By CHRIS TOTOBELA Last Saturday, Makhanda’s football-loving folk braved the chilly weather and made their way to JD Dlepu stadium. On show was the best U15 talent this town has to offer in the Makana LFA U15 tournament. There were some exciting games, but on Sunday, the huge crowd saw some fireworks as the remaining teams fought hard to try and lay their hands on the title. The semi-final game between City Pirates and Young Eagles got the crowd on their feet as both teams dished out the best attacking football. Pirates got onto the score sheet as early as…
Author: Rod Amner
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By CHESLEY DANIELS The Grahamstown Cricket Board (GCB) 2021/2022 season kicked off last weekend in all earnest, with some exciting performances in the opening weekend. Cricket is finally back in our stadiums and grounds after a long layoff due to the Covid-19 Pandemic. We have already witnessed and seen some incredible and match-winning centuries in the GCB 1st League by batsmen Brandon Handley (Cuylerville), Chris Van der Meulen (Salem) and Kyle Van Niekerk (Southwell). GCB 1st LEAGUE Cuylerville vs Willows (Shaw Park) On a batting-friendly pitch, the home side batted first and posted a mammoth 383/5 in their allotted 50…
South Africans are known for being poor savers. “We believe that we do not have enough money to save,” says Witness Ntshikilana, Provincial General Manager at Metropolitan. “While we do face a significant number of financial pressures as well as cultural expectations, such as ‘black tax’ – which add to our expenses, the most significant contributor to our poor savings rate is a lack of financial education. Thus, saving is not prioritised. “Perhaps due to our difficult past, many South Africans believe that it is important to be seen as leading an aspirational lifestyle. While it is important to have…
By Prof ROSEMARY DORRINGTON, Virologist at Rhodes University and member of the Provincial COVID-19 Expert Panel The Delta variant has significantly changed what we know and thought we knew about the novel coronavirus (SARS CoV-2). Remember how, last year, COVID-19 was seen as a disease that only affected older people? With the emergence of the Delta variant, this is no longer true. We now know that the virus readily infects all ages, including children under the age of 18. The Delta variant currently dominates the infections in South Africa, spreading much faster, and is a greater risk to younger people…
By LOYISO DYONGMAN The local DA, Freedom Front Plus, and MIND parties have registered their councillor candidates in multiple wards for the 1 November Local Government Elections. The Freedom Front Plus has registered just one candidate for all 14 Makana wards: Deon Els. In the DA’s case, three of their candidates have two wards each. The MIND party’s Jock McConnachie confirmed that they had registered the same candidate for Ward 13 and 14. “We are contesting ten wards with different candidates except for Wards 13 and 14, where we have one candidate (Andrew Kirk). The DA is doubling up candidates…
By VUKOSI MALULEKE In partnership with the Makhanda Circle of Unity, the local Department of Health recently set up vaccination drives at local schools to get 18-year-olds aboard the vaccination train. Close to all 50+ citizens of Makana have been fully vaccinated. But, the vaccination rates for 18-35 year-olds are much lower. Ntsika High School principal, Madeleine Schoeman, hailed the initiative but said learners had been hesitant to take the vaccine. Victoria Girls High principal Warren Schmidt said vaccination uptake at his school had also been slow. He said he was concerned that hesitancy stemmed from parental disapproval of vaccines.…
By ROBYN JOHNSON Mphumzi ‘Ramie’ Xonxa, the African National Congress (ANC) returning councillor candidate for Ward 2, sees his journey into the upcoming municipal elections as a continuation of the work he has achieved over the past five years. Xonxa is vying for reelection and the opportunity to continue to serve his community. “Serving the community is not easy. You cannot please everybody, and people have different expectations. But, it has been interesting as well as challenging.” Xonxa said he had worked hard to battle Ward 2’s share of Makana’s service delivery issues, including ongoing water shortages. Xonxa cites as…
By ROD AMNER As of Monday 11 October, just under 64% of Makana’s adult population were fully vaccinated. This means that Makana is the most vaccinated sub-district in the entire Eastern Cape by some distance. And according to health MEC Nomakhosazana Meth, Makana was likely “among the safest in the entire country”. A whopping 40 519 of all targeted adults in the district have received at least one dose – or 73% of the targeted population. Over 100% of the targeted 60+ adults in the district are fully vaccinated (8 351 out of 8 152 adults targeted). An equally impressive…
Understanding how to make your money work for you is an art, a fact that is understood by few but unfortunately misunderstood by many. Here are some common mistakes South Africans tend to make when it comes to managing their money. Not understanding inflation. An enormous amount of money is currently invested in local and offshore bank accounts, earning returns that barely, if at all, keep pace with inflation. This means that investors with all or most of their savings tied up in bank accounts are not increasing their wealth in real terms. You should always invest a portion of…
By ROBYN APOLLUS Correctional Service representatives from several outlying towns – including Stutterheim, King William’s Town, Fort Beaufort and Middledrift – converged on Makhanda to participate in a colourful Heritage Month event at the Waainek Prison on 28 September. This included dressing up in traditional attire, reciting poetry, competing in a traditional cuisine cook-off, and integrated traditional dances with a theme of Umendiso (marriage). The Amathole Management Area Choir performed their song of choice, “We serve with pride”, guided by the Correctional Services Music Association. Thembela Fumba, the commissioner of Amathole Management Area, said: “Today is a revival of why…