Photographer Adil Bradlow and three colleagues were blindfolded by the Egyptian “shock crew” who detained them.

Cape Town - Counter-terrorism unit members forced cameraman Adil Bradlow and three colleagues to the ground, pointed guns at them and cocked the weapons.

He and his colleagues had earlier been blindfolded and robbed after being detained at a military checkpoint in Egypt a week ago.

“Being blindfolded was kind of rough... We were in and out of vehicles... Moved from room to room for questioning,” Bradlow told the Cape Times from Britain on Monday.

He was expected to arrive in Johannesburg on Tuesday.

Bradlow, an award-winning photographer and cameraman, had been part of an Al Jazeera news team when he was detained in Egypt with his colleagues Wayne Hay, Baher Mohammed and Russ Finn last week.

They were released on Sunday after six days in detention.

Bradlow, who previously lived in Cape Town and now lives in Johannesburg, Hay and Finn were deported to Britain.

Mohammed, who received his contract to work at Al Jazeera two days before the ordeal started, was from Egypt and remained there where he would face charges.

Bradlow had meant to cover events in Egypt, where hundreds of people have been killed in violence between that country’s armed forces and supporters of ousted president Mohamed Morsi.

On Monday, Bradlow described how on the third day he had been in Egypt, he and his colleagues had been to Helwan, an area south of Cairo, where gunmen had stormed a police station, killing 34 people and freeing prisoners.

“We were arrested on the way back (after getting the footage we needed). We were picked up at a military checkpoint... When we were first picked up we were blindfolded and robbed of all our personal effects,” he said.

Equipment, cellphones and his wedding ring were among the items stolen.

Bradlow said he and his colleagues were handed over to military intelligence officers, then police, then the counter-terrorism unit, whom he described as “the shock crew”.

“They put us down on the floor... cocked their guns and basically went on a tirade (aimed at Mohammed),” he said.

Bradlow and his colleagues initially faced espionage charges, then charges for having illegal equipment and then for illegal body armour.

“We had stab vests in the car,” Bradlow said, explaining it was legal to have these.

Bradlow and his colleagues were eventually put back in the hands of police who were “pretty professional”.

He, Hay and Finn were deported without charge.

caryn.dolley@inl.co.za

Cape Times

Khoi and San communities will get three percent of the profits from buchu products developed by a pharmaceutical company.

Cape Town - A pharmaceutical company has signed an agreement with the National Khoi-San Council to share benefits from the commercial development of the buchu plant for medicinal purposes.

Under the agreement, drawn up in terms of the Biodiversity Act of 2004, Khoi and San communities will get three percent of the profits from the buchu products.

Cape Kingdom Nutraceuticals’s agreement acknowledges that the medicinal plant knowledge of the Khoi and San predates that of later South African inhabitants and say that these groups are therefore legally entitled to a share of the money from the commercialisation of the plant as a medicine.

The company will share its knowledge of the commercial use of the plant with the indigenous groups in exchange for the San and Khoi endorsing their products.

Council chairman Cecil le Fleur said in a statement that the groups were “proud and excited” to be part of the commercialisation process.

“We feel that this partnership will be to the benefit of the Khoikhoi and San people in South Africa, and will contribute to our development and empowerment,” Le Fleur said.

The company is working on the buchu product with academics from Tygerberg Hospital and with Professor Tim Noakes from UCT.

It has been researching the medicinal benefits of buchu for 14 years and has commissioned researchers to conduct clinical trials and analytical research on developing buchu extracts to treat diseases such as diabetes and hypertension.

It says the three main uses of buchu are as an anti-inflammatory, antiseptic and in the treatment of hypertension.

The company extracts the buchu oils in a patented process it says is “100 percent natural”.

The leaves are picked by hand and then processed immediately.

Cape Times

Seasoned journalist Jermaine Craig is looking forward to leading the Cape Argus team.

Cape Town - The Cape Argus welcomed its new editor on Monday morning. Jermaine Craig has been handed the reins after Gasant Abarder left the paper to join Primedia earlier this year.

Craig, 37, started his career with the Cape Argus as a general reporter in 1995 before moving to The Star as a sports writer in 1999.

After winning the Castle Premiership Football Writer of the Year award in 2000, and covering two Olympic Games and the Fifa World Cup in Germany, he was made news editor of The Star. He subsequently rose to the positions of night editor and then executive editor on the Joburg title.

