MPs Declare Luxury Gifts in Parliament Register
The South African Parliament has released its latest register of members’ interests, which shows that MPs have declared a wide range of luxury items, including a R10,000 bottle of Australian wine, a R730,000 Range Rover, and a R45,000 World Cup engraved tea set, reports TimesLIVE. The register also shows that Deputy President Paul Mashatile has R34 million invested with Old Mutual, while Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan has shares in a number of companies, including Mr Price Group, Sasol, and Absa Bank.
Municipal Officials Under Fire for Rugby World Cup Trip
Pressure is mounting on Theewaterskloof municipality as two senior political office bearers, the deputy mayor, John Michels, and the council Speaker, Derick Appel, went to France to attend the Rugby World Cup final under the guise of an official state visit, reports News24. The opposition party, the Democratic Alliance, is leading the charge against them, claiming they are using official visits as an excuse to attend the Rugby World Cup. The municipality had requested approval from the Department of International Relations and Cooperation for the trip, citing meetings with embassies to discuss trade and investments. The municipality’s spokesperson said that no costs were incurred by the municipality, and the trip was self-funded. The African National Congress’ Theewaterskloof caucus defended the trip, arguing it was for grassroots rugby development. The municipality has been facing financial troubles, exacerbated by recent floods, but it remains unclear who funded the trip, and the Department of International Relations and Cooperation denied receiving a request for it.
10 Years for Man Who Stole Mandela’s Boxing Belt
Zofrey Botha, who admitted to stealing a championship belt presented to Nelson Mandela by Sugar Ray Leonard, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison, despite his remorseful confession, writes Karyn Maughan in an exclusive News24 report. Orlando Regional Court magistrate Mohamed Jooma was unimpressed by Botha’s account of the theft, which occurred in broad daylight at the Nelson Mandela Museum in Soweto. Botha explained that he took advantage of a visit delay caused by load shedding and stole the belt when he found it in an unlocked glass cabinet. He later attempted to sell the stolen item but was eventually arrested. Botha had hoped for a reduced sentence based on his guilty plea and remorse, but his past convictions and President Cyril Ramaphosa’s prior sentence remission did not sway the court.
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