The controversial painting of the president "on view" so to speak, has just about everyone talking, so much so that in the smoke of battle it's easy to lose sight of other issues that are perhaps more demanding of our attention. So, while the ANC goes to court today in an effort to have the painting removed from view, Gwede Mantashe says the ANC is basically OK with the Press Freedom Commission report issued yesterday, but he
has some thoughts on issues such as "lazy" journalists... Oh, and also "that painting".
There's good news for those of you with an interest in the
property & real estate field or the
education & training field... today sees the launch of our first newsletters covering these sectors.
On the property front, read about a
new app designed to make property hunting easier. The app is for iPhones and iPads, and a mobi-site makes browsing properties on all mobile devices possible while on the go.
On the education & training front, Mpumalanga's top government leaders have
adopted the province's worst performing schools in an effort to raise standards and hence give the pupils a better chance at life.
Beware... fraudsters are on the prowl and
SANParks has issued a warning to the public of fraudsters - including online forums - that claim to represent the South African National Parks (SANParks) and in particular the KNP "by offering customer care facilities that discuss conservation and tourism-related matters for guests."
Still on the crime front, Acting Public Service and Administration Minister Mildred Oliphant has assured parliament - and hence us - that
fighting corruption within government remains a priority. That's good; here's hoping the Public Service Anti-Corruption Unit (PSACU) will be successful, but given the scale of corruption, and outright theft of our tax monies, the PSACU has an uphill battle ahead of it.
Finally, our very own "bad boy" on the motoring scene, Henrie Geyser, has some good things to say about the Mercedes Benz C-Class Coupé C63 AMG. Henrie glowingly describes it as a
scorcher Merc with bad-boy tattoos, with "looks and power in one package" and a "wild child"; again, we could be talking about Henrie. Or not...
Rod Baker, content director
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Two of South Africa's most pressing needs, namely the need for sustainable, low-cost housing and the need to divert recyclable materials away from the country's landfill sites which are rapidly approaching their fill capacity, have found an unlikely common solution in recycled expanded polystyrene (EPS). 
According to Fin24, state weapons company Denel has not managed to secure any foreign orders for its Rooivalk helicopter. The parastatal's chairperson Zoli Kunene said at a public enterprises department media briefing that Denel had delivered 11 Rooivalk at a cost of R6bn to the SA Air Force. 
The South African Department of Mineral Resources and Department of Science and Technology have been working closely with Ballard Power, a leading manufacturer of hydrogen fuel cells, and Anglo Platinum, a processor of platinum-metal groups, to investigate the possible uses of hydrogen fuel cells. 
According to PR.com, the European Technology Platform for Electricity Networks for the Future (Smart Grids ETP) defines a smart grid as an electricity network that can "intelligently integrate the actions of all users connected to it - consumers, generators and those that do both - in order to efficiently deliver sustainable, economic and secure electricity supplies." 
South African businesses are either putting off their investment decisions or investing in foreign countries according to Grant Thornton's first quarter survey and Business Live says that government incompetence and inefficiency is the main reason for the lack of confidence. 
The postponement of the e-toll system creates an element of unpredictability in government finances. Kristin Lindow, senior vice-president and lead analyst for SA at Moody's, said last week the ratings agency is paying attention to this unpredictability. 
The Department of Trade and Industry has aimed its new R5,75bn manufacturing incentive scheme at developing medium-sized and downstream enterprises rather than at the giants of the economy. 
The manufacturing sector is to get a R5.75bn injection over six years from the Department of Trade and Industry to help factories become more competitive in the increasingly difficult global economic environment. 
