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NORTHERN NEWS / BUSHVELD BULLETIN
A community divided ... from page 1
December last year when Platreef Resources allegedly erected a fence to keep people out of communal fields. Blood flowed when 107 land despite the numerous complaints from young people from the community, recruited members in his chiefdoms. by Platreef as security guards turned on The Community Forum alleges that community members who tried to access Victor refuses to pay heed to their argument their agriculture fields on the other side of that John Kekana is not their rightful chief. the fence. “It was a blood-fued that saw sons According to Mantla the real chief should be turning on their fathers,” says Lamola. Langa Kekana, who was still a boy when his Now, these young people stand trial father, Induna Kgobudi Kekana passed away. in the Mahwelereng magistrate’s court on Kgobudi’s brother, Moses, was to stand in as Induna until Langa was old enough to resume charges of attempted murder. They were retrenched in May, when they each received his position. But when Moses passed away, a R10 000 retrenchment package from John, his eldest son took over. Platreef Resources and now have to face Meanwhile John’s younger brother, the legal consequences of their actions as Elias, got appointed as community liaison security guards on their own. officer by Platreef Resources. He was the After a complaint was lodged with one that conducted the so-called community the Human Rights Commission, Platreef’s consultation meeting in September 2010 agreement with which led to the the community community’s rights was disbanded by being signed away, the Department says Lesiba Lamola, a of Mineral concerned member Resources in of the Kgobudi February. Community Forum. At the time Lamola explains of going to that there was a print Platreef’s community meeting spokesperson, to discuss the Harry Dull, had fate of a number not yet responded of squatters on to written communal land questions on this on 26 September matter e-mailed 2010. Because the to his office. issue only affected a Telephonically Dull small portion of the explained that community not many his response hat people were present, to be channelled “but this didn’t stop Jan Mantla and Lesiba Lamola at through the Elias Kekana from Canadian the Kgobudi cemetary. acting as headman company, Ivanhoe and hijacking the Mines, of which meeting to present Platreef’s proposed platreef is a subsidiary. agreement on prospecting activities on the Northern News spoke to Elias Kekana communal land,” says Lamola. who declined to comment, saying he was not “I was there that day and along with allowed to talk to the media. He would not other village elders I implored the Kekana say why he was prohibited from speaking brothers not to sign the agreement until we to the press and by who. He also refused have called a mass meeting and consulted with the entire community. But they paid me to provide contact details for John or Victor Kekana. no heed and continued so sign the contract Neither the Chief, nor the Induna’s on behalf of the whole community,” Lamola contact details are listed in the local laments. telephone directory and they could not be Discontent has been mounting in the community ever since, but came to a head in reached for comment.
Electricity under pressure warns Eskom Power utility Eskom said on Monday power would be extremely tight during evening peak hours, with demand expected to reach its highest point this winter as a cold front sends a chill through much of the country. In a bi-weekly status update, Eskom said it had 36 580 MW of available capacity for
the evening peak against forecast demand of 36 258 MW, leaving a buffer of less than 1%. It said snow and heavy rain had affected some power lines and substations over the weekend though a unit of a nuclear plant that had tripped out last week had returned to service.
