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African National Congress (ANC) President Cyril Ramaphosa has assured the party’s Tripartite Alliance partners – the South African Communist Party (SACP) and the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) – that the ANC will conclude discussions on the reconfiguration of the alliance.

Ramaphosa was speaking during the SACP’s fifteenth national congress in Johannesburg, on Friday, where he acknowledged that there was significant anxiety within the SACP and Cosatu that the ANC had not fully concluded its own discussions.

There has been discontentment in the alliance, with calls for a reconfiguration in the relations between the ANC, the SACP and Cosatu.

“I can say that as President of the ANC I do support that we should have a thorough ongoing discussion on the reconfiguration of the alliance. We must discuss in depth precisely what our roles, what our responsibilities are as we chart the way forward. So we are going to devote time to conclude that discussion,” he said.

He promised that the ANC would speed up discussions so that when the Alliance Political Council met it was able to finalise its discussions.

Ramaphosa spoke of the ANC and SACP’s “tightly interwoven relationship” which has spanned many decades. He said the ANC remained firmly committed to its alliance with the SACP and remained convinced that the role of the SACP in advancing the fundamental transformation of the country’s economy and society was key to the future of the country.

The ANC supports the SACP’s cause: to build a powerful socialist movement of workers and the poor.

However, Ramaphosa admitted that it was not enough for the ANC to state its commitment to the alliance. He said it needed to work hard and to continuously ensure that the movement remained united, cohesive and effective.

“We recognise that there have been weaknesses, there have also been lapses and shortcomings in how we have managed this relationship and how we have approached the common tasks and responsibilities that are at hand,” he said.

Alliance structures at national, provincial and regional levels have not worked as they should have and have not responded to the challenges facing the movement, he added.

He said the alliance ought to be able to develop a common view on crucial areas of social and economic development.

NZIMANDE LEADERSHIP

Meanwhile, Ramaphosa commended SACP general-secretary Blade Nzimande, who is stepping down from the helm after 24 years.

“The party has grown in membership, it has also grown in strength and indeed it has also grown in influence. We applaud you [Nzimande] because by growing the party you have contributed to strengthening the democratic progressive movement in our country. I think you are to be applauded for continuing to lead the party over the many years and you have seen it grow into the organisation that it is today. I take off my hat to you and applaud you for the excellent work that you have done,” said Ramaphosa.

A new coalition government is set to take over the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro.

The African Christian Democratic Party, African Independent Congress, Abantu Integrity Movement, Democratic Alliance, Freedom Front Plus, Pan Africanist Congress, and the United Democratic Movement have agreed to forming a coalition government.

The parties met at least eight times in recent weeks to iron out a new agreement. Parties are to report back to their structures for a final mandate.

Just over a year after a wave of violent unrest swept through KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana has warned that the continued decay of service delivery by local government is a fertile breeding ground for economic strife and future instability in SA.

The minister on Thursday urged municipalities to meet the national government halfway in providing basic services by maintaining their infrastructure and spending their basic service delivery grants.

The unrest in July last year was characterised by the looting of stores and destruction of business infrastructure. It started when former president Jacob Zuma was arrested for refusing to appear before the State Capture Inquiry, but eventually descended into widescale looting and damage to property.

"While much of the rioting was undoubtedly driven by criminal elements, it found fertile ground in the desperate economic situation faced by many of our people," said Godongwana said at the Chris Hani District Municipality Economic Development and Investment Summit, in Komani in the Eastern Cape.

He also highlighted that factories, plants and small businesses were closing shop and retrenching workers, because they could not rely on the timely provision of electricity and water by municipalities.

Godongwana's address also comes as 43 of South Africa's 257 municipalities are in a state of financial distress, while another 112 have adopted budgets that they cannot fund. Struggling to collect revenue, repay debts, and fund the provision of basic services has become a common feature of local government in South Africa.

Godongwana said the Chris Hani municipality underspent on infrastructure grants and returned the money to the National Revenue Fund in the last half a decade. He said municipalities could forget about creating a climate conducive to attracting investment if they could not reliably provide basic services.

