
The National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure Natjoints has reiterated its commitment to upholding the law and maintaining public order, urging citizens to avoid vigilantism and xenophobic actions. Natjoints chairperson Lieutenant-General Tebello Mosikili stated that operations will continue to target criminal networks and ensure community safety. Mosikili and acting National Commissioner of the South African Police Service, Lieutenant-General Puleng Dimpane, addressed concerns regarding lawlessness, violence, vigilantism, and illegal immigration in South Africa. This follows anti-immigrant protests in several provinces that led to police intervention after threats to foreign nationals and their property. Mosikili emphasized that no individual, organization, or movement has the authority to take the law into their own hands, conduct unlawful operations, intimidate communities, target individuals based on nationality, or enforce immigration laws outside legal frameworks. This statement was made in George, Western Cape, after violent unrest in KwaNonqaba, Mossel Bay, where approximately 55 shacks were allegedly torched in Asla Park informal settlement. Two Mozambican men were found dead with injuries, and an 18-year-old South African, Nhlamulo Sambo, was fatally stabbed. A 23-year-old was arrested in connection with Sambo鈥檚 death, which Mosikili clarified was not linked to the recent unrest. Natjoints reported 166 arrests for public violence in the Free State and fi
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President Cyril Ramaphosa acknowledged public skepticism regarding government promises during the launch of a borehole project in Hammanskraal, north of Pretoria. This initiative aims to improve water supply in communities, including Hammanskraal, where residents have faced issues with water quality and access for years, exacerbated by a cholera outbreak in 2023. Ramaphosa stated that the people of Hammanskraal have endured significant hardship due to the lack of clean water, leading to a loss of trust in the government's ability to deliver solutions. He emphasized that the launch of this project, which includes three interventions, represents tangible progress rather than just another plan. The Department of Water and Sanitation indicated that the Klipdrift 50-megalitre-per-day Package Water Treatment Plant, implemented by Magalies Water, will provide an additional 50 megalitres of treated potable water daily to the City of Tshwane's distribution network. This is expected to benefit approximately 47,550 households, or about 180,679 residents, in Hammanskraal and surrounding areas. The borehole schemes, located at Kekana Community Hall, Botlhokwa bja Bana, Suurman Ridge Unit 5, Mashemong Section 5, and Lepheng Village, include boreholes, elevated storage tanks, communal water collection points, and water treatment systems. These projects are anticipated to improve access to safe drinking water for over 1,400 households and students in the Hammanskraal area, providing peace of
Public Protector Kholeka Gcaleka's investigation report on the informal food industry in Gauteng highlights a critical shortage of environmental health inspectors and a significant decline in food safety compliance. The report, released on Friday, was prompted by numerous food poisoning incidents in late 2024, which resulted in the deaths of at least 23 children in Gauteng. The investigation aimed to determine if the Department of Health, municipal departments, the National Consumer Commission, and food inspectors failed in their duties. The Public Protector noted that Gauteng, with approximately 16 million residents, requires 1,600 environmental health practitioners EHPs based on international and national standards of one EHP per 10,000 people. However, the province's municipalities have an EHP staff capacity of only 30.3% overall, with Johannesburg at 50%, Ekurhuleni at 23%, and Tshwane at 21%. Sedibeng and the West Rand district municipality had the lowest rates at 16% and 18%, respectively. The report also found that while 55% of spaza shops in Gauteng's three largest municipalities are owned by foreign nationals, the overall licensing and compliance levels across the province stand at a mere 28%. This means for every licensed spaza shop, there are almost three unlicensed ones operating. Ekurhuleni had the lowest spaza shop compliance rate at 5%. Gcaleka emphasized that municipalities are responsible for regulating food sales and business registrations. She recommended t
South African schools continue to experience incidents involving pupils falling into pit toilets, despite the Department of Basic Education's pledge to eradicate them by March 2025. Recent incidents occurred at Mogogelo Primary in North West and Zakhele Primary in KwaZulu-Natal. At Mogogelo Primary, a Grade 1 pupil fell into a pit toilet after a contractor abandoned the site, leaving open inlets. The school's education spokesperson, Vuyo Mantshule, stated the school did not barricade the construction area. At Zakhele Primary, a five-year-old pupil was rescued from a pit latrine earlier this year. Kathija Yassim, an education leadership professor at the University of Johannesburg, noted that under the Sanitation Appropriate for Education Safe programme, 3,372 schools with unsafe pit toilets were identified in 2018. As of April 2025, 96% of these schools had been addressed, with 141 awaiting completion, a number that has since fallen to around 135. Yassim also highlighted that about 1,770 public schools still had some form of pit toilets in 2024, though many also had alternative sanitation. The department has allocated R1.6 billion for the 2025-26 financial year to complete pit latrine eradication. Last year, Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube informed parliament that the Safe initiative had eradicated over 93% of identified pit toilets and confirmed that all 3,372 schools identified in the 2018 audit now have safe and appropriate sanitation facilities.