Business

5 things you need to know in South Africa today

Staff Writer

 ·12 Dec 2016

Here’s what is happening in and affecting South Africa today:

• The Department of Basic Education has defended its 20% maths mark condonation. This follows the news that all Grade 7 to Grade 9 learners who have passed all their other subjects but failed maths would be promoted to the next grade. “This decision is only applicable to senior phase learners and only applicable for the 2016 cohort of learners while we are at this point of policy review”, said the Department in a press statement. “In addition to passing your two language subjects you have to pass one of them i.e. home language at minimum 50% and you have to pass mathematics at minimum 40%. In essence what the policy states is that even if you pass all of your other subjects with distinctions, but got less than 40 percent for mathematics you failed the year.”

• Minister of Arts and Culture Nathi Mthethwa has called on members of the ANC to focus on issues on the ground saying the party has lost votes. Speaking at a KwaZulu-Natal ANC Youth League lecture at the Durban City Hall, Mthethwa admitted that the ANC had lost support in key areas which it would now have to fight for. “Do not fall into traps of people who conduct themselves through insults. Ours should be the supremacy of our argument,” said Mthetwa. “The revolution is about the people. If you forget about the masses you are lost. We want to reconnect with the branches of the ANC to reconnect with the people on the ground,” he said.

• President Jacob Zuma has said that he plans to run for mayor of Nkandla upon his retirement as South Africa’s Head of State.   Speaking at the funeral of late struggle veteran Riot Mkhwanazi on Sunday, Zuma said that his ambition is to be mayor of Nkandla one day. “When I say to people (that) when I’m going to take my pension, I am going to contest to be a councilor in my ward, people laugh.”

• The South African Metro Police has announced that it will intensify its targeting of drunk drivers and speeders throughout the country. Statistics showed that between 1 December and 11 January 2015, road deaths increased by 14% to 1755, many of them as a direct consequence of alcohol abuse. Johannesburg metro police spokesman Superintendent Edna Mamonyane said 300 motorists were arrested in the city every weekend, most of them for drunken driving. “People want to go out and have fun and that is okay. But what I do not understand is why they still drive after drinking when there are services they could use,” said Mamonyane.

• South Africa’s rand weakened on Friday after both the current account and trade deficits widened in the third quarter, renewing concerns about the economy. But stocks ended higher, logging their biggest weekly gain in nearly five months with Sibanye Gold in the spotlight after the miner unveiled a $2.2 billion cross-border acquisition. On Monday, the rand was trading at R13.82 to the dollar, R17.39 to the pound and R14.59 to the euro.