"In 2016/17, an amount of R38.9-million went unspent by the municipality and had to be returned to the National Treasury. In the following year, 2017/18, R65-million was returned to the National Revenue Fund by the municipality. In 2018/19, nearly R240-million was unspent.

"That figure was R97-million in 2019/20. Surely these kinds of figures are not helpful. It is unfathomable that a municipality in a province like the Eastern Cape, where poverty, inequality, and unemployment indicators are consistently higher than the national average, could fail to spend money on providing key services," said Godongwana.

Godognwana said the government dedicated over R200-billion to infrastructure in recent years and that this was not being seen on the ground at a local government level.

The minister said the National Treasury would support municipalities by providing skills development programmes, amending funding and quality assurance mechanisms, expanding opportunities for work-based learning, and updating the Critical Skills List to allow for the import of scarce skills.

"However, it falls to municipalities and provinces to put in place the budgetary mechanisms, to hire qualified people with the desired skills, and provide proper oversight, accountability, project planning, and preparation, for infrastructure building and maintenance projects to be successfully executed," he said.

Godongwana said several municipalities are under-budgeting for infrastructure maintenance, leading to potholes, burst sewer pipes, and "an overall falling level of service delivery".

He said the National Treasury found that 150 municipalities in the country are bankrupt or insolvent, unable to pay creditors or even service pensions.

Godongwana said there was potential for Chris Hani District Municipality to play a co-ordination role with the local municipalities that fall under it by harnessing skills at the district level to deliver infrastructure projects.

"Chris Hani District Municipality is allocated close to R4-billion over the medium-term expenditure framework ending in 2024/25...

Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema announced on Thursday that his party will approach all political parties in Parliament to initiate a motion of no confidence against President Cyril Ramaphosa if he does not step down.

The EFF will also engage in a national shutdown, calling for the President’s removal in the wake of the Phala Phala scandal.

Addressing the media at EFF headquarters, Malema said his party had been patient for too long.

The EFF said it had written to the South African Reserve Bank, the South African Revenue Service, the Financial Intelligence Centre, and all relevant structures to demand that Ramaphosa be held accountable, adding that nothing has yet been done.

He said he was confident that the African National Congress (ANC) would accept the motion of no confidence against Ramaphosa if he does not step down.

“So, we are confident that the ANC people will themselves accept that the motion of no confidence must be put on the President if he does not step down. The DA will have to defend the President. The DA will have to vote for violation of all laws of the land. So, if the DA decides to vote against the motion of no confidence, then the people of South Africa must choose what they want. But we are not going to fold our arms when we see open violation of the laws of the country because we think we won’t get sufficient support,” Malema said.

Malema said the EFF would approach the courts to compel Parliament to conduct a thorough and transparent investigation of any crimes committed by Ramaphosa with the aim of building a solid case for impeachment.

Malema said Ramaphosa was not above the law. He said corruption and the tendency to buy people and judges must come to an end.

“Who must respect law enforcement agencies and South Africa’s criminal justice system when a sitting head of State chooses a gangsterism approach of hunting those who stole what appears to be stolen dollars from him? Who must respect SARS and pay taxes when the so-called President does not? Who must comply with foreign currency regulations when a sitting head of State does not? Who will respect the rule of law if a sitting head of State does not respect the laws?” asked Malema.

The owner of the bar in the South African coastal town of East London where 21 teenagers mysteriously died last month has been arrested, police in the Eastern Cape province said on Wednesday.

Forensic teams are yet to reveal their conclusions on how the teens died, with a source close to the investigation saying one theory was a chemical or gas leak and authorities also investigating possible accidental poisoning.

There has been an outpouring of grief at the deaths at the nightspot in Scenery Park township, in a nation used to seeing casualties from a pervasive binge drinking culture.

Angry mourners of some victims have complained that weeks of calls to shut down the tavern went unheeded.