20 JULY 2012
Huis huurpryse laat beleggers regop sit Deur Valerie Cilliers (valerie@noordnuus.co.za) LEPHALALE – Huurinkomste vir wonings in Lephalale het die afgelope paar maande nuwe hoogtes bereik wat beleggers landwyd en selfs internasionaal laat wonder of hulle in eiendom hier moet belê. Gewone vier slaapkamer woonhuise word tans vir R30 000 per maand uitverhuur, terwyl maatskappye bereid is om R23 000 vir ‘n twee slaapkamer huis te betaal. Die vraag bestaan egter of die pryse volhoubaar is. Is dit wys om nou in eiendom hier te belê? Noordelike Nuus het hierdie week met sakemanne in Lephalale oor die volhoubaarheid van die huidige huurmark gesels. Plaaslike ontwikkelaar, Lofty Fourie meen die huurmark kan vir die volgende twee jaar so sterk bly. Fourie sê hy skroom nie om tans in Lephalale te belê nie. “Ek dink persoonlik dat dit ‘n goeie tyd is om hier te belê omdat huidige huurpryse verseker dat jy binne ses tot sewe jaar jou eiendom kan afbetaal. Selfs al sou pryse oor twee jaar daal het jy ‘n redelike voorsprong op jou paaiement. Daar is natuurlik risikos aan enige belegging verbonde. Ons het tydens die resessie baie male sonder huurders gesit of huise teen ‘n verlies uitverhuur. Dinge het egter gedraai en daar is nou ‘n geleentheid vir ons om hiervoor op te maak.” Fourie sê vrese dat die huismark post-Medupi inmekaar gaan tuimel is ongegrond. “Transnet se aankondiging dat ‘n nuwe spoorlyn vir steenkoolvervoer hier gebou gaan word, die feit dat Richardsbaai hawe vergroot is om grooter steenkoolvragte te hanteer en druk op die regering om elektrisiteit te verskaf om industrië in Suid-Afrika te ontwikkel gaan maak dat Lephalale nog verdere groei beleef. Ek glo dat daar ten minste nog twee
Arrested for dumping text books A clerk accused of dumping 700 textbooks meant for Limpopo pupils has been released on R2 000 bail. Glen Kubayi, 44, a clerk at the Giyani regional office of the Department of Education, was not asked to plead to a malicious damage to property charge when he appeared in the Giyani Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday. He was arrested after 700 textbooks meant to be delivered to some Limpopo schools were found dumped at a river in Giyani on June 29. The textbooks included Mathematics for Gr. 8 and Numeracy in Sepedi for Gr. 3. Police say more arrests are expected.
kragstasies gebou gaan word en dit maak net sin om dit hier in Lephalale te bou. Dan is daar ook ‘n groot aantal myne wat hier gevestig gaan word.” Lephalale sakeman, Theo Pistorius, deel nie Fourie se sentiment nie. Hy glo die hoë pryse vir huurhuise skep ‘n kunsmatige mark wat sleg vir die plaaslike ekonomie is. “Die realiteit is dat hierdie mark nie volhoubaar is nie. Oor drie jaar skaal die Medupi werkersmag vanaf 16 000 tot 700 af, ek glo baie van hierdie huurhuise gaan leeg staan en mense wat belê het in eiendom gaan moontlik swaar trek.” Gys Grieshaber van Grieshaber prokureurs en eiendomsagente meen soos Fourie dat ‘n derde kragstasie wat na bewering voort sal vloei uit die Medupiprojek kan maak dat die tekort aan behuising, huurpryse nog verder sal opstoot. “Die probleem is dat elektrisiteit, water en ander dienste nie voldoende is om wooneenhede te bou nie, dit maak dat bestaande eenhede al hoe duurder word.” Lephalale se munisipale bestuurder, Bob Naidoo, kon teen druktyd nie bereik word om kommentaar te lewer oor die te kort aan dienste vir nuwe huise nie. Wat huurders betref sê Grieshaber: “Dit is belangrik om aan te dring op ‘n kontrak, wat sal verhoed dat eienaars huurpryse sonder waarskuwing opstoot. Die huurtribunaal in Pretoria kan ook aan huurders raad en regsadvies gee indien hulle voel dat hulle onregverdig behandel word.” Hoewel die volhoubaarheid van die groeiende huurmark bevraagteken word is een ding baie duidelik - daar is tans geleentheid vir huiseienaars om voordeel te trek uit die groeiende aanvraag na behuising in Lephalale. Huurders wie se kontrakte verval en moet verhuis is egter in die nadelige posisie om eerstens ‘n beskikbare huis te probeer vind en tweedens nie ‘n arm en ‘n been daarvoor te betaal nie.
Poor delivery hampers growth
Poor government service delivery, including by utilities such as electricity; political uncertainty and crime were hindering business growth in SAa, advisory services provider Grant Thornton said on Tuesday. In its ‘International Business Report’ (IBR), the firm found that 59% of all South African business owners surveyed were negatively affected by poor government service delivery. This figure is up from 53% recorded in the first quarter of 2012. (Also see article above).
Bobaas koffiemakers
MOKOPANEJenet’s Restaurant het hierdie week ‘n verteenwoordiger van Wiesenhof Coffee gekry om die restaurant se kelners touwys te kry in die maak van daai perfekte koppie koffie. Die kelners was in kompetisie met mekaar om te kyk wie die beste blaartjie of hartjie kon maak met die melkskuim. Elk van die kelners het sertifikate ontvang vir hul koffie en koffie tegnieke. Die wenner wat met die kontantprys weggestap het was Juliet Mabye (links).