In 2007, Craig joined the 2010 Fifa World Cup Organising Committee (South Africa) as its media manager, and in 2011 moved to SA Tourism as global communications manager.

Craig said it meant a lot to be back in Cape Town after 14 years. “I am from Athlone, grew up in Cape Town and I know the newspaper and its traditions well. It has a proud history of championing the issues of its wide cross-section of readers, from Lentegeur and Langa to Llandudno. I look forward to leading the team at the Argus that will strive to produce great newspapers, engage and entertain its readers and be a vibrant part of the daily lives of all Capetonians.”

Chris Whitfield, editor-in-chief of the Cape Argus, Weekend Argus, Daily Voice and Cape Times, said he was delighted to have Craig on board.

Cape Argus

They argued and he threatened to kill her family. She thought he was joking. The bullet holes tell a different story.

Cape Town - A Strand family thought it was an empty threat by a jilted lover, but it became reality on Sunday when a Somerset West policeman shot his girlfriend and a neighbour before turning the gun on himself.

Nomvuyo Zondiwe said her niece, Thabisa Mngoma, 28, was shot dead on Sunday by Annesin Chachane, 43, who she had been seeing for the past few years.

Zondiwe said Chachane was a married man with a family in Strand.

The lovers had a four-year-old son, Ovayo, who was with his mother when the shooting took place.

Zondiwe was not at home in Lwandle at the time.

“I was called to the house at around 6pm and told that there had been a shooting in the yard. When I got home there were police everywhere.”

Zondiwe said Mngoma had been in the house with Ovayo and her younger sister, Vuyokazi Mngoma, 18, when Chachane arrived at 5pm.

Chachane and Mngoma got into an argument. Chachane went outside and told his friends, who were waiting for him in the car, to leave.

He came back and “started shooting at Thabisa who was lying on the bed”.

Vuyokazi said she took Ovayo and ran to a neighbour. They heard about seven shots.

Zondiwe said Chachane shot a neighbour, who they knew only as Kwekwesi, in the stomach before he shot himself. Kwekwesi is in Tygerberg Hospital.

“He shot Thabisa in the head. There was blood everywhere.”

Zondiwe pointed to bullet holes in the wall, and said they had had to wash the blood-soaked mattress.

She described her niece as a quiet person who kept to herself.

Chachane had also seemed like a nice man, said Zondiwe.

“He used to come around to see her and Ovayo, but we last saw him here in June.

“Then he came here last week to threaten her, and he said he would kill everyone in this family… but we thought he was joking.”

Police spokesman Captain FC van Wyk confirmed the shooting. Police were investigating a case of murder and of attempted murder.

neo.maditla@inl.co.za

Cape Argus

The City of Cape Town has suggested that access to Signal Hill be controlled to reduce crime at the iconic site.

Cape Town - As part of its proposed plan to reduce crime, the City of Cape Town has suggested that access to Signal Hill and Tafelberg roads be controlled between 10pm and 5am.

Entrance to the roads would be barred by a pair of steel wing gates which would be manned and monitored by SANParks officials.

The rape and hijacking of a Norwegian exchange student in the Signal Hill parking lot earlier this year put the area under the spotlight.

Ward councillor Dave Bryant said controlled access would be the ideal answer to the crime problems on Signal Hill.

“It’s not a road closure, so people can still use the mountain at night. It’s a way to monitor who is going in and out, which adds another level of security for visitors.”

Bryant said the incident involving the exchange student was a standout case. Most crimes on the mountain were thefts and hijackings.

Placing officials at the gates who would take down the registration details of visitors before they could enter or exit the road would make it difficult to carry out hijackings, Bryant said.

“We found that most of the incidents involve cars,” he said.

“Hijackers would be discouraged by the gates because it would make it difficult to escape.”

In the past, Signal Hill Road has been closed to the public at night as a safety measure.

But the road has been re-opened as it has been deemed unfair to bar visitors from using it.

The plan to control access to the mountains was opened up for public participation on Tuesday morning. Bryant has urged people to get involved.

SANParks spokeswoman Merle Collins said manning the gates would not require extra staff as there was an established visitor safety team working at night.

“We support any effort to improve the safety of our visitors,” she added.

But Table Mountain Watch Group founder Andre van Schalkwyk has his doubts. He has been leading the campaign for mountain safety and has been one of the most vocal critics of the city’s efforts to clamp down on crime on Signal Hill.