Provincial police said in a statement that the owner, aged 52, was arrested over the weekend, while two employees at the tavern were subsequently arrested on Tuesday.

The owner is expected to appear before the East London Magistrates Court on August 19 to face charges after an investigation that focused on allegedly supplying minors with alcohol, the statement said.

"Just as we said in the beginning, investigation is a process and needs to be treated with extreme care," Lieutenant-General Nomthetheleli Mene said in the statement.

Minister of Home Affairs Aaron Motsoaledi intends to lodge a damages claim against a lawyer representing Zimbabwe Exemption Permit (ZEP) holders who are challenging the cancellation of the permit.

Advocate Simba Chitando told News24 on Monday that Motsoaledi demanded that he withdraw comments to the media and delete comments on social media about millions the department had apparently made from ZEP holders.

"The minister also demands that I pay him R200 000 on the grounds that my legal arguments are defamatory," Chitando said in a statement.

Spokesperson for the minister, Siya Ooza confirmed the minister's intentions.

"The minister has instructed his attorneys to issue a defamation cease and desist letter against Mr Simba Chitando," Ooza said.

"The minister's lawyers will proceed to launch an application in the [Gauteng] High Court...in Johannesburg against Mr Chitando."

The minister takes issue with Chitando's statements that according to affidavits the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) filed, it told Treasury that R145 803 928 was required for the Zimbabwe exemption programme. He was told that Treasury only made R15-million available to the DHA, so the ZEP programme was not sustainable.

However, Chitando's view is that the money paid by an estimated 180 000 ZEP holders, excluding unsuccessful applicants, at R1 090 each, amounted to around R200-million.

Chitando said during media interviews that the state committed "fraud" against the citizens of another country.

This is what Motsoaledi wants him to withdraw.

Excerpts of Chitando's tweets and statements include a comment to SABC that Motsoaledi's case is that the ZEP programme is an expense to the state, yet the ZEP holders are paying for the process themselves.

A letter of demand from Motsoaledi's lawyers, which News24 has seen, states that the minister is held in high esteem and that he has taken a firm stance against corruption.

Motsoaledi's lawyers contend that Chitando's remarks defame the minister and impair his reputation and dignity. They also take issue with Chitando's comment that Motsoaledi is a liar, which he made during an announcement that the Zimbabwe Permit Holders Association (ZEPA), represented by Chitando and his attorneys, had withdrawn their application for a review of the decision to end the permits.

The lawyer also states that Motsoaledi does not have access to the money because it goes to the National Revenue Fund. The letter explains that VFS Global processes the applications for a fee of R1 090, with the DHA covering the costs of the printing of the permits and paying staff overtime for processing them.

If Chitando does not withdraw his tweets and comments, Motsoaledi will seek R200 000 from him for defamation, which is to be donated to a charity, the letter states.

The DHA announced last year that its ZEP category of residence would be terminated by the end of December 2021, spreading panic among the Zimbabwean immigrant community. They worried about whether their bank accounts would be frozen and work contracts would be renewed, and what would happen to their children's education and study.

ZEP holders have to apply for one of the "mainstream" visas available, like work, study, and spousal visas, in an offering that leans towards people who have skills critical to South Africa.

The DHA has given them a year's "grace" to apply for these visas, and if they have not been successful by the end of 2022, they have to leave the country or face deportation.

Chitando is representing clients in the ZEPA, with the Helen Suzman Foundation (HSF) also working to challenge aspects of the ZEP-to-visa plan.

The HSF was lambasted by Motsoaledi in a statement in which he accused NGOs of trying to take over the work of the government.

Chitando said he was facing similar vitriol.

"The minister's threat to gag me from updating my clients on litigation that affects them comes after he: attacked the Helen Suzman Foundation; claimed that human rights organisations are gi...

Power utility Eskom says the four arrests in relation to a corrupt ABB Group contract for work at the Kusile power station is hopefully just the beginning, with more arrests expected to follow soon.

