Only 10 people have been paid the R350 special Covid-19 grant
By: illovuonline news team
23-05-2020
Image: supplied
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The DA on Friday called on the minister of social development, Lindiwe Zulu, to take responsibility after the SA Social Security Agency (Sassa) failed to pay R350 social distress grants to millions of unemployed people.
The DA on Friday called on social development minister Lindiwe Zulu to take responsibility after the SA Social Security Agency (Sassa) was only able to pay the R350 social distress grant to 10 people.
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“The department and Sassa seemingly misled the nation when they indicated that payments for this grant would commence on May 15 2020. Clearly they are in over their heads and do not have a handle on this special grant,” said the DA’s shadow minister of social development, Bridget Masango.
She said the revelation was made in parliament on Thursday when the DA asked Sassa CEO Busisiwe Memela-Khambula how many recipients had been paid.
“Instead of answering the question, she proceeded to give a long-winded explanation on vetting applicants and testing the system,” said Masango.
Memela-Khambula could not be reached for comment, but earlier confirmed to SAfm that only 10 people had received the payout.
R350 Social relief grant a lifeline for those with no income
Siphokazi Mafa cannot wait for the Covid-19 unemployment grant which she says will go a long way in helping her and her family put food on the table.
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Masango slammed Sassa, which had more than three weeks to plan, verify and approve a significant proportion of the applications.
“The DA acknowledges that it is no small feat to vet and approve 3.5-million people in a short time, the reality is that the president announced the special Covid-19 social relief of distress grant on April 21. It is ridiculous that only 10 people have received this grant and no amount of spin will justify this mammoth failure on the part of minister Zulu and CEO Memela-Khambula,” she said.
Sassa spokesperson Sandy Godlwana said she was unable to comment on grant-related queries and referred queries to another spokesperson, Paseka Letsatsi, who could not be reached at the time of publishing.
Speaking to SAfm, Memela-Khambula said the agency had received more than 4.5- million applications, following which 2.6-million had been verified.
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“Once we receive the application, we have to ensure there are no duplications from people trying to double-up. We then have to check if our applicants receive any other social grants. We then send that data to Sars to make sure that people that are actually going to get the money are not already receiving a salary. So that’s the process that makes it to have taken so long in terms of where we are,” she said.
Memela-Khambula confirmed only 10 people had been paid thus far, but said the agency was ready to pay 100,000 people after they had loaded their banking details on their system.
“We are excited to say that past week we did a test trial, and paid a few people to make sure that the system works and we’ve now sent SMSes to 100,000 people that we’re ready to pay, so they can load their bank accounts because the key thing for us is to ensure that people load their accounts in an environment that is safe,” she said.
However, Masango said the non-payment was an indication of how the government continues to neglect the poor.
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“Not only do they try to prevent NGOs from distributing food to the poor, but they also make it almost impossible for desperate people to get the meagre R350 relief. Sassa has so far failed to fully rise to the challenge of supporting those in need.
‘The DA calls on minister Zulu to take full responsibility for her department’s poor showing,” said Masango.
Memela-Khambula said the agency intended making the payments continuously and not on fixed dates like other grants. She said over time, the process will become quicker.
Applications for R350 unemployment grant goes live
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Sassa CEO Busisiwe Memela has urged people who do not qualify for the Covid-19 grant not to apply.
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News put South Africa first
Schools will reopen on June 1 for matrics and grade 7s
By: illovuonline news team
20-05-2020
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Basic education minister Angie Motshekga addressing the nation on Tuesday evening on plans to reopen schools.
South African schools will reopen on June 1 — starting with grade 12 and 7 pupils.
And when the doors are opened after a two-month hiatus due to the coronavirus lockdown in SA, pupils will return in a staggered fashion.
This is according to basic education minister Angie Motshekga, who was speaking at a press briefing on Tuesday evening.
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“The national coronavirus command council and cabinet has approved the reopening of schools as of June 1. We will start with grade 7s and 12s,” she said.
Motshekga said the revised school calendar will be gazetted “soon”. This would indicate the opening and closing dates and the breaks in between.
“The coronavirus has brought a lot of anxiety to us as a nation. I am aware that parents and children, teaching and non-teaching staff … have been asking questions over the future of the academic year and what is going to happen to them and the academic year,” she said.
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“There was always certainty that schools will have to open.”
Safety remained of the upmost importance, she said.
“The key principles that had to guide our work was to be informed by the safety of learners, the safety of teachers and our workers in schools, and also ensuring that, as we plan to reopen schools, it does not contribute in any way to the spread of the virus.”
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Department’s plans for staggered schooling gets the thumbs up
Education stakeholders have welcomed the basic education department’s proposals to rearrange the school timetable.
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Lockdown: Whole of Gauteng to move to Level 3 in June – Premier Makhura
By: illovuonline news team
20-05-2020
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Gauteng Premier David Makhura says the entire province will move to Level 3 of the lockdown at the beginning of June.
Makhura, who was answering questions during a virtual session of the Gauteng provincial legislature said the province and its districts were highly integrated.
