Author: Sue Maclennan

The South African National Roads Agency SOC Ltd (Sanral) has issued a notice that controlled blasting is scheduled to take place on the N2, section 13, between Grahamstown and the Fish River Pass every Tuesday until 24 October 2017, weather permitting. “The blasts will occur at various positions along the N2 between KM81 and KM92,” the Agency said in a statement. Blasting would take place between 2pm and 4.30pm and the road would be closed for approximately one hour during this time. “Motorists are asked to plan their trips accordingly, consider alternative routes and to use caution when making use…

Grahamstown Police opened a case of arson and house breaking after the Provincial Traffic Department office was gutted by fire in the early hours of Saturday. Makana Fire Services records indicate a call was made at 2.15am. “The team arrived at 2.16am,” said commanding officer on the following shift, Robert Brooks. “When they arrived, the right-hand-side of the building had collapsed. The team worked until 3.20am to contain the fire.” Platoon Commander Julia Someketa was the officer in charge at the scene. The Makana Fire Services team managed to save the right-hand-side of the building, which contained 13 rooms including…

In an extraordinary tribute to health and development visionary Mary Humphreys, who passed away during the weekend, staff at the Raphael Centre continued with the Centre’s programmes this week. Humphreys was found by neighbours at her home around 1.30pm Sunday 1 October. Police immediately opened an inquest docket. On Monday police confirmed that no foul play was suspected and that her death was caused by illness. Speaking through tears on Monday morning, the Raphael Centre’s operations manager Anne Loeffler said every staff member had arrived at work that morning to share their grief. “But we said we can’t stop the…

Makana Municipality has no plan to extend the deadline for prepaid electricity users to hand their contact details and prepaid meter numbers to their Finance Department. A notice from Makana was recently circulated on social media, reminding residents they needed to hand in those details by 3pm Friday 29 September. Failing this, their ability to buy prepaid units would be blocked and a reconnection fee of R428.08 would be charged to unblock the meter. Several people commented angrily on the post on the Grahamstown Residents Association’s Facebook page, saying this was the first they’d heard of the requirement. “Thank you…

South African Airways (SAA) has announced network routes reductions to help the national carrier cut costs. Effective from 29 October, SAA will reduce daily flights to Port Elizabeth from four to two. Flights to East London will be reduced from three to two. The move is part of SAA’s newly developed five-year Corporate Plan to improve schedule efficiencies. Regional network reductions. Flights to Brazzaville, Pointe Noir in the Congo and Libreville in Gabon, with connections onward to Cotonou in Benin, and Douala in Cameroon are under review. The national carrier is evaluating options to reduce operations or downgauge aircraft type, which entails…

While an alliance of civil society organisations has hailed as a triumph the appointment of a specialist administrator to turn around Makana’s fortunes, the Council is having none of it. And with no end in sight to Paul Notyawa’s bid to be appointed as municipal manager, a special Council meeting last week saw the appointment of the municipality’s new Director of Corporate Services as acting MM. In a week when the Concerned Citizens to Save Makana (CCSM) fully expected to meet the specialist executive administrator they understood had been appointed, Chief Whip in the Council’s ANC caucus Mabhuti Matyumza was…

Do you love the music of Fela Kuti and Oliver Mtukudzi? Over the next three months, Grahamstown musicians have the chance to learn to play music in the style of these famous musicians. Ugandan performing artist Albert Bisaso Ssempeke is being hosted as a musician in residence by the International Library of African Music (ILAM) until the end of October and will be giving individual lessons on the Ugandan lyre, fiddle and flute, and group lessons on the amadinda marimba for up to eight people at a time. At age 9 Ssempeke, who is a court musician, started making his…

Senior national and provincial officials met this week to discuss an urgent response to the dire situation of Grahamstown’s neighbours to the north, Adelaide and Bedford, which have completely run out of water. Butterworth is also affected and residents in all these areas now rely on water tankers. However, Makana’s Director of Infrastructure and technical services Dali Mlenzana says such a situation is not imminent in Grahamstown. In a media statement on Tuesday, Senior Manager: Communications and Customer Care for Amathole District Municipality Siyabulela Makunga said water tankers had already begun carting water to all affected areas. “Currently, ADM is carting water…

Grahamstown’s Settler cottages are cosy, with sash windows and stable doors part of their charm. You can retain that old-world openness yet keep your home secure, says Hi-Tec Manager Andre Wille. Burglary is an opportunistic crime and there is a lot you can do to avoid it, says Hi-Tec Manager Andre Wille. How you secure your home makes every difference and while older houses have their challenges, the principles are the same. Physical barriers are your first line of defence and the further away you can keep potential intruders from your home, the better. It starts with a sound perimeter. While a wall…

A prestigious ceremony in the Monument’s Guy Butler Theatre on Friday 8 September celebrated the graduation of 730 students from the Eastcape Midlands TVET College in Grahamstown. The ceremony saw 693 exit-level students from the School of Business, Art and Social Sciences obtaining their Certificates, while 37 students from the same School received their National N Diplomas, all for the academic years 2014, 2015 and 2016. Meritorious awards handed over at the ceremony included The Principal’s Award and the National Top Achievers Award. The Principal’s Award is usually awarded to only one student of each School, who has obtained an…