“I feel what they are doing is minimalistic. It’s a good start, and I’ll take what I can get, but there's so much more that could be done.”

Van Schalkwyk suggested that Signal Hill needed to be developed into a world-class destination with stringent security, ultimately transforming it into a safe and thriving tourism hub.

“As it stands it’s not living up to its potential,” he said.

Cape Town Tourism chief executive Enver Duminy was keen to see the plan rolled out before the busy summer.

“The issues around the security of Table Mountain are complex,” Duminy said.

“I think this initiative is a proactive response to managing safety where and when we are able to do so without hampering the lives of our citizens.”

Duminy warned that the plan was not a cure-all, but rather a way to reduce the safety risk to those who were using the roads at night.

kieran.legg@inl.co.za

Cape Argus

One of the men accused of assaulting Flippie Engelbrecht has committed suicide, a report says.

Cape Town - One of the men accused of the assault of farm worker Flippie Engelbrecht has committed suicide, a report says.

According to the Rapport website, a friend of the family said Johnny Burger, the owner of Rietvallei Wine Estate, had shot himself on his farm in Robertson early on Tuesday.

Burger and farm manager Wilhelm (Dozi) Treurnicht were facing two charges of assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm in connection with the assault of farm worker Flip Engelbrecht and his son, Flippie, five years ago.

Flippie, now 20, was left epileptic and blind. Later, he fell into a fire during a seizure and lost both his hands. Last month, he was fitted with a pair of prosthetic hands.

It is the State’s case that in 2008 Burger and Treurnicht beat Engelbrecht, who worked on the farm, and Flippie, then 15.

Police spokesman Andre Traut said on Tuesday: “This office can confirm that a death inquest case docket has been registered following the death of a 62-year-old man this morning at around 8.30 on his farm in Ashton.
 

“Circumstances indicate that the person was responsible for his own death. However, the matter will be investigated.
 

“The identity of the deceased will not be released at this stage,” Traut said. However it is reliably understood that the man was Burger.
 

The men have appeared in court on numerous occasions. On Wednesday last week at Ashton Magistrate’s Court, magistrate Francois van Deventer transferred the case to the Ashton Regional Court, postponing the matter to September 13. - IOL, Cape Argus

Gang boss Rashied Staggie’s imminent parole may be jeopardised by the discovery of tik in his shared cell.

Cape Town - Hard Livings gang boss Rashied Staggie’s imminent parole may be jeopardised by the discovery of tik in the cell he shares with 29 other people.

The drug was found in the cell at Breede River Prison in Worcester, where Staggie is serving a 13-year term for his role in an attempted robbery at Faure military base.

In 2004, he was sentenced to 15 years for ordering the kidnapping and rape of a 17-year-old girl. The magistrate in the latter case decided the sentences should run concurrently.

If the drugs found in his cell are linked to him, Staggie would not be able to leave jail on the day stipulated when parole was recently granted to him, said provincial Correctional Services spokesman Simphiwe Xako.

In May, the Breede River parole board granted Staggie day parole starting from September 29.

“The tik was found in the cell two weeks ago,” Xako said on Tuesday morning.

“We cannot ascribe this to anybody in particular just yet.

“There are 30 people in that cell and we have to ascribe it to somebody in particular.

“If we cannot prove the drugs belonged to Staggie or he had a hand in getting it there, it would have no bearing on his parole.”

Xako said a task team had been appointed to investigate the discovery of the drug.

Cape Argus

Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu has added his voice to the protests against a proposed shopping mall at Princess Vlei.

Cape Town - Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu has added his voice to widespread protests against a proposed shopping mall at Princess Vlei, speaking out against the destruction of “our beautiful world” for short-term profit.

In a statement to the Princess Vlei Forum, Tutu said: “I would like to express my support for the campaign to save the greater Princess Vlei area from the inappropriate development of a shopping mall, and for its protection in perpetuity as a nature and heritage park. Princess Vlei is a valuable place for citizens to come to be close to God and nature, to find peace and to build family and community.

“God has carefully crafted our universe; let us stop destroying our beautiful world for the sake of short-term profit. Let us use our laws to safeguard our natural and cultural heritage.”

The forum said on Monday that Princess Vlei, on the border separating where formerly white and coloured areas under the apartheid government, was ideally located to build bridges between communities of different races.

