DA wants Gordhan, De Ruyter to appear before Parliament

The Democratic Alliance (DA) wants Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan and Eskom CEO Andre De Ruyter to appear before Parliament’s Public Enterprises Committee.

The DA says De Ruyter and Gordhan should explain Eskom’s statement that the Medupi power station “attained commercial operation status.”

The party’s spokesperson on Public Enterprises Ghaleb Cachalia says the statement means that technical compliance to statutory, safety and legal requirements have all been met.

He says it is comforting that the Medupi power station is finally online and available to be dispatched.

However, he says the minister and the Eskom CEO must play open cards.

“It is important that full transparency is provided about the problems and the issues that may plague the power station in the future. We don’t want to be caught short as South Africans by a failure which will result in further rolling blackouts.”

“The power station has taken 14 years to come online at a cost which has ballooned from some R30 billion to some R230 billion. There are more costs in the pipeline because there are certain things [that] have to be fixed. Like cleaning up the emissions from the power station. This has to be done and full transparency has to be effected and brought before South Africans. So that we are in the know and not in the dark,” he explains.

Meanwhile, energy experts say it is too early to celebrate the completion of unit one of the Medupi Power Station

Eskom has described the completion of unit one as an investment that will serve generations of the people of South Africa and power the economy for at least the next half-century.

Eskom yet to conclude technical solutions:

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Belarus sprinter heads for Austria in fresh twist to Tokyo diplomatic drama

 

Belarusian sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya left Tokyo for Austria on Wednesday, adding another dramatic twist to a diplomatic saga in which she had sought refuge at the Polish embassy.

Tsimanouskaya had been scheduled to board a flight for Warsaw, where the government has offered her a humanitarian visa after she had refused to board a flight home against her wishes on Sunday and sought diplomatic protection.

Instead, she departed on an Austrian Airlines flight scheduled to land in Vienna at 4:05 pm (1405 GMT) A member of the Belarusian community in touch with Tsimanouskaya said diplomats had changed her flight due to security concerns.

Masked and wearing blue jeans, a blue blouse and sunglasses with “I RUN CLEAN” written on them, Tsimanouskaya had arrived in a police-escorted van at Narita airport east of the Japanese capital.

She did not speak to several dozen waiting reporters as she went to a VIP area, escorted by several officials rolling her suitcases, and later to her gate.

The International Olympic Committee said on Tuesday it had launched a formal investigation into the case and was expecting a report from the Belarusian team.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has accused Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko’s regime of intolerable “transnational repression” in the matter.

Tsimanouskaya, 24, had been due to compete in the women’s 200 metre heats on Monday but said the Belarusian head coach had turned up at her room on Sunday at the athletes’ village and told her she had to leave after she had criticised team officials.

“I will not return to Belarus,” she told Reuters at the time.

The incident has focused attention on Belarus, where police have cracked down on dissent following a wave of protests triggered by an election last year which the opposition says was rigged to keep Lukashenko in power.

Belarusian authorities have characterised anti-government protesters as criminals or violent revolutionaries backed by the West, and described the actions of their own law enforcement agencies as appropriate and necessary.

Vitaly Shishov, a Belarusian activist living in exile in Ukraine, was found hanged in a park near his home in Kyiv early on Tuesday, and Ukrainian police launched a murder investigation.

He led an organisation that helps Belarusians fleeing persecution.

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Tunisian labour union urges new PM appointment to ease crisis

Tunisia’s powerful labour union urged the President on Tuesday to rapidly announce a new government that should be small and led by an experienced premier, after he seized executive control in a move his opponents called a coup.

President Kais Saied has defended his actions as constitutional and said he will govern alongside a new Prime Minister during an emergency period, but nine days after his intervention, he has yet to name one.

“We can’t wait 30 days for the announcement of a government,” said Sami Tahri, a spokesperson for the UGTT union, one of Tunisia’s most powerful political forces.

UGTT chief Noureddine Taboubi said later on state television later on Tuesday that the cabinet should be small and headed by somebody with experience, sending a positive message to both Tunisians and international lenders.

“We must speed up the formation of the government to be able to face economic and health challenges,” he said.

Saied’s sudden intervention on July 25 appeared to have widespread public support but raised fears for the future of the democratic system that Tunisia adopted after its 2011 revolution that triggered the Arab Spring.

On Tuesday Saied removed Tunisia’s ambassador to Washington, the latest in a string of dismissals of senior and mid-ranking officials over the past week including several ministers. He did not immediately name a replacement.

