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Ramaphosa Praises DA-Run Councils, While ANC Watches Its Own Funeral

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President Cyril Ramaphosa President Cyril Ramaphosa , who had summoned thousands of African National Congress (ANC) councillors from across the country to FNB Stadium for what was effectively a roll call, stunned his comrades when he instructed them to look to Democratic Alliance (DA)-run municipalities as the benchmark for well-governed local councils. Ramaphosa openly lamented the fact that well-run municipalities are seldom ANC-controlled. Instead, he noted, they are often DA-controlled. “We need to ask ourselves what it is they are doing that is better than what we are doing … And there’s nothing wrong with us saying we want to go and see what Cape Town is doing. We want to go and see what Stellenbosch is doing,” he said. This is not the first time Ramaphosa has brought the ANC into disrepute. A few years ago, he conceded that the ANC was “number one when it comes to corruption”, a statement that also infuriated his comrades. Yet they could do nothing; he is, after all, t...
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Reigniting My Dream: Inspired by The Traveller to Journey Across All 54 African Countries

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The Traveller . Wow, what a book! Reading it has rekindled my dream of visiting all 54 countries in Africa. Through this masterpiece, Bro @ThebeIkalafeng has shown me that it’s not just a fantasy: it’s possible, it’s doable. And so, I'm putting it out into the universe! What I've learned from this book is that every African country has its own soul, its own rhythm, its own story. I want to experience it all: the different cultures, the food that tells a people’s history, and the strangers that become friends. I want to sit around fires listening to stories, dance to drums and collect lifetime memories that no money can buy. My vision is to criss-cross Africa in every way possible: by bus, by taxi, by train, by plane, even by boat. To keep this dream alive, I now need to get my hands on the following books: Boipelo Tladinyane Hlubi’s A Safari Back to Self: Backpacking 54 Countries in Africa , and Sihle Khumalo’s Dark Continent, My Black Arse . Bro Tee’s book is a powerful remin...
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ANC Minister Nkabane Dodges Accountability in Parliament Showdown

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Nobuhle Nkabane The nonchalant, borderline disrespectful conduct of Higher Education & Training Minister Dr Nobuhle Nkabane left a sour taste in the mouths of many South Africans. Her refusal to account to the people, during her appearance before parliament's portfolio committee on higher education, was a slap in the face to transparency. Her behaviour echoed the infamous antics of former president Jacob Zuma, who, like Nkabane, regularly dodged accountability with smirks, giggles, and evasive responses. I'm not exaggerating: Watch this short clip of Zuma in parliament if you need a reminder. For those unfamiliar with the drama surrounding Nkabane, here’s a quick refresher: She recently caused an uproar by appointing politically connected individuals to chair Sector Education and Training Authority (Seta) boards. The backlash was swift, with parties like the DA and EFF slamming the decision, especially since the appointees included Buyambo Mantashe, son of ANC heavyweight  ...
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Take your kids on a less travelled road of motorsports

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BY PHUTI MPYANE It could be argued that growing up during the dark period of apartheid, black youngsters wouldn’t be expected to have a keen interest in motorsport, yet this was largely a falsehood. Soccer, which I happened to be adept at, was the expected norm. As a grown up adult on the cusp of hitting the big Five-Oh, I recognise that maybe I was cut from a different cloth from my peers, and my own Father hadn’t recognised this. For instance, Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates rang true and hard in my peer and other circles yet, there I was as a 10 year old, circa 1985, and a big fan of Moroka Swallows. Many young boys in those days can trace their football allegiances to a Father, Uncle or peers in general. Mine has no origins to some level. My Father was not a soccer fan, and neither were most of my immediate male relatives. Memorable influences were a Swallows player who gave me the first glimpse of a ‘Bicycle Kick.’ The team’s Burgundy kit, perhaps, too, which I would later don f...
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Location: Johannesburg, South Africa
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From Deep House to Deep Routes: A Nostalgic SA Road Trip in the Jeep Wrangler

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BY PHUTI MPYANE Knight SA’s (and I stand to be corrected) real name is Edwin Cornelius Fortune. He is among a mob of exciting young DJs blazing the SA deep house scene. The striking difference about the selections of this powerhouse versus the glut of sub-genres that denote the modern deep house genres, such as amapiano, is the lineage of midtempo house popularised during the 2000s by a number of legendary DJs, including one Glen Lewis. It was a time when cars played a central role in the lifestyles of black middle-class youth fuelled by a burgeoning hope that the country was well and truly entering an era of equality, not just in the employment and entrepreneurship stakes, but the prospects of new-found living experiences; such as travel for pleasure instead of the mandatory and traditional check-ins with rural relations entrenched by our immediate fore-bears. Knight SA’s silky mixes initiate the nostalgia when many still had dreams of saving up for their first Golf GTI, and that stor...
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Ramaphosa To Trump: We Will Not Be Bullied

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President Cyril Ramaphosa In a rare show of defiance, an emboldened President Cyril Ramaphosa strongly rebuked his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump , a pathological liar of note, telling him in no uncertain terms that SA will not be bullied. In his state of the nation address (Sona) in Cape Town on Thursday night (February 6), Ramaphosa chastised the leader of the world's largest economy for interferring in our domestic affairs, saying: "We are witnessing the rise of nationalism and protectionism, the pursuit of narrow interests and the decline of common cause. This is the world that we, as a developing economy, must now navigate. “But we are not daunted. We will not be deterred. We are a resilient people. We will not be bullied. We will stand together as a united nation. We will speak with one voice in defence of our national interest, our sovereignty and our constitutional democracy.” Ramaphosa’s defiant stance against Trump follows tumultuous weeks for the country, marked by ...
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Location: Johannesburg, South Africa
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