“It is a much loved gathering place for communities from surrounding areas. Before the Group Areas Act, landowners of all races lived on its banks,” the forum said.

The organisation has been fighting against the development of a shopping mall and taxi rank on public space at the vlei, one of the few green lungs on the Cape Flats.

On Monday the forum called on Cape Town mayor Patricia de Lille to heed Tutu’s call and finally put a stop to plans to build the mall.

The forum said it had welcomed De Lille’s recent recommendation to withdraw the decision to re-zone public space on Sea Point promenade to allow commercial development, and instead to keep it as public open space.

However, the Sea Point decision had come “in the wake of a protracted and expensive legal battle, financed by our taxes and by civil society. We are anxious to avoid similar expense in the fight to save Princess Vlei. Public-private funding could be used so much more constructively to transform this site into a world-class nature and heritage park.”

The forum quoted De Lille’s comments last week about the Sea Point promenade. De Lille said the city had a legacy of apartheid spatial planning, and as part of the city’s commitment to being a caring city, “we must grab all of the shared spaces we can to foster a new sense of community… I hope we will be able to set an example for creating combined spaces in the future by preserving those that we have in the here and now”.

The forum urged De Lille to stand by the comments she had made with regard to the Sea Point promenade, and to work with the local community that used Princess Vlei to make the vision of “a caring city” a reality.

Cape Times

Western Cape Health MEC Theuns Botha has promised to visit Khayelitsha Hospital to assess the alleged shortage of beds.

Cape Town - Health MEC Theuns Botha has promised to visit Khayelitsha Hospital to assess the alleged shortage of beds, and staff attitudes that have left many patients disgruntled.

Responding to a parliamentary question by Cope MPL Mbulelo Ncedana on whether he was aware of the pressure on the hospital’s beds, Botha said: “Yes, I am aware of the overflow situation at Khayelitsha Hospital. The average bed occupancy for the first quarter (April to June) was 139 percent.”

Botha said the overflow of patients at Khayelitsha Hospital was a demonstration of the dire need the hospital was in, and that the increasing number of people in the province was a contributing factor.

“The profile of the burden of disease in this area is also impacting significantly on the hospital’s patient load.

“It is for this reason that this pro-vincial government is shifting the focus towards the increase of wellness, whilst addressing illness. The creation of a healthier society is essential,” Botha said.

He said hospital management was addressing the issue of bed shortages. One of the future plans was to create a separate facility for mental health clients.

Currently these patients used medical wards, putting pressure on existing beds. The commissioning of this ward was expected to be done during 2014/15.

Botha said a dedicated SMS hotline, which was launched in other health facilities in the province, would now also be implemented at Khayelitsha Hospital.

The new 230-bed hospital, serving an estimated population of more than one million residents, was opened more than a year ago to service the area’s community, who are mainly poor and unemployed and live in informal dwellings.

Botha said social circumstances were major contributors to the current burden of disease, including HIV and TB, chronic lifestyle diseases and violence-related injuries.

Cape Argus

The proposed banning of ball games on Clifton’s fourth beach unleashed a social media outcry and sparked a debate on radio.

Cape Town - The proposed banning of ball games on Clifton’s fourth beach by the City of Cape Town unleashed a social media outcry and sparked debate on national radio on Monday, with many commentators saying the city council is being too interfering.

One tweet read: “They’re banning BALLS on Cape Town’s beaches now? Ice cream, dogs, balls. Go on, ban towels, you know you want to. And sand! It’s messy!”

Another said: “Hey City of Cape Town, instead of banning balls from Clifton Fourth, why not rather ban hookah pipes and YOLO caps?”

As one person noted: “Seriously? City of Cape Town wants to ban ball games at Clifton beach? Next they’ll stipulate what colour beach towels are required.”

On 5fm, the City of Cape Town’s proposal to regulate ball playing was likened to that of a “nanny state” by DJ Rob Vember.

The council is to consider a recommendation to prohibit all ball sports on fourth beach, including volleyball and bat-and-ball sports, and to set up a permitted ball sport area on Camps Bay Beach.

Ward councillor Beverley Schafer said it was the playing of formalised ball sports, such as corporate events or competitions, that had prompted the decision to regulate these activities with better signs.

Sporting events could still take place, but organisers would have to apply for a permit. Most events would be directed to Camps Bay, to a formalised ball playing area below the pump house.

While social media was abuzz, some called for a ban of ball games on all beaches.

