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Top 10 stories of the day: 10 000 march against Bela Act | Rea Vaya suspends services | Missing skipper suspect escapes prison

In today’s news, 10 000 community members protested against the Basic Education Laws Amendment Act 32 of 2024 (Bela Act) at the Voortrekker Monument, Rea Vaya bus services have been suspended while tensions remain between it and taxi associations, and the man who was arrested in connection with the disappearance of a north coast skipper has escaped from prison while doing community service.

In entertainment, we look at how American and South African musicians are treated differently when they speak out about which political party they support.

In sport, Kaizer Chiefs have issued an apology for the behaviour of their supporters after their 4-0 Carling Knockout quarterfinal loss to Mamelodi Sundowns.

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News today: 6 November

Some showers and thundershowers are expected today while temperatures will range from cold at the cost to hot inland. – full weather forecast here.


Bela: ‘When they said there won’t be a march at Freedom Park, I said that doesn’t play on my f***ing TV’ – McKenzie

AfriForum members and more than 40 other organisations gathered at the Voortrekker Monument to march and protest against the Basic Education Laws Amendment Act 32 of 2024 (Bela Act).

The Voortrekker Monument on the outskirts of Pretoria. Pictures: Marizka Coetzer

Ten thousand demonstrators came together where they were joined by Minister of Agriculture John Steenhuisen, Minister of Sports Gayton McKenzie and Minister of Correctional Services Dr Pieter Groenewald to march to Freedom Park and hand over a memorandum of demands and objections against the bill.

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Rea Vaya bus services suspended until further notice, Kunene to mediate

Rea Vaya bus services will remain suspended until the company and taxi associations see eye-to-eye.

Rea Vaya buses parked at the Rea Vaya bus depot in Dobsonville. Pictures: Nigel Sibanda

The public bus operators have capitulated to taxi rivals who have been unhappy with the expansion of the service’s fleet.

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‘Marked man’? Suspect in missing Sodwana skipper case ‘on the run’ again

Tomas Frederik ‘Ferdie’ Visser, the man arrested in connection with the disappearance of Sodwana Bay skipper John “Matambu” Dercksen, has allegedly escaped from prison while carrying out community service in Mpumalanga.

Missing KwaZulu-Natal North Coast skipper John ‘Matambu’ Dercksen and his charter fishing ski-boat, “Magnum Too. Pictures: NSRI

The family of Dercksen, who received word of Visser’s reported escape last week, has appealed to members of the public to assist in the search and report any sightings of him.

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Four wanted taxi industry hitmen dead in shoot out with police

Four suspects wanted for taxi industry-related murders have been shot and fatally wounded in a high-speed vehicle shootout with police in KwaZulu-Natal.

The intense gun battle took place in Mooi River on Monday afternoon. Picture: iStock

The intense gun battle took place in Mooi River on Monday afternoon.

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Outa rubbishes Eskom’s 66% increase, calls it excessive

Civil rights organisation Outa has rubbished Eskom’s pricing application to energy regulator Nersa that would mean a 66% increase in the price of electricity over the next three years, saying it is excessive.

Picture: iStock

The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) made a submission to the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) opposing Eskom’s pricing application. South Africa cannot afford this, Estienne Ruthnam, senior project manager at Outa, says.

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‘No drought in Gauteng’, but province is experiencing water security challenges

Water and Sanitation Minister Pemmy Majodina says although there is no draught in Gauteng, the province is experiencing water security challenges.

Minister of Water and Sanitation Pemmy Majodina. Picture: GovernmentZA/X

The challenges include credit management issues, where a culture of non-payment within municipalities exists, which in turn, makes it difficult for municipalities to meet their financial obligations with water boards.

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US Election: How US celebs have more freedom to endorse whomever they politically choose than in SA

In South Africa, when a celebrity endorses a political party they tend to be ostracised for their political choice.

The US election is heating up. In this article the writer compares how celebrities in South Africa and the US receive mixed reactions to their political choices. Pictures: @MmusiMaimane (X), taylorswift (Instagram) and Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

A recent case in point is DJ Shimza and Bongo Maffin group member Stoan Seate who were both ridiculed for their endorsement of the ANC during South Africa’s general elections earlier this year.

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Award-winning filmmaker Tebogo Malope on giving back and to ‘not allow my ego to run away with me’

What tends to happen after one achieves the closest thing to a clean sweep at an awards ceremony, is the inflation of the ego and the management of the big head that comes with all the adoration.

Filmmaker Tebogo Malope will be sharing his industry experiences with young filmmakers at the Lessons from Bombing event this weekend. Picture: Supplied

But for filmmaker Tebogo Malope, who won a total of 14 awards at the recent South African Film and Television Awards (Saftas), giving back is seamless and a good way to avoid being drenched in the pool of narcissism.

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Springboks on tour in the UK: Three key areas in the spotlight

The Springboks take on Scotland, England and Wales over the next three weekends in Edinburgh, London and Cardiff respectively.

Bongi Mbonambi will hope for a clean lineout throwing performance in the UK this month. Picture: Dirk Kotze/Gallo Images

While the world champions go into the Tests on the back of five wins out of six matches in the Rugby Championship, there will be three key areas coach Rassie Erasmus will want to see an improvement in on the UK tour.

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Chiefs say sorry for ‘unacceptable’ fan behaviour

Kaizer Chiefs have issued an apology for the behaviour of their supporters, who invaded the pitch and threw missiles onto the field during their 4-0 Carling Knockout quarterfinal loss to Mamelodi Sundowns on Saturday.

Kaizer Chiefs fans express their dismay during Saturday’s 4-0 Carling Knockout loss to Mamelodi Sundowns. Picture: Backpagepix

“Kaizer Chiefs would like to sincerely apologise to all our stakeholders, sponsors, the Premier Soccer League (PSL), South African Football Association (SAFA), and our loyal supporters for the disappointing incidents witnessed on Saturday during the Carling Knockout Cup quarterfinal match against Mamelodi Sundowns,” read a statement on the Chiefs website.

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Yesterday’s news recap

READ HERE: 2 detained for Lifman murder | Govt’s R2m overtime pay | Rachel ‘overwhelmed by kindness’

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By Nicholas Zaal
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