The Herald

Award-winning artist Ntsika Ngxanga invites fans to join his spiritual journey kicking off his national tour, “A Place Called Ngoma” in Gqeberha.

The former member of acclaimed a cappella group The Soil will be performing at the Little Theatre on August 1, alongside The Soil, Zawani and Gqeberha’s Thandikhaya “Joliza” Magiyiyana, who will be travelling with Ngxanga for his performances in East London, Johannesburg and Cape Town.

The Herald Reporter, Simtembile Mgidi, sat down in studio with Ngxanga and Magiyiyana, and discussed their national tour. The Herald

A recent report tabled at a public health committee meeting showed that four rivers in Nelson Mandela Bay had elevated levels of bacterial pollutants.

The report was compiled from 359 samples taken between September and December.

In this week’s Behind The Herald Headlines with Daron Mann, we chat with DA councillor Mthokozisi Nkosi after the party called on the SA Human Rights Commission to investigate the municipality over the pollution. The Herald

Nearly 3,000 riders participated in The Herald Cycle Tour this year, split over two events — the mountain bike and road races.

Recognised as one of the heavyweight cycling events of SA, the tour is rated by many as one of the top classics on the sporting calendar, among other well-renowned events in the country.

The 39th edition also saw about 10,000 spectators attend the two-weekend event held at Addo and Summerstrand.

In Behind The Herald Headlines with Daron Mann this week, we catch up with podium finishers Kelsey van Schoor and Brad Gouveris. The Herald

Pressure to be the best and secure top honours in school sport has led to poaching.

In Behind The Herald Headlines with Daron Mann this week, he chats to Hannes Nienaber, who is responsible for written content at SuperSport Schools.

Under discussion is the latest incident at top public schools in the Eastern Cape that have cut sporting and cultural ties with prestigious Makhanda private school Kingswood College because of what one school termed its aggressive poaching of their most talented pupils.

“You have a right to go to the school that you want to go to, so if the parent wants to move his child to another school, he’s allowed to,” Nienaber said.

“What I do believe is that there should be a system between headmasters that if we take this child from you, that you have invested money into, that we pay the previous school a development fee for having brought the child to the level we brought him to.” The Herald

The EP rugby team have been hard at work on the training field and will have a camp this weekend in preparation for their opening game.

In Behind The Herald Headlines with Daron Mann this week, he chats to new EP Elephants rugby coach Allister Coetzee who says he is happy with how his team’s preparations are going ahead of the new season and that there is a good vibe in the side for of their opening SA Cup match against the Falcons in Kempton Park on March 8. The Herald

The conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo which claimed the lives of SA soldiers is likely to escalate.

That’s political analyst Ntsikelelo Breakfast speaking in the wake of the death of 13 soldiers killed in fighting with M23 rebels in the DRC.

The SA troops are in Congo as part of UN and Southern African missions.

In Behind The Herald Headlines with Daron Mann this week, we unpack the devastating conflict with Breakfast. The Herald

The Sunrisers Eastern Cape are finally starting to prove why they are the Betway SA20 defending champions after a dismal start to the championship this season.

The home side whipped the Pretoria Capitals by 52 runs in their clash at St George’s Park in Gqeberha on Wednesday night, making it three back-to-back victories after three opening defeats — their three worst defeats in the tournament’s short history.

In Behind The Herald Headlines with Daron Mann this week, we speak to Sunrisers coach Adrian Birrell as the team prepare for their match against the Joburg Super Kings at St George’s Park on Friday. The Herald

The Eastern Cape achieved a record 84.89% matric pass rate in 2024 and among those who contributed to this increase are two Nelson Mandela Bay pupils who were also the top achievers in the province.

Diya Gajjar and Chris Joubert, both from Pearson High School in Gqeberha, finished first and second in the province, respectively. 

Pearson was also among the eight schools in the Bay to achieve a 100% pass rate for the class of 2024.

In Behind the Herald Headlines with Daron Mann this week, we speak to Diya and Chris who both highlight the role support systems — at home and at school — played in their remarkable achievements, some of the challenges they faced in the exams and their plans for this year.

We also speak to principal Haldane Pienaar who lauded Diya and Chris  for achieving what was a “first in our history” and thanked school staff and parents for their support.  The Herald

The National Council of SPCAs (NSPCA) is investigating the brutal battering of at least 20 seagull chicks by a handful of young holidaymakers camping near the Gamtoos River mouth. 

Speaking on Behind The Herald Headlines with Daron Mann this week, NSPCA spokesperson Jacques Peacock described the incident as tragic and said they hoped to get to the bottom of the situation soon.

The chicks were beaten to death with sticks.

The senseless killing has led to widespread outrage on social media.

“The fact that it was at the hands of youngsters makes it even more abhorrent,” Peacock said.

He said they hoped to hand over a docket with all the necessary information to the police once the investigation was completed. The Herald

Human behaviour is behind many of the road accidents on Eastern Cape roads so far this festive season.

That is the opinion of Eastern Cape transport department spokesperson Unathi Binqose, speaking after a bloody weekend on the province’s roads in which more than 18 people died and 20 were injured.

In an accident near Graaff-Reinet on Monday morning, 14 people died in a head-on collision between a minibus taxi and an SUV on the N9.

A few hours earlier, on Sunday night, another head-on collision on the R61 near Bizana claimed the lives of three people. 

Speaking on Behind The Herald Headlines with Daron Mann this week, Binqose says fatigue, reckless and negligent driving and driving under the influence of alcohol were factors in road deaths. The Herald