“Ball games on the beach have posed quite a challenge when young adults play touch rugby in the designated swim areas, while kids are building sand castles or playing on the seashore (are at risk) of being run over or knocked by a ball,” said a concerned resident.

Cape Argus

A truck driver’s face was badly cut and his vehicle severely damaged when protesters threw rocks, hammers and other tools .

Cape Town - A truck driver’s face was badly cut and his vehicle severely damaged when protesters believed to be linked to the construction industry strike threw rocks, hammers and other tools at vehicles on the Stellenbosch Arterial road near Westbank on Tuesday.

Police confirmed that incidents of violence linked to labour disputes were being monitored on Tuesday morning.

Trouble had been brewing at Mew Way and at Hindle Road off the R300, said police spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Andre Traut.

The truck driver, who works for Cape Air Conditioning, told his managers he was transporting workers to the company’s premises in Brackenfell when a crowd suddenly formed and people began throwing stones and even tools at vehicles.

Company spokeswoman Liesl Engels said the driver, who was taken to hospital, said motorists around him jumped out of their cars and fled.

“Our driver was struck in the face and the truck was badly damaged. He was able to turn around and drive away, but by then the damage was done,” Engels said.

Traut said a crowd at Hindle Road had hurled stones at a bus, which had then collided with another vehicle. No one was injured, he said. “The SAPS will remain on high alert to prevent situations of violence.”

Tuesday morning’s incidents follow violence on Monday in which strikers looted a building site.

Cape Argus

The "task team" behind Cape Town's faeces attacks has lashed out at Premier Zille, accusing her of breaking the law.

Cape Town - The professed “task team” behind Cape Town’s faeces attacks has lashed out at Premier Helen Zille, accusing her of breaking the law for “party propaganda purposes”.

A task team press conference in Site C, Khayelitsha, was held days after Zille revealed the names of 11 ringleaders whom she claimed were behind a series of orchestrated attacks.

The protests have seen faeces dumped at Cape Town International Airport, the provincial legislature and on the N2.

Zille noted that many of the instigators were members of the ANC Youth League who had used the refrain of “making the province ungovernable” as their slogan. This, she said, proved that the attacks were politically motivated and aimed at rallying support for the ANC before next year’s elections.

On Monday one of the task team’s more prominent members, city councillor Loyiso Nkohla, read a statement in which he accused Zille of attempting to defeat the ends of justice by “seeking to dictate the outcome of pending criminal cases… for party propaganda purposes”.

Nkohla and Andile Lili are among the protesters arrested following the airport dumping. They face trial under the Civil Aviation Act, and could be jailed for up to 30 years.

Nkohla said the faeces protests had nothing to do with a party political agenda, and that they had received no mandate from the ANC’s leaders in the province.

Zille has conceded her office had no evidence that the ANC had instructed the task team, but she said the top brass’s failure to discipline their own members amounted to “collusion”.

“I have had no response to letters sent to President Zuma asking him to condemn the task team’s actions. So I can only presume he condones them. No wonder they act with impunity.”

She also accused the police of watching the proceedings without arresting the poo-tossers.

The Cape Argus asked ANC spokesman Phillip Dexter on Friday whether the party would consider the DA’s evidence against some of its members and take action, but the party has failed to respond to queries.

Richard Pithouse, a political lecturer at Rhodes University, accused the ANC Youth League of being disingenuous considering there was also a sanitation crisis in informal settlements in ANC-run provinces.

daneel.knoetze@inl.co.za

Cape Argus

Some residents in Delft said an internal dispute between two 28s gang leaders appeared to be behind the violence.

Cape Town - Two men were shot in a games hall on Monday night in one of South Africa’s murder capitals.

Delft is one of 31 police precincts that fall within the country’s “highest 20 percent (of) stations contributing” to the country’s murder rate, with 87 murders from April 2011 to March last year.

Police spokesman Andre Traut said on Tuesday the two men, aged 36 and 42, were shot and wounded last night at about 7pm in Waaiertjie Street, Rosendal, Delft.

“The motive is unknown. We’re looking at all possible motives, including gangsterism,” Traut said.

The murder rate in Delft peaked in 2006/2007 and 2007/2008 with 114 and 122 murders respectively.

Deaths soared again earlier this year in May.

Two men aged 23 and 28 were shot and killed on May 21, following the death of two men days earlier.