Eskom on Wednesday issued a statement following News24's report that two former employees of the Swiss engineering firm and their wives were arrested by the Investigating Directorate of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) in a joint operation with the Hawks and the South African Revenue Service on Tuesday. This is one of the State Capture cases the NPA is pursuing.

The accused are Mohammed and Raeesa Mooidheen and Vernon and Aradhna Pillay, News24 reported.

The matter concerns a corrupt contract awarded during the construction of Kusile in 2015 of about R2.2-billion.

ABB irregularly appointed Impulse International as a sub-contractor and paid it R549-million in 2016 and 2017. At the time, former acting Eskom CEO Mathsela Koko's step-daughter, Koketso Choma, was a shareholder of Impulse, News24 reported.

"Eskom congratulates the NPA's Investigating Directorate on the arrests in this case, and pledges to do everything in its power to assist the investigations to bring about successful prosecutions.

"Eskom also hopes this is just the beginning and that more arrests will follow on this matter, and on the more than 100 other criminal cases lodged with the law enforcement agencies over the years," the power utility said.

The former employees – Mohammed Mooidheen and Vernon Pillay – are accused of using their influence to get kickbacks estimated at over R6-million. This includes cash and luxury vehicles from irregularly awarding the Impulse contract. This also allegedly benefited their spouses.

Some of the assets belonging to the accused and their spouses have been seized by the Asset Forfeiture Unit.

They have been released on bail and will appear in court on 14 October 2022.

In December 2020, ABB South Africa reached a settlement with Eskom of R1.577-billion - for overpayments the power utility made to the contractor.

The construction of mega coal-fired power stations Kusile and Medupi have suffered significant cost overruns, largely linked to inflated contracts.

The South African Revenue Service (SARS) announced on Tuesday that its operations have been affected by the industrial action from unions, forcing the tax body to close 18 branches in seven provinces around the country.

This comes at a sensitive time for SARS operations, as tax season started at the beginning of July.

The Public Servants' Association (PSA) and the National Education, Health, and Allied Workers' Union (Nehawu) announced on Monday that they would be resuming their strike at SARS after suspending their industrial action for two months during wage negotiations.

Unions are demanding a 7% increase in wages.

SARS has floated the idea of channelling its savings from 2021 towards wages. Unions said this would only add up to a 1.39% increase and rejected the offer.

In a statement, SARS said it was forced to close multiple branches, including five in Gauteng, three in KwaZulu-Natal, four in the Western Cape, three in the Eastern Cape, and one each in Mpumalanga, the Free State and the Northern Cape.

It encouraged taxpayers filing tax returns to make use of its digital services, including e-filing.

"SARS apologises for any inconvenience caused but due to industrial action taking place across SARS, we are experiencing delays in servicing our taxpayers. Please continue to make use of our digital services during this time," the statement read.

PSA spokesperson Reuben Maleka claimed that the strike action has "fully shut down" border gates and SARS branch offices.

"The employer must listen and provide a better offer," said Maleka.

Nehawu spokesperson Lwazi Nkolisi said the strike action at SARS kicked off "quite well" with members coming out in numbers at demonstrations across various SARS offices.

"We will be having demonstrations through picketing in offices of SARS and we will not be rendering any services until the employer offers something tangible to our members and workers at SARS," said Nkolisi.

These branches have been closed due to the strike:

Gauteng

Edenvale

Benoni

Randfontein

Springs

Boksburg

KwaZulu-Natal

Richards Bay

Pietermaritzburg

Durban

Western Cape

Cape Town

Mitchells Plain

Paarl

Beaufort West

Mpumalanga

Mbombela

Eastern Cape

Umtata

Uitenhage

East London

Free State

Qachas (border post)

Northern Cape

Upington

Two former employees of engineering firm Asea Brown Boveri (ABB) have been arrested along with their wives in connection with an allegedly inflated multimillion-rand contract for work at Eskom's Kusile power station.

It is alleged that they received cash and cars from a company ABB sub-contracted, called Impulse International.

The Investigating Directorate (ID) arrested the four people as part of a multi-agency initiative involving the Hawks and SARS in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal and Middelburg in Mpumalanga after raiding their premises.

