e-toll uncertainty - we can’t stand it either - 30 Oct 2012[Rod Baker, content director] Minister of Finance Pravin Gordhan has said that the fiscus can't sustain the uncertainties around e-tolls. Well, a great many motorists and companies are also uncertain of what impact e-tolling is going to have on their monthly costs. read more SA defence industry needs investment - 23 Oct 2012[Rod Baker, content director] SA's arms industry is highly developed, but more investment is needed to keep SA in the technology race if it is to remain competitive. Not only can the sector be a far bigger foreign-exchange earner, but it can also be a far bigger generator of skills and jobs. Some of us might sometimes think of the agricultural sector as one in which technology is used in farm machinery, some farm operations, and not much else. read more SAA flies into flak - 9 Oct 2012[Rod Baker, content director] At this rate there will be very few, if any, of the current SAA board left after CEO Siza Mzimela quit, closely followed yesterday by the resignations of commercial general manager Theunis Potgieter, and legal and risk head Sandra Coetzee. On the technology front, America's National Science Foundation has created a new program to find new paths forward for sustainable energy. Many people reckon she deserves an 'F' - despite Angie Motshekga awarding herself a very good pass mark after the Limpopo textbook debacle. Now she has to give a report on the issue. read more ANC needs a brand makeover - 2 Oct 2012[Rod Baker, content director] Thabani Khumalo says there are times in the life cycle of any brand when it needs to be refreshed, restructured, revitalised, rejuvenated, re-worked, repositioned and even re-launched to take it to a different level. That's why he reckons brand ANC needs to be re-charged. read more We are marching in Pretoria - 25 Sep 2012[Rod Baker, content director] It's that bill again, and since the ANC caucus in parliament has called for an end to debate and for the contentious bill to be voted through in its present form, R2K is to march in Pretoria on International Right to Know Day - 28 September 2012. The opposition to this bill will continue as long as government stonewalls on key amendments. On the crime front, according to the latest stats, KZN has recorded the largest drop in murder cases. read more Telkom in the firing line - 18 Sep 2012[Rod Baker, content director] There are some people who might be forgiven for having a sense of schadenfreude at the news that while Telkom is appealing against the fine it got for uncompetitive behaviour, the Competition Commission is also appealing - for a heftier fine. For years South Africans from all walks of life have bemoaned Telkom's high charges. read more Climate change will hit food prices - 11 Sep 2012[Rod Baker, content director] Perhaps while we have an agricultural sector that allows us to feed ourselves, we should look after it. According to the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), climate change is set to affect food prices severely. read more The SKA’s the limit for SA - 4 Sep 2012[Rod Baker, content director] The Square Kilometre Array Radio Telescope (SKA) and its precursor, the MeerKAT, will create enormous opportunities and alter the image of South Africa and the continent. So says Science and Technology Minister Naledi Pandor. On the taxing issue of finance, Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan is taking urgent steps against what he calls "significant tax avoidance schemes" in connection with the new dividends tax. It's not surprising that companies are doing this - the dividends tax, which came into effect on 1 April this year at 15%, has pushed company tax in SA above an international norm of around 30%. While the armed forces are not democracies and orders have to be obeyed, not debated, there's discipline... read more Bizcommunity launches new newsletters - 28 Aug 2012[Rod Baker, content director] We've launched five new newsletters, to bring you the latest news in your sector of interest - or even sectors of interest. The five new letters are CSI, Sport, Mining, Military & Security, and Building & Construction. For example, in CSI, there's still time to enter the rhino conservation mountain bike race and help raise awareness and boost the protection of one of our most iconic animals. And on the military front, the SA Army is battling to cope fulfilling its various commitments... read more IMC to engage on Marikana dispute - 21 Aug 2012[Rod Baker, content director] What happened at Marikana last week is a blot on this country, and in an effort to ensure that what happened there does not happen again, the Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) has committed to finding a solution to the dispute. It cannot be allowed to fail. MCI Consultants recently released the results of its recruitment trend survey. read more eNews goes international - 14 Aug 2012[Rod Baker, content director] eNews has been a success story on the South African TV front and has shown the way in providing news to its audience. Now it's spreading its wings and going international. read more Curiosity wins Gold for NASA - 7 Aug 2012[Rod Baker, content director] The big news on the science and technology front is NASA's Curiosity rover, in a scientific and technological tour de force, has landed successfully on Mars after a journey of about 800 million kilometres. It's also started sending pictures back - and we publish one of the first of them. So it's all going to be OK then? The Presidency has assured everyone that education remains a top priority for government. read more Nice about the heads, pity about the officials - 31 Jul 2012[Rod Baker, content director] Basic Education Minister "It's not my fault" Angie Motshekga has praised Limpopo principals and curriculum advisors for their dedication in the face of what can only be described as a shambles - namely the textbook debacle in Limpopo. Pity she cannot say the same about some of the officials in that province. On a good note, however, Avusa's matric Q&A supplement is out now - in last Sunday's Sunday Times and tomorrow's Sowetan. read more Calling the ladies - 24 Jul 2012[Rod Baker, content director] According to the Business Women's Association (BWA) 2012 Women in Leadership Census, women make up 43.9% of the workforce but constitute only 17.1% of all directors. Hence, the BWA reckons that more women are needed at board level. While on the media front, the High court in Pretoria has ruled that the Glynnis Breytenbach disciplinary must be open to the media - and that's good news for transparency. "It is of the utmost importance that the media has access to this disciplinary hearing...‚" Judge Ronel Tolmay ruled. read more Any way you spin it, it’s a disgrace - 17 Jul 2012[Rod Baker, content director] Professor Mary Metcalfe's report on the Limpopo textbook debacle paints a grim picture of the state of that province's education department. However, the national education department has welcomed her report, saying that it "adequately captures the complexities of the Section 100 (1)(b) intervention in that province and the difficulties experienced by national government in terms of the provision of textbooks to schools in Limpopo". read more |