At the time, some residents in Delft South said an internal dispute between two 28s gang leaders appeared to be behind the violence.

Two weeks earlier, a young couple, Jarryd Manuel, 18, and his girlfriend, Megan Hendricks, 19, were shot outside Manuel’s mother’s home in Delft.

The condition of the two shot last night could not be established on Tuesday morning.

Cape Argus

A head-on collision between two cars on the R27 in Cape Town has left three men dead and one in a critical condition.

Cape Town - A head-on collision between two cars has left three men dead and one in a critical condition.

The incident occurred on the R27 near Grotto Bay at about 4.10pm on Monday.

Metro EMS spokeswoman Angelique Jordaan said the occupants of both vehicles had to be mechanically removed.

The driver and passenger in one of the vehicles had been declared dead at the scene.

In the other car, one of the occupants was already dead when emergency services arrived, but the driver was rushed to the Netcare Hospital in Blaauwberg, she said.

Cape Argus

Security companies and neighbourhood watches will have to apply to the city before they can erect their guard huts on council property.

Cape Town - Security companies and neighbourhood watches will have to apply to the city and comply with several conditions before they can erect their guard huts on council property.

The hut’s size, signage and even material will be regulated by new guidelines.

Security companies and neighbourhood watches may not allow their huts to stand empty - they must be used daily to comply with municipal guidelines.

The draft policy, which is available for public comment until September 30, says any applications to build security huts on the reserves of scenic drives or routes, or within 50m of national heritage sites, will not be considered.

Security huts for an individual private property must be within that property’s boundary. And if visible from the road they may not be next to the driveway.

The policy stipulates 24 conditions of approval for a security hut, including what it looks like and the operational requirements.

A security company wanting to put up a hut must be registered with the Private Security Industry Regulating Authority - “The only security huts permitted to be placed within the reserves of municipal roads/streets will be those used and managed by a registered security company that has engaged with the local community to service a defined area or a neighbourhood watch registered with the local police station.”

The hut cannot be bigger than 1.8m square, must be made of wood, and can have no projections from the top, sides, front or back.

Advertising sign boards may be no bigger than 600mm by 400mm, and may not be lit up at night. Only three security huts will be allowed in a contracted area, and no ablution facilities will be allowed.

The hut may not obstruct pedestrians or cars. Fitting a hut with electricity, lighting and cameras will be considered only in exceptional cases.

Authority for a security hut will only be granted for 24 months before an new application will have to be submitted. The security company will have to maintain the hut, and its surrounding areas.

The Pinelands Ratepayers’ Association said it would discuss the policy at its next meeting before commenting.

Monica Sutherland, of the Rondebosch Rosebank Ratepayers’ and Businesses’ Association, said the huts were an effective deterrent to criminals. Some of the huts moved around, depending on the reports of crime in the area.

Rob Dale, managing director of ADT Security Western Cape, said the company supported the proposed policy: “A need exists in our communities to improve neighbourhood security through the deployment of on-site resources. There is currently no policy that regulates applications around erecting security huts and ADT will review the draft policy before giving any detailed comment. We will submit our comments to the city.”

The city’s draft policy says “changing and rising crime patterns” had led to a proliferation of security huts within municipal roads, street reserves, parks and open spaces.

The applications will be considered by the subcouncil and by the relevant district managers of the Transport for Cape Town directorate. There will be two fees - an application fee and a site rental fee for each hut that is put up. Only security huts on council land will be affected by the policy.

anel.lewis@inl.co.za

Cape Argus

The City of Cape Town is clamping down on informal car washes in a bid to save water.

Cape Town - The City of Cape Town is clamping down on informal car washes operating at taxi ranks and other transport interchanges in a bid to save water.

City officials say that too much water is being wasted, and much of this dirty or grey water is then discharged into the stormwater system.

A pilot project is to be launched in Subcouncil 20, which includes the Retreat interchange, to look at ways of managing water use more effectively.

Solomzi Mzamo, of the city’s utilities department, said this interchange did not have adequate facilities for drivers to clean their vehicles. Although taxi operators at this site were only given one bucket a day for car washing, a meter reading revealed that most of the water consumption was for public use.

Mzamo said there was “huge wastage” in Claremont, towards the main intersection, where cars were being washed in a rush. The area was also congested, and not suitable for car washing. Water was coming from an outside tap via a hosepipe without a control nozzle, he said.

