Author: Rod Amner

A financial plan is a living, fluid document that should be refined whenever a significant personal or financial change takes place in your life. While it is advisable to review your financial plan regularly, specific circumstances may necessitate a more detailed review of your plan. The best time to start planning for a successful financial future is from the day you receive your first pay-cheque. Your income is the foundation of your financial plan, and you will only be able to achieve your financial goals once you allocate a portion of your income towards savings and investments. Every time you…

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By CASEY LUDICK In April 2017, my mother put me on an implanted form of birth control called the Implanon. The Implanon is a flexible plastic rod, about the size of a toothpick, that slowly releases progestin, preventing ovulation. I had it from 2017 until about mid-August 2021. The maximum amount of usable time is three years anyways. By mid-2020, my skin was an acne-ridden mess, and I had gained a bunch of weight, as many women on birth control do. I was also getting a period almost every two weeks. The Implanon was releasing less progestin near the end…

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GCB 1st League Log as of 7 November 2021   Salem  27 (5) Southwell  23 (5) Cuylerville  18 (4) Willows  12 (5) Makana  Sona  9 (5) Sidbury  6 (3) Rhodes  4  (7) GCB 2nd League Log as of 7 November 2021  Station  Hill  36(6) Port  Alfred  28(5) Manley  24(5) Southwell19(4) Cuylerville  18(5) Swallows   15(5) Shrews  15(8) Sidbury  13(4) Rainbows  7(6) Kenton  6(4) Tiger  Titans  6(5) Early  Birds  minus  2  (6) GCB 2nd League   Leading run-scorers as of 7 November 2021  C  Locke   Manley Flats  360 J  Maclachlan   Sidbury  285 JC  Pittaway  Port  Alfred  271 G  Botha  Cuylerville  251 F Jacobs   Station…

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By ESTHER RAMANI, #CodeRed organiser Sixteen women and four men gathered on Thursday, November 11, at Freedom Square to discuss the implications of the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) 2021 for pro-poor planning and the upliftment of indigent people. They followed up with a short march near Fingo township. Scheduled for the day that the new Finance Minister Enoch Gondanwana was to table the MTBPS 2021, Makhanda’s protest action, organised jointly by the Unemployed People’s Movement (UPM) and the #CodeRed Feminist Collective, was one of many protests and pickets across the country. Marches were held in Cape Town (with a…

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By CHRIS TOTOBELA On Saturday, 30 October, a huge crowd turned out at the home of local football JD Dlepu stadium to witness a great game. Newly promoted local outfit Jacaranda Aces took on Bathurst-based United Eleven in a SAB regional league encounter. Both teams started the game with a blistering pace, trying to gain an early advantage. The home side seemed to rush things and were unable to put the ball on the ground and string passes and were also unfortunate to concede a penalty after the ball had hit one of their defenders on the arm. The referee…

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By LISE WESTAWAY, TAMMY BOOYSEN and DEMI EDWARDS Local primary schools were abuzz for the first-ever Spelling Bee competition for Grade 3 learners in schools where the Language of Learning and Teaching is isiXhosa. Spelling Bee competitions are a fairly common feature nationally, but they focus on the Intermediate Phase (Department of Basic Education) or English (The South African Literacy Association). What set this Spelling Bee apart from the other Spelling Bee competitions in South Africa is that the emphasis was on Foundation Phase learners (Grade 3) and the words were in isiXhosa. The Spelling Bee competition falls under the…

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By the PUBLIC SERVICE ACCOUNTABILITY MONITOR  The Public Service Accountability Monitor (PSAM) notes the tabling of the Medium Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) and Adjusted Estimates of National Expenditure (AENE) by the Minister of Finance, Enoch Godongwana, on 11 November 2021. Given the context in which the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated existing public service burdens and placed increased pressures on public finance management systems (PFM), actions to safeguard public resources and optimise social spending are ever-vital. In his Budget Speech, Minister Godongwana acknowledged the adverse impact on social expenditure resulting from government bailouts to dismally managed state enterprises in excess of…

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By ROD AMNER After an “open and transparent process” to choose their five proportional representation (PR) councillors on the new Makana Council, the Makana Citizens Front (MCF) has confirmed its choices. The five councillors (along with their contact details) are: Lungile Mxube 083 6436405 Phillip Machanick 078 8823918 Jane Bradshaw 083 5429555 Kungeka Mashiane 060 6662636 Jonathan Walton 060 9210809 According to an MCF press release, all candidates were interviewed by Ayanda Kota and Sally Price-Smith, who were not candidates. When the MCF split from the Makana Independent New Deal (MIND), Jonathan Walton replaced Jock McConnachie in the top five.…

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A 40-year-old school taxi driver charged with the rape of a 15-year-old schoolgirl while on his scholar transport round in Seven Fountains has been released on bail. SAPS spokesperson Majoli Nkohli confirmed that a case of rape was opened on Friday, 22 October 2021 at Seven Fountains. The 15-year-old girl alleged that she was among a group of school children being ferried by a taxi to their respective destinations on Friday 22 October. She was the last passenger when she alleges the driver stopped on a gravel road and raped her. The case was handed over to the SAPS FCS…

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By ROD AMNER Cathcart Street in Sunnyside topped the rainfall charts for the week 4-10 November with 55mm. Paul Maylam is hoping for more weeks shrouded in mist and drizzle. Jim Cambray reported 51.2mm for the same period, and temperatures ranged from 11-28C. Robin Stobbs received 41.8mm in Grant Street. He reports that his “concrete garden is now almost slushy in places, and all three rainwater tanks overflowed!” Howieson’s Poort Dam was 23% full by the end of Tuesday, 9 November, and its water is being pumped back into a re-activated Waainek Water Treatment Works. Water continues to flow into the…

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