Daily news update: Ramaphosa wants historians, Zulu king ill on Shaka commemoration and Manuel loses Concourt case

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Ramaphosa on Heritage Day: We must become our own historians 

This year’s theme of Heritage Day is “The year of Charlotte Maxeke: Celebrating South Africa’s Intangible Cultural Heritage” and President Cyril Ramaphosa delivered a keynote address celebrating the country’s identity. 

The president started his address by saying Heritage Day celebrates who South Africans are and what makes us what we are. 

Ramaphosa said every year on this day we pay tribute to those who keep our heritage alive.

Zulu king ‘too ill’ to deliver first Heritage Day speech 

The Zulu royal family has confirmed the recently named new Zulu king, Misuzulu ka-Zwelithini, was too stricken with flu to deliver his maiden Heritage Day speech in KwaDukuza on Friday.

The date is of special significance to the Zulu nation, as it was previously known as Shaka Day in commemoration of the father of the Zulu nation, King Shaka kaSenzangakhona, who died on 24 September 1828, according to some accounts.

The speech was read by Prince Thulani Zulu, and it touched on several matters, including that the Amakhosi should be wary of a “third force” seeking to divide the nation.

Concourt confirms Manuel can’t get R500K from EFF for defamation

The Constitutional Court has upheld a decision from December last yearby the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) which overturned the R500,000 defamation award former finance minister Trevor Manuel secured against the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) in 2019.

TimesLive has reported that Manuel wanted the award reinstated even though he intended to donate it to charity.

The SCA refused the EFF leave to appeal the North Gauteng High Court’s May 2019 findings that a statement in which it had effectively accused Manuel of nepotism and corruption, had been defamatory and unlawful – as well as an interdict that had at the time been issued against the party.

Defence expert ‘sceptical’ of Malema’s new SANDF ‘toiletries’ claims

Despite threats from the SA National Defence Force that attempted to put Economic Freedom Fighters leader Julius Malema in his place on military matters a month ago, the self-styled Commander-in-Chief has continued with tweets that try to suggest that there are problems in South Africa’s military.

The latest was a tweet on Thursday sharing a message Malema supposedly received from a soldier serving in Mozambique who was complaining about not getting a “daily allowance” and allowances for water and toiletries.

Malema was combative about it, saying: “Our soldiers are suffering in Mozambique and some fool here at home, through Zoom interview from the comfort of their home with ugly curtains is going to say it is fake news. Please look after our own @SANDF_ZA @CyrilRamaphosa!”

However, this didn’t deter Director at African Defence Review Darren Olivier from saying he found the claim dubious.

Carl Niehaus calls Mantashe a ‘fat cat minister’ in ‘arrogant and entitled’ ANC

On Friday afternoon, former ANC employee Carl Niehaus, the spokesperson of the now defunct Umkhonto weSizwe Military Veterans’ Association (MKMVA), made known his thoughts about the ANC’s latest letter to its staff apologising for not paying their salaries for a third month in a row.

Niehaus took aim at ANC general manager Febé Potgieter for how she had phrased the letter this week, accusing her of cutting and pasting the same phrases that were contained in previous such letters, such as that “the hardships caused are regretted”. He described this as a cold and detached comment, far removed from the hardships families were now facing due to not being paid.

He was equally dismissive of the ANC blaming Covid-19-induced economic difficulties for its financial problems.