“To make matters worse, the water runs all the time and the pipe is merely left on the ground.”

Possible solutions included the use of rubber mattresses to soak up the water and self-closing devices for hose pipes.

He said the city’s utilities department could work on temporary interventions, but that the transport department should look at more permanent solutions, including the provision of proper car wash facilities.

The city plans to formalise the car wash at the Retreat interchange in the next two years.

The mayoral committee member for utilities, Ernest Sonnenberg, said the city would engage with transport operators to “actively” bring down their water usage. He said the city could not call on residents to use water sparingly and then allow taxi operators and others to waste water at informal car washes.

Cape Argus

The ANC membership of seven men linked to recent sanitation protests in the Cape has been temporarily suspended, a party official said.

Cape Town - The ANC membership of seven men linked to recent sanitation protests in Cape Town has been temporarily suspended, a Western Cape party official said on Tuesday.

“This is the result of continuous defiance of the organisational instruction to desist from engaging in activities that bring the African National Congress into disrepute,” provincial secretary Songezo Mjongile said.

“They are not to take part in meetings of the ANC or speak on its behalf.”

The men are Jaji Diniso, Sthembele Majova, Thembela Mbanjwa, Yanga Mjingwana, Bongani Ngcombolo, Loyiso Nkohla and Bongile Zanazo.

Nkohla is an ANC councillor.

He and Andile Lili, a former councillor and provincial ANC youth league leader, had already appeared before the regional disciplinary committee, Mjongile said.

The others would appear before the committee within 30 days.

Lili was expelled as a councillor in March after being found guilty of taking part in the illegal demolition of houses and for making derogatory comments to Khayelitsha residents.

The ANC suspended him for bringing the party into disrepute.

He is challenging the expulsion in the Western Cape High Court.

Nkohla was given a three-year suspended sentence last year for disrupting President Jacob Zuma’s centenary speech at the Good Hope Centre.

Cape Town has been hit by a number of human waste dumping incidents in the past few months by people protesting about sanitation in informal settlements.

Many believed the portable flush toilets (PFTs) being rolled out by the city were no better than the bucket system.

Human faeces was again dumped on the steps of the provincial legislature last month.

This happened at the same time nine men appeared in the Bellville Magistrate's Court for allegedly dumping human waste at Cape Town International Airport.

They are Nkohla, Lili, Mjingwana, Diniso, Zanazo, Mbanjwa, Ben Dyani, Bantubakhe Mqobodiya, and Wandisile Mkapa.

They allegedly dumped 10 buckets of faeces at the airport's departures terminal on June 25. They are charged under the Civil Aviation Act and face up to 30 years in prison if found guilty.

Lili was previously arrested with more than 100 others at a Cape Town train station in June for allegedly plotting to dump human waste in the city.

On June 4, a group of people in Khayelitsha threw human waste at a bus and cars used for transport to a green economy event hosted by Western Cape premier Helen Zille.

A day before that, two men dumped faeces on the steps of the Western Cape legislature in a protest about the PFTs. - Sapa

A Knysna school vice-principal accused of raping a 12-year-old girl was granted bail of R4000, NPA said.

Cape Town - A school vice-principal accused of raping a 12-year-old girl was granted bail of R4000 by the Knysna Magistrate's Court on Tuesday, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said.

Western Cape NPA spokesman Eric Ntabazalila said bail was granted on condition the man report daily to the Grootbrak police station, not make contact with the girl or witnesses, and not enter the Knysna area unless attending court.

The matter was postponed to October 30 for further investigation.

The vice-principal was arrested two weeks ago.

Ntabazalila said the girl was called into a classroom, where she was inappropriately touched.

“The school’s principal entered the classroom and saw what was happening and reported it to the police,” he said. - Sapa

“He holds no shares in the company whatsoever and has not for more than three years. Griffin is merely an employee who was hired ...”

Cape Town - On Friday, August 30, the Cape Argus published an article, “Ex-partner sues Zingara’s owner”.

It erroneously gave the impression that the now-liquidated Madame Zingara cc’s previous co-owner, Richard Griffin, was the owner of the resurrected company, Madame Zingara Holdings.

In court papers Griffin was referred to as a managing director who operated a host of companies within the Madame Zingara group.

Rachel Irvine, spokeswoman for Madame Zingara Holdings, confirmed, however, that Griffin did not own the company.

