighting a mixed outlook for exports this year.

1 min

Braids, business and freedom: what one woman entrepreneur taught me about resilience

I RECENTLY found myself in a local salon, getting my daughter and niece ready for the upcoming school term.

2 mins

Five signs that your business plan needs to be revisited in today's economy

A BUSINESS plan is never set in stone.

3 mins

Al-powered Lean could level the playing field for South African SMEs

SOUTH African SMEs navigate a complex business landscape, juggling daily operational demands with the urgent need to adopt rapidly evolving digital technologies.

3 mins

Sinner doesn't deserve any hate, says Draper

BRITON Jack Draper has given his backing to world number one Jannik Sinner over the doping controversy which saw the Italian accept a three-month ban and said he does not deserve any of the hate he gets.

2 mins

Aiden Markram piling on the runs in IPL

AFTER a slow start to the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL), Aiden Markram has been piling on the runs for Lucknow Super Giants.

2 mins

Fall ends Venniker's season

RACHEL VENNIKER had what she described as a \"soft fall\" on Friday on the sand at the starting stalls at Summerveld, but unfortunately her leg hit one of the curb stones that ‘keeps the sand in from the side and snapped her tibia (shin bone).

4 mins

'It gave me a scare': Coetzee concussion inspires tackle record

WATCHING him charge into the opposition, you would think that there's little that scares Marcell Coetzee.

3 mins

How Sacha and Damian's presence empowers Warrick Gelant and the Stormers' game in the URC

CONCEDING five tries is just not good enough from the Stormers’ defence and they will have to tighten things up ahead of taking on a physical but skilful Benetton on Saturday evening in Cape Town.

2 mins

Parkhill BC celebrates their centenary in style

THE greens of Parkhill Bowling Club were a riot of colour and camaraderie this Easter weekend, as 144 bowlers from across the country gathered for the club’s landmark 100th anniversary Easter Tournament — an event made possible thanks to the continued support of Hollywoodbets and CMH Nissan Ballito.

2 mins

Get on the Sacha party bus for this flyhalf can jol

THE Stormers never won a single Super Rugby title.

2 mins

'Cocomelon Football' will want to set Cairo alight yet again

MOHAU Nkota. Relebohile Mofokeng. These two youngsters have fond memories of their last three visits to north Africa this season.

2 mins

Guardiola joy as Manchester City go third on EPL log

PEP Guardiola admitted his wild celebration of Matheus Nunes's stoppage-time winner against Aston Villa felt strange because Manchester City don't score as many late goals as their Premier League rivals.

2 mins

Momentum's sponsorship with Proteas Women's team draws to a close

CRICKET South Africa (CSA) have confirmed that its long-standing commercial partner, Momentum, will conclude its sponsorship of the Proteas Women's team at the end of April.

1 min

AmaZulu, Arrows in a rare top-eight chase for KZN sides

THE GOALLESS stalemate that AmaZulu and Golden Arrows played in January was an anomaly, at least if last season’s results between the two teams are anything to go by.

2 mins

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