Author: Staff Reporter

The Electoral Commission has announced that the national voter registration weekend ahead of the upcoming Local Government Elections will be held on 17-18 July 2021. Over this weekend all 23 146 voting stations around the country would open from 8am to 5pm to assist new voters to register and existing voters to check and, where necessary, update their registration details, the IEC said in a statement today. In the lead-up to that weekend, the Electoral Commission would embark on a nationwide voter education and awareness campaign to encourage all eligible voters to make sure they are ready to participate in the…

The National Arts Festival, in the form that Makhanda residents know best, it is back – live and on stage – in July 2021. But that’s just part of what this town’s biggest annual event is offering in its 48th edition.  The National Arts Festival Experience will revive its live 11 day National Arts Festival in its home city of Makhanda from 8-18 July (Makhanda Live) and stage a National Arts Festival Online which will be entirely online in July. And, for the first time ever, the National Arts Festival will present a series of shows, in partnership with Standard Bank, in cities…

The Southern Africa Music Rights Organisation (SAMRO) says it has begun collecting royalties on behalf of its members from TikTok, Facebook and Netflix, after concluding licensing agreements with the popular digital platforms. “SAMRO is pleased to announce that we have entered into licensing agreements with short form video content social media platform TikTok, global social media powerhouse Facebook as well as the video streaming subscription platform Netflix that will benefit members,” said SAMRO Chairperson, Nicholas Maweni. “Thanks to the conclusion of these binding agreements, SAMRO will be able to collect royalties on behalf of members, for all copyright-protected content that features on these platforms, with immediate effect.”…

The National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) has confirmed that four of the specimens it had, have tested positive for the Covid-19 B.1.617.2 variant. In a statement, the NICD said it had sequenced the Covid-19 specimens from individuals who had travelled to India. “The institute can confirm that four of the specimens tested positive for B.1.617.2 (two cases from Gauteng and two from KwaZulu-Natal). The B.1.617.2 variant is currently highlighted as a variant of interest by the World Health Organization and is one of multiple variants circulating in India,” it said in a statement on Saturday. It added that all…

The deadline for the renewal of liquor licences by all outlets who obtained their licences before 27 March 2020 has been extended to 30 June 2021. The Eastern Cape Liquor Board (ECLB) encouraged licence holders to observe this deadline. “Failure to comply will result into the licence registration being cancelled,” the Board said in a statement. REPORT IT – YOU MAY REMAIN ANONYMOUS You can report liquor establishments that fail to comply with trading conditions and Covid-19 regulations to the nearest police station or to the ECLB toll-free number 080 000 0420 and WhatsApp 076 403 6223 https://www.grocotts.co.za/2021/02/03/stick-to-the-rules-warns-liquor-board/

The special Covid-19 Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant ended on 30 April 2021; however the SA Social Security Agency (SASSA), which manages social grants, said it had noticed that some unpaid but approved applicants were panicking and as a result were gathering at post offices requesting payment. “All such applicants of the special Covid-19 SRD grant, who have been approved but not yet paid can rest assured that the will be paid as soon as possible,” SASSA said in a statement. The agency confirmed that payment would be made for all approved grants as soon as confirmation of funding…

The Department of Basic Education and all provincial departments must build in penalty mechanisms to hold implementing agents accountable for delays in infrastructure projects. This is the view of Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Basic Education during an infrastructure roundtable held with the Department of Basic Education (DBE) and all nine provincial education departments on Tuesday 4 May. The committee was on an oversight visit to the DBE’s office in Pretoria. Lasting solutions to challenges within the sector, and accountability from the department were top of the agenda. The provincial education departments’ failure to deliver much-needed infrastructure was because implementing agents were not…

President Cyril Ramaphosa says a proposal by South Africa at the World Trade Organisation to waiver specific Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) obligations related to the manufacturing of Covid-19 vaccines is now supported by over 100 countries. The President said this when he responded to oral questions in the National Assembly on Thursday. “We want to manufacture vaccines locally against the pandemic. It is for this reason that South Africa and India proposed the TRIPS waiver at the World Trade Organisation to enable the manufacturing of Covid-19 vaccines in developing countries. The proposal is now supported by more than…

Minister of Home Affairs Aaron Motsoaledi has published the Green Paper on Marriages in South Africa for public comment. In explaining the purpose of new policies on marriage, the Green Paper says existing marriage legislation in South Africa is not informed by an overarching policy based on the country’s Constitution. Instead, it is a combination of legacy legislation (colonial and apartheid era) and new law introduced post-1994 to redress historical injustices. “Instead of creating a harmonised system of marriage in SA, the State has sought to give recognition to different marriage rituals by passing a range of different marriage laws,”…

Makhanda’s Shakespeare Society usually meets about eight times a year to enjoy Shakespeare’s plays in a variety of ways. “We read them together, watch video productions, hear lectures, and teach them in schools,” explains co-ordinator Lynette Paterson. The Covid-19 lockdown put a damper on the organisation’s live meetings in 2020, but they’ve decided to bring the tradition of the Birthday Lecture alive and end Shakespeare’s ‘self isolation’. “We hope to do so in a manner that accommodates those who do not feel ready to venture out, and those who are keen to resume social and cultural life — with due…