Author: Staff Reporter

Jeannie Wallace McKeown wrote and shared this poem when water cuts intended to save water instead resulted in burst pipes throughout Makhanda’s old infrastructure and thousands of litres were wasted through the resulting leaks. From now on the water will be turned off on Sundays and Wednesdays from 6 to 6, and maybe at night too, because the people working for the municipality don’t know how to explain the loss of water when there are 10 to 13 megalitres being produced each day by the treatment works. They think it must be being used by unthinking persons here in the…

Designers have a chance to be part of South Africa’s cultural history by designing the new R2 coin. The South African Mint will be issuing a new circulation coin in 2020 and they’ve invited designers to enter designs for the reverse of a new R2 coin, depicting a right from the South Africa’s Bill of Rights. Designers are free to choose a right from the remaining 22 Bill of Rights – which did not form part of the 2019 SA25 coin range. South Africans can enter the contest by submitting their designs to the SA25 website (www.sa25.co.za) before 31 October 2019. The…

The Graeme U13 tennis team enjoyed an emphatic set of results on Friday. They had a very convincing day against neighbours Kingswood, winning all 12 matches. The final game score was 48-12 in the singles, 24-7 in the doubles and obviously 72-19 overall. In Cricket news, Graeme batted first on a lifeless pitch against Victoria Park on Saturday. Although slow going, the Graeme side batted maturely around Lakhanya Sam who batted superbly yet again for 92. Riaan Labuschagne (42*) helped the team get to a solid total of 238/ 6 after 50 overs.  In reply, the Port Elizabeth side also found surviving…

By SINESIPHO GOQWANA Today marks the 18th annual World Sight Day. This day is held on the second week of October and is co-ordinated by The International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness, together with the World health Organization. World Sight Day aims to raise awareness on vision impairments with the theme for this year being: Vision First. These impairments include blindness, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy and cataracts. The Agency argues that millions of people around the world go blind or suffer from vision impairment due to causes that could be treated or preventable. It is therefore imperative that everyone has…

Despite what we know about the impact of food choices on our health, overweight and obesity are still on the rise in South Africa, alongside a host of preventable diseases that can be attributed to unhealthy lifestyles. Thanks to our industrialised food system, and far greater, ultra-processed and fast food choices aimed at our ‘convenience’, we’ve got further away from eating the whole foods that are really good for us. This is the message that a coalition of health professional associations, including the Department of Health, is highlighting in October across both National Nutrition Week and National Obesity Week. The…

On 16 September 2019 at approximately 7.30pm, Melumzi Maku aged 31 from Woodlands location, Peddie in the Eastern Cape was hitchhiking to his home from Grahamstown. He was run over by an unknown vehicle on the yellow line of the N2 bypass. A case of culpable homicide was opened for investigation. Several enquiries have been made and no positive information was received. A piece of a vehicle was retrieved from the crime scene. The SAPS is appealing to any person who may have any information on this tragic incident to contact Detective Warrant Officer Christelle Fullarton of the Grahamstown Detective…

Yintw’enomkhitha ngathi ithi ndijonge, Yintw’ehlel’incumile maxa onke, Sisiququq’esiququzelayo maxa onke. Isinxadanxada okwenxanxadi. Mv’ethetha ngath’ angangayeki, Ububele yimvezemvuze Incwad’ebhaliweyo nefundekayo, Intw’emabel’abhonxiley’okondl’umz’ontsundu. Ikhaya lakhe libonwa kuyeIntw’ehlanganis’izimv’ezalanayo, Intw’entliziy’intl’okwe golide Intw’engakhathalele bala lamntu. Ukunyathela kuhle ngath’ithi ndijonge Izivatho ziland’ubuntu bethu. Libizw’igama lakhe kwezemfundo, Kwathi kub’amangoms’akaziwa, Laphinda labizwa kweze nkcubeko, Hayi ke! Zathath’unyaw’iziphiwo zithontelana, Zee gca okwekat’emhloph’ehlungwini De zangqinwa nangu thathatha. Ndithetha ngawe mntwan’asemzini, Uz’uliphath’eli Phondo kuf’uhili Uz’ushukumis’amathamb’alele ukuthula, Akunik’amathongo nemibono Khon’ukuz’imisebenzi yakh’iqaqambe ngakumbi, Unik’idol’ukutya kwalo, uThixw’ehle, ez’eMpuma Koloni. Usibonisil’ingcinezel’ayina msebenzi; Wasibonis’ukunyamezala kungumvuzo; Wasibonis’ingqondo namandla sinawo; Watyhilel’ixabiso lomnt’ongu mama, Abant’abanamehl’abukhali nase bumnyameni. Ndixela wena wedwa. Ngu: Zukiswa C. Mhlwatika

The Old Mutual National Choir Festival has brought the best of choral music to the continent for 42 consecutive years. What’s remarkable is that Old Mutual has been the sponsors of the event since 1988 – something that the late Professor Khabi Mngoma, the renowned music teacher, and founder of the event would never have dreamed of when he launched the benchmark festival in 1977. This year the choral event has attracted 106 choirs who have taken part since the July launch in Gauteng. Performances in Eswatini, Zimbabwe, Polokwane, Ethekwini, Cape Town and Johannesburg started on 4 August and will continue…

Three Rhodes scientists are among a select group of eight from across the continent who have been awarded research grants to tackle Africa’s most prevalent diseases. Professor Adrienne Edkins, Associate Professor in the Biochemistry and Microbiology department; Professor Heinrich Hoppe, Associate Professor of Biochemistry and Professor Ozlem Tastan Bishop, Director of Research Unit in Bioinformatics are among the eight whose research projects will each receive $100 000 of funding from Grand Challenges (GC) Africa. This is a scheme that awards seed and full funding for innovation to address and significantly impact major health problems in Africa. It’s a partnership between the Alliance for Accelerating…

World-renowned African designer Fred Eboka of House of Eboka and  Palesa Mokubung founder of the acclaimed fashion label Mantsho, is facilitating the 4th annual Buyel’ekhaya Fashion Development Programme Workshop, 10 and 11 October at the Miriam Makeba Centre of Performing Arts in East London. The two designers are hosting over 100 young aspiring Eastern Cape fashion designers on the days, sharing their extensive knowledge of the fashion industry, and covering a wide range of topics including case studies of their own success. Creative portfolios of candidate designers will be adjudicated on after which 10 successful young aspirants will be announced as beneficiaries of a…