He is also still to announce a road-map to end an emergency period that he initially set at one month but later announced could be two months.

A source close to the presidential palace in Carthage said earlier that Saied might announce the new premier on Tuesday.

Sources have told Reuters that Central Bank Governor Marouane Abassi and two former finance ministers, Hakim Hammouda and Nizar Yaich, are contenders.

Saied’s most powerful organised opponent, the moderate Islamist Ennahda party, has meanwhile been riven by internal splits over its response to the crisis and its longer-term strategy and leadership.

Tunisians had over the past decade grown ever more frustrated by economic stagnation, corruption and bickering among a political class that often seemed more focused on its own narrow interests than on national problems.

The coronavirus pandemic ripped through Tunisia over the past two months as the state vaccination effort crawled, leading at one point to the worst infection and death rates in Africa.

Pandemic counter-measures last year hammered the economy.

On Monday Saied replaced the finance, agriculture and telecoms ministers after having said last week that “wrong economic choices” had cost the country.

On Sunday he said there were contacts with “friendly countries” for financial assistance.

 

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Enuffcash – “Wole”

Enuffcash comes with a masterpiece titled “Wole”. Born Cosmas Ogbonna, Enuffcash is a Nigerian Singer/Songwriter. He spent his growing up years between Okigwe, Aba and Port Harcourt where he experienced life from varied perspectives.

Enuffcash Just released his debut EP titled RISE 2 FAME, Wole is the 2nd track on the Rise 2 Fame EP, The track has a unique sound that brings a pure blend of acoustic ingenuity, This song no doubt has all the potential to be a chart-topper and will definitely rock our airwaves significantly.

Enuffcash’s well-delivered vocals make the entire Rise 2 Fame EP super appealing and smooth to the ears.

Powered by Boomkit.me, Download, listen and enjoy!

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Follow Enuffcash on all social platforms

Instagram – @enuffcash

Twitter – @enuffcash1 

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Kidnappers in Nigeria demand ransom to release 80 schoolchildren

Kidnappers are demanding a ransom of one million naira each to release around 80 children snatched from a boarding school in northern Nigeria last month, according to a pastor involved in the negotiations for their release.

The attack on the Bethel Baptist High School in the state of Kaduna was the 10th mass school kidnapping since December in northwest Nigeria, which authorities have attributed to criminal gangs seeking ransom payments.

“(Bandits) are asking for one million naira on each of the 80 students remaining with them,” Reverend Ite Joseph Hayab told Reuters by telephone.

Kidnappers released 28 children last month after a first batch of 28 was released two days after the raid. But another 81 remain in captivity.

Hayab said three students escaped before the 28 were released last month but they were kidnapped again by an unidentified person in the forest who demanded a ransom and was paid over one million naira by parents.

Nigerian authorities have attributed the kidnappings to what they call armed bandits seeking ransom payments.

Schools have become targets for mass kidnappings for ransom in northern Nigeria by armed groups.

Such kidnappings in Nigeria were first carried out by jihadist group Boko Haram, and later its offshoot Islamic State West Africa Province, but the tactic has now been adopted by other criminal gangs.

 

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Belarus sprinter Tsimanouskaya leaves Polish embassy in Tokyo – Police

 

Belarusian sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya early on Wednesday left the Polish embassy in Tokyo, where she had sought protection after refusing her team’s orders to return home.

Her refusal to board a flight home, after she said she was taken by her team to the airport against her wishes, caused high drama at the Tokyo Olympics.

A darkened van left the compound with police escort around 7:05 am (2205 GMT on Tuesday), shortly after luggage had been loaded into another van.

A police official confirmed to Reuters that Tsimanouskaya was in the vehicle.

She was expected to go to Poland, her supporters have said. Warsaw has offered her a humanitarian visa.

The International Olympic Committee said on Tuesday it was expecting a report from the Belarusian team on Tsimanouskaya’s case.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken accused Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko’s regime of intolerable “transnational repression” in the matter.

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CD Wonder – “Ori Mi” ft. Oritse Femi

CD Wonder connects with Nigerian foremost Pop Singer, Oritse Femi to come up with a new sizzling single titled “ORI MI”, whence ace guitarist, MusicBox brought more life into it with his strings.

Oritse Femi delved conveniently into the song tempo complementing the beautiful tune created by CD Wonder thus, making the music blend out into one seamless flow.

The natural drive and goal getting mentality has stirred Cd wonder to keep honing his art to even higher standards.

The song ORI MI (My Head) speaks volume on getting an acknowledgment on different achievements that have been attained.

Listen and Enjoy below

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