They are expected to appear in the Durban Specialised Commercial Crimes Court and the Randburg Magistrate's Court on Tuesday.

Fin24 previously reported that former acting Eskom CEO Matshela Koko was accused of promising ABB R6.5-billion in future contracts if it sub-contracted work on Kusile to Impulse International, a company partially owned by his stepdaughter, Koketso Choma.

ABB was reportedly awarded a R2.2-billion control and instrumentation contract for Kusile in 2015, and subcontracted some of the work to Impulse.

According to a Sunday Times report, this was despite the fact that Impulse twice failed ABB's tests for sub-contractor appointments and did not qualify to do the work.

News24 previously reported that documents in the Eskom Files - a vast data dump of emails, forensic reports, bank statements, and legal and financial records - show that ABB paid Impulse R557-million.

And after Choma became a shareholder at Impulse, Eskom awarded the company a series of other lucrative contracts and paid the firm R295-million.

However, Eskom apparently stopped paying Impulse in 2017, after the Sunday Times exposed the links between the company, Koko and Choma.

Koko has consistently denied involvement in ABB's awarding of sub-contracts to Impulse.

The Public Protector must not put their personal interest above the public interest or above the interest of the Office of the Public Protector, constitutional drafter Hassen Ebrahim told the Section 194 committee on Tuesday.

Ebrahim, who was part of the Codesa negotiations and the Constitutional Assembly, which drafted the Constitution in the 1990s, and subsequently worked in several positions related to constitutions, was the first witness at suspended Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane's impeachment hearings.

The hearings continued on Tuesday after the opening remarks by the evidence leader, advocate Nazreen Bawa SC, and Mkhwebane's counsel, advocate Dali Mpofu SC, on Monday.

Ebrahim was called to explain the constitutional framework of the Public Protector.

He said it was critically important that the "Public Protector is defined as an organ of state", which is required to respect the Constitution and that she doesn't assume powers she doesn't have. She should also show a "high standard of professional ethics" and use resources economically and effectively.

The Constitution and laws require the incumbent of the Office of the Public Protector to be "beyond reproach, a person of stature and suitably qualified", Ebrahim said.

Considering the Public Protector's wide-ranging powers, Ebrahim said: "Constitutionally, the Public Protector is one of those superheroes."

The chairperson of the Section 194 committee, Qubudile Dyantyi, asked: "Do you mean the office or the person?"

Mkhwebane and Mpofu shook their heads.

On Monday, Mpofu said the office and the person were inseparable.

The Western Cape High Court, however, ruled otherwise.

According to Ebrahim, it is "very important to separate the office from the incumbency", and it is very important to "protect the office from the incumbent".

Ebrahim said that, with this great power, comes great responsibility.

"The Public Protector must not put personal interest above the public interest, and must not put personal interest above the office of the Public Protector," he said.

He said the Public Protector should always act in good faith.

Ebrahim also raised a matter which could surface again later in the inquiry.

He said: "Unless there are special circumstances, as determined by the Public Protector, a matter will not be investigated 'unless it is reported to the Public Protector within two years from the occurrence of the incident or matter concerned'."

He said the high court found that, if a matter was to be accepted outside of the two-year period, the Public Protector must identify the special circumstances to justify the consideration of matters that are more than two years old.

Ebrahim also didn't downplay the gravity of the matter at hand.

"Removing the Public Protector from office is a very serious matter, not to be undertaken lightly at all. This is evident from, among other things, the significance of the role that the Public Protector plays in our constitutional democracy and the fact that such removal can only occur with, among other things, a supporting vote of at least two-thirds of the National Assembly," he said.

"In the process of discharging its function, the committee should have due regard for, among other things, the chilling effect that its decision may have on the effective exercise of the Public Protector's powers by incumbents to that office."

Mpofu's cross-examination began shortly before lunch, in which he questioned Ebrahim's expertise. He will continue in the afternoon.

The hearings will continue on Wednesday.