“We can’t go to Level 3 in a disjoined way, we can’t have one metro in Level 4, another in Level 3 and another at Level 2,” he said on Tuesday.
The country is slowly making its way out of a hard lockdown that was imposed by President Cyril Ramaphosa in March after the deadly novel coronavirus hit South African shores.
There are five levels of the lockdown, with the fifth level being a hard lockdown, which not only restricts movements and shuts down non-essential services, but also places a ban on the sale of products such as tobacco and alcohol.
Last week, Ramaphosa announced some parts of the country would be able to move to Level 3.
At the time, Gauteng was the pandemic’s epicentre. It now has 2 343 cases, while the Western Cape has 10 035 confirmed infections.
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Makhura said his government was holding a lot of discussions with different sectors to prepare for less stringent measures. He also called on shopping malls and law enforcement to assist in making sure the province’s residents complied with lockdown regulations, as well as standards set by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
He said there would be a greater focus on townships during the start of Level 3.
“In the suburbs we now have more recoveries and fewer active cases, with newer confirmed cases in our townships,” said Makhura.
He also raised concerns over challenges presented by a lack of awareness in some communities, as well as spatial planning in the province, but added that those infected had been moved to the province’s own isolation and quarantine sites.
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Makhura thanked the different political parties in Gauteng for working together and said provincial departments and municipalities had also been able to coordinate well throughout the crisis.
The storm is still coming
The premier, while praising the country’s economic hub, warned that the worst was far from over.
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Gauteng, which is one of the most affected provinces, has managed to drop from 50% of all cases reported to only 15%, with a reported 10% active cases of the total national figure.
Makhura said national figures showed that the province was leading in testing for Covid-19.
The premier said its also had the highest rates of recovery, but that modelling was showing that Covid-19 was still far from reaching its peak in Gauteng.
“While confident, we must not think it’s done and dusted. I want to say to this house as provincial government, we are working with municipalities and various agencies. We are ready for the worst of times and will continue building capacity,” said Makhura.
“If the peak finds us anytime, we should be ready.”
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He said the best scenario for Gauteng would be if Covid-19 peaked at the end of June or in August.
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Cool sounds: Okmalumkoolkat releasing new EP titled ‘Bhlomington’
By: illovuonline news team
20-05-2020
Image: supplied
Mzansi’s coolest rapper, Okmalumkoolkat, is all set to release a new EP titled Bhlomington – The record is coming out on Friday –
Okmalumkoolkat has shared the project artwork with fans.
A lot of artists have taken the lockdown time to work on their craft. One of those who’s been busy in the kitchen is none other than Okmalumkoolkat. Okmalumkoolkat has announced the upcoming release of his latest EP titled Bhlomington.
The star released the project’s artwork on Instagram and said said it will be out on Friday.
“Just a few more days and we be Bhlomington.”
tony_mwale “I can’t wait for Friday.”
bzurk_sa “Waiting in anticipation.” suupzulu “Woza Friday.” Other artists to have released new projects during this lockdown period include Cassper Nyovest and Emtee.
This month, illovuonline news reported that Cassper Nyovest’s video for Amademoni debuted on YouTube and fans are loving it. The reception to the dope music video has been overwhelming and the track is sure to soar even higher post-lockdown.
Last week, Emtee released his new dope single Johustleburg. Fans said it’s definitely one of the best hip hop tracks to come out this year. We can’t wait to hear what Okmalumkoolkat has cooked up.
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News put South Africa first
Top Soapies return to our TV screens after Covid-19 enforced break
By: illovuonline news team
20-05-2020
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Popular TV dramas Gomora, Isibaya and The River will return with new episodes next week after their Covid-19 production break that had left viewers frustrated.
But Uzalo’s over 11-milion followers will have to wait much longer to watch their favourite drama after SABC acting spokesperson Mmoni Seapolelo revealed yesterday that SA’s most-watched show would only return on screen on June 15.
The show went off air two weeks ago because of lack of new episodes due to Covid-19 lockdown restrictions.
However, Mzansi Magic’s Gomora and Isibaya will both air new material daily from Monday. The shows also ran out of episodes almost a month ago due to lockdown restrictions that prevented shooting from taking place.
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On the same day, season 3 of Sindi Dlathu’s The River, which stopped airing on May 8, will resume with new episodes on 1Magic.
All shows resumed production two weeks ago under national lockdown level 4 regulations. Gomora last month dethroned The Queen as the most watched TV show on pay broadcaster DStv, according to the latest data by Broadcast Research Council of SA.
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“We are so excited to go back to work. The lockdown was a necessity but we missed being on the set of Gomora. Any opportunity to wake up and live out our filmmaking dreams is always a blessing,” executive producer Kutlwano Ditsele said.
“Viewers can expect more intrigue, twists and a whole lot of drama when Gomora returns. It’s going to feel like a sequel… bigger and better.”
When Isibaya resume on Monday, viewers should expect baby daddy drama for Ntwentle (Asavela Mngqithi) as her pregnancy begin to play out.
TV star Linda Sebezo is cursing every minute of Covid-19 national lockdown because it has forced her to rely on her mother’s pension to survive.