“He holds no shares in the company whatsoever and has not for more than three years. Griffin is merely an employee who was hired because he is, quite frankly, creatively brilliant.”

Griffin’s ex-business partner, Anton van Druten, took Griffin to court over more than R800 000 that was owed to him after selling his shares in Madame Zingara cc to Griffin.

Last week, Western Cape High Court Judge Anton Veldhuizen granted a provisional sequestration order against Griffin, who has until October 15 to show why the order should not be made final.

Griffin was also photographed next to an Audi TT which was said to be his.

“The car does not belong to Griffin. It is in fact one of 11 vehicles owned by the present Madame Zingara company, and the company’s management use whichever vehicle is available when they need one,” Irvine said.

The newspaper regrets any negative publicity the article may have caused Madame Zingara Holdings.

Cape Argus

Flippie Engelbrecht was "traumatised" by the news that one of the men accused of assaulting him had been found dead.

Cape Town - There was shock and sadness on Tuesday at the news that wine farmer Johnny Burger, one of two men accused of assaulting worker Flippie Engelbrecht, had been found dead.

“Circumstances indicate the 62-year-old man was responsible for his own death. However, the matter will be investigated,” police spokesman Andre Traut said.

Engelbrecht’s lawyer, Carina Papenfus, told the Cape Times that the 20-year-old had been “badly affected” by the death. When she broke the news to him, “he was traumatised... he started crying”.

Papenfus said Engelbrecht had been moved from Robertson to a secluded venue in Hermanus.

The towns of Ashton and Robertson were at the centre of heated exchanges during last year’s farmworkers’ strike.

Tensions rose again when Burger, who owned the prestigious Rietvallei Wine Estate, was charged along with farm manager Wilhelm Treurnicht of beating Engelbrecht, who was 16 at the time.

Last week, police used a stun grenade and pepper spray after Burger and Treurnicht were confronted by an angry crowd outside Ashton Magistrate’s Court. Stones were hurled at their car.

On Tuesday, flags at the turn-off to the farm between Ashton and Robertson were flying at half mast. The gates to Rietvallei, which is a family-owned estate, were closed, opening only for visitors coming to pay their respects.

A family friend and neighbour, who asked not to be identified, requested that the family be given time to grieve. He said Burger had a “small heart”, but a “golden one”, and was proud of his grandchildren.

In Robertson on Tuesday, word of Burger’s death spread rapidly. One of Flippie Engelbrecht’s friends, Marquet Adams, 19, said: “Everyone here is saying that Johnny Burger could not handle the pressure of the court case any more. It is really sad though because now a family is without a father.”

Engelbrecht’s former neighbour Samuel Visagie said: “Flippie always came to me and spoke about Johnny Burger. He told me that it’s because of Johnny Burger that he is without hands.

“Johnny Burger is no longer with us, but Flippie and his family should look to forgive Burger because they need to move on with their lives. Burger’s children do not have a father now, but Flippie still does.”

President of the Black Association of the Wine and Spirits Industry Nosey Pieterse said: “We are sad for his family. But also sad for Flippie because he wanted to have his day in court. Flippie will also be traumatised because now there will be no closure. He was looking forward to hearing Burger’s answers to questions.”

In a statement released by The Freedom Trust on Tuesday night, Papenfus said that the trust and the Engelbrecht family expressed their “sincere condolences to Burger’s family and loved ones”.

“It is in the interest of justice and democracy that the law must take its course. The criminal prosecution in the Flippie Engelbrecht case as well as in the many others against the same accused will continue. As regards civil claims, same will be instituted against the estate of the late Johnny Burger.

“Flippie is severely shocked and traumatised by the news, but also extremely disappointed for having been denied forever the opportunity to face his attacker in court.”

Burger’s lawyer, Sakkie Krouwkam, said the family had asked him not to comment.

Papenfus denied speculation that a social media campaign had anything to do with Burger’s actions.

“We used our Twitter campaigns to build awareness and gather support for Flippie. This was never to discredit Johnny Burger. If retailers are threatening to stop the sale of his goods then that was his problem, not ours. We have a right to freedom of expression,” Papenfus said.

Those who brought the case to court charged that after the assault Engelbrecht had lost his sight, had epileptic fits, and because of this had rolled into a fire and suffered terrible burns, losing his hands.

Earlier, Burger denied assaulting Engelbrecht, rejecting the charges as “untested and false”.

Cape Times