The Daily Discourse

A notable observation that has been made by the Public Service Commission is that there seems to be a lack of control with regard to public servants exiting the Public Service through resignations, where there is cashing out of their pensions and thereafter being reappointed into the service. They argue that this trend needs to be further investigated.

GUEST: Michael Seloane, who is a Commissioner at the Public Service Commission

New communications technology has facilitated the development and growth of new taxi services such as Uber and Taxify. Uber has been a pioneer in this “sharing economy” with drivers owning their vehicles and seen as entrepreneurs contracted into the Uber system. However, the company and its drivers have been on the receiving end of often violent protests. In South Africa there have been clashes between metered taxi and Uber drivers with some drivers murdered and cars burnt in Johannesburg and Pretoria.
Omar Parker – Provincial Manager for the National Union of Public Service and Allied Workers (NUPSAW) in the Western Cape
Teresa Munchick – One of the core founders of the Advocacy Group “The Movement”, an organization representing Uber and Taxify drivers

On Tuesday, Government is hosted the #100MenMarch to raise awareness on violence against women and children.
Arthur Mafokate came under strong criticism after it was revealed he wanted to take part in the march, given the fact that he is currently entangled in a court case where he is accused of assaulting his musician ex-girlfriend Busisiwe Twala, aka Cici. The Government Communication and Information System (GCIS) distanced itself from the kwaito star, saying a personal invitation was never issued to Mafokate nor was he ever appointed as an official march ambassador. How should society treat ‘abusers’ or former ‘Abusers’?

GUESTS: Patrick Shai, founder and managing director of Khuluma Ndoda and reformed abuser.

Time now for the African Perspective, as customary on a Tuesday we profile an African country, today the spotlight is on Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire. This is a tropical country in southern West Africa on the Gulf of Guinea (North Atlantic Ocean), bordered in the north by Mali and Burkina Faso, in west by Liberia and Guinea, and in east by Ghana. For more than three decades after its independence from France, Ivory Coast was known for its religious and ethnic harmony, as well as its well-developed economy. For more on the country, we are now joined in studio by Jacques Kouakou, who is the Head of the France service at Channel Africa...

GUESTS: Jacques Kouakou, who is the Head of the France service at Channel Africa

Has the public spat between the DA and Cape Town mayor, Patricia de Lille, taken a political toll on the party? Has the DA's internal crisis deepened after de Lille's court victory, after the High Court in Cape Town set aside her dismissal? To examine the current state of the DA, we are now joined on the line by the former leader of the DA, Tony Leon...

GUEST: Former leader of the DA, Tony Leon

Professor Christie van der Westhuizen is arguing that there was nothing good about Apartheid and she will therefore explain how the concept of Capitalism was applied to the exclusion of many. According to her, the implementation after 1994 of the NP’s model of neo-federal capitalism ensured that while whites lost political power, they retained control of the country’s wealth.

GUEST: Professor Christie van der Westhuizen, Author of the book: White Power & the Rise and fall of the National Party. Her recent book is titled ‘Sitting Pretty: White Afrikaans Women in Post-apartheid South Africa

Yesterday, another suspicious device was found at the Pavilion shopping centre in Durban. On Saturday, a suspicious device was found in a Woolworths store at the Gateway Mall, also in Durban, and earlier in the week, similar devices were found at the same retail chain – one in Gateway and one at The Pavilion.

GUEST: Willem Els, Senior Training Co-ordinator, Transnational Threats and International Crime at the Institute for Security Studies

The South African government is reevaluating its position on its proposed exit from the International Criminal Court (ICC). International Relations Minister, Lindiwe Sisulu hinted last week that the government might reconsider the controversial decision. In 2016, two African states, South Africa and Burundi, had made official decisions to leave the ICC. South Africa's fallout with the ICC started after a visit by Sudanese President, Omar al-Bashir to the country in 2015 to attend the African Union summit. South Africa has criticized the Hague-based institution for perceived anti-African bias. For more on this we are now joined on the line by...

GUEST: Ottilia Maunganidze, who is the head of special projects at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS)

President Cyril Ramaphosa recently admitted that the country’s governance is collapsing. Does this suggest that South Africa is at the tipping point? What do we need to do to fix our country’s dysfunctional state?

GUEST: Mashupye Maserumule, Professor of Public Affairs at Tshwane University of Technology

As the winter initiation season is nearing its end, disturbing reports have emerged suggesting that more initiates have died in initiation schools in the Eastern Cape compared with last year. These deaths occurred despite government interventions. Where then do we point the finger? What role can traditional leaders play in curbing these deaths?

Guest: Nkosi Mkhanyiseli Dudumayo, chairperson of the OR Tambo District Initiation Forum
GUEST: Fikile Xasa, MEC for Local Government and Traditional Affairs in the Eastern Cape