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The show has also teased a lot of new love stories for Fenyang (Aubrey Poo) , Phumelele (Ayanda Borotho), Mabuyi (Samukele Mkhize), Duma (Muzi Mthabela), S’bu (Sdumo Mtshali) and Jerry (Charles Phasha).
“They have very strict rules on set and it’s weird working with masks and social distancing, but it feels good to be back at work,” Mngqithi said.
In the last episode of Gomora, it was revealed that Thathi’s (Katlego Danke) son Langa (Siya Xaba) is the son of her childhood sweetheart Melusi (Zolisa Xaluva).
Viewers will discover how the latest revelation impact Melusi’s newly formed family with Gladys (Thembi Seete).
“I feel extremely privileged to be working at a time when most people find themselves deeply despondent because they are still unable to. My heart goes out to every family that is struggling under the circumstances,” Xaluva said.
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“I look forward to help provide entertainment that will hopefully help raise the spirits of those who are at home.”
A record breaking 11.4m people watch an Uzalo episode
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Soapie Uzalo pulled a record-breaking viewership on South Africa television with more than 11 million viewers watching an episode last month.
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News put South Africa first
More than 1,500 schools hit by vandalism, theft during lockdown
By: illovuonline news team
20-05-2020
Image: supplied
Over 1,500 schools across SA have been vandalised since the start of the lockdown.
The vandalism of schools across the country continues to worsen during the Covid-19 lockdown — and most of it is taking place in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal.
Countrywide, 1,577 schools have been rocked by vandalism, thefts and break-ins. Of that number, 463 have been in KZN and 336 in Gauteng.
Announcing the stats on Tuesday evening, basic education minister Angie Motshekga said it was troubling.
130 arrested for burglary, vandalism and torching of schools since March
Things took an unexpected turn for a suspect in Kwa Thema on the East Rand when he was allegedly caught red-handed trying to rob the Nkumbulo High …
NEWS
Textbooks, sports equipment lost as NW school administration block burns down
Ten offices burnt down when the administration block caught fire at Machama Primary School at Manamakgoteng village near Moruleng in the North West.
“This is truly a disturbing trend that will set us back in our efforts of trying to get back the academic programme,” she said.
“We appeal to members of the public to help the police bring the perpetrators to justice.”
Because of the vandalism and theft — and in some cases arson — the department is avoiding delivering masks and sanitisers to schools before they reopen on June 1.
In just 19 days, the number of vandalised schools has risen by more than 600. On April 30, there were 962 schools that had been vandalised since the advent of the lockdown, the minister announced at the time.
One of the main targets has been computer laboratories.
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News put South Africa first
SA COVID-19 deaths rise past 300, as confirmed cases total 17,200
By: illovuonline news team
20-05-2020
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There are now 17,200 cases of Covid-19 in SA and 312 deaths, health minister Zweli Mkhize said on Tuesday.
SA’s death toll from Covid-19 passed the 300 mark on Tuesday night, after 26 more deaths were recorded in the last 24 hours.
Health minister Dr Zweli Mkhize said the toll was now at 312. There were also 767 new cases confirmed in the last 24 hours, taking the national total to 17,200.
The Western Cape still had a bulk of the overall cases, and accounted for 10,639 of the newly-confirmed cases.
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The provincial breakdown of cases, deaths and recoveries was provided as:
Western Cape — 10,639 cases, 187 deaths, 4,363 recoveries;
Almost 11 000 positive patients have skipped ARV collection during lockdown
By: illovuonline news team
20-05-2020
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Thousands of patients have not collected their HIV and TB medications since the start of the lockdown, making them susceptible to Covid-19.
The Gauteng health department on Tuesday said it was trying to trace thousands of TB and HIV-positive patients who have failed to collect their medication since the start of the lockdown on March 27 2020.
The approximate number of patients who failed to collect their TB medicines is 1,090, while the number of patients who failed to collect their antiretroviral medicines is about 10,950.
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“Since the lockdown the average percentage reduction in medicine collections for TB is 1.4% and 19.6% for HIV,” read a statement from the Gauteng health department.
“The department has developed and is implementing a track and trace plan to locate patients who have not come to collect their treatment and manage them accordingly.”
The trace efforts were happening through the ward-based outreach teams.
The department expressed concern about the implications of the missed treatments.
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Collaboration a key weapon in the search for an HIV vaccine
World Aids Vaccine Day is observed annually on May 18 to educate communities around the world about the importance of HIV vaccine research.
OPINION
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“Supply and transportation of medicines may be disrupted by flight cancellations and travel restrictions. The unavailability of medicines may lead to treatment interruption, which subsequently causes drug resistance and deterioration of patients’ health.
“Patients who do not comply with treatment remain vulnerable and may be susceptible to other opportunistic infections, the coronavirus being one of them,” the department said.
“Clinicians may have difficulty managing patients with unsuppressed viral loads caused by treatment interruption. Such patients may end up developing complications such as immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome and many other illnesses.”
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The Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital is one of the hospitals that is being used to treat coronavirus-positive patients in Gauteng.
The health department said because of this, it was forced to cancel or postpone 1,413 surgeries to make available beds for coronavirus patients in need.
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