Latest news with #Khoikhoi
IOL News
28-05-2025
- Business
- IOL News
Municipal union wins case forcing !Kheis municipality to cough up salaries
The High Court in Kimberly has mandated the !Kheis municipality to pay overdue salaries following a legal challenge by the South African Municipal Workers Union Image: Independent Newspapers The municipality of !Kheis in the Northern Cape has been forced by the High Court in Kimberly to pay salaries after the South African Municipal Workers Union (SAMWU) took it, that province's Premier, and the National Department of Co-Operative Governance and Traditional Affairs to court. The ruling, handed down recently, ordered the municipality to 'immediately make payment of the salaries of the members of the applicant for the months of February 2025 and March 2025 and to continue making payment of the salaries of the members of the applicant as it falls due'. In the decision, the Judge stated that 'this unfortunate saga' involved a 'municipality that is, like so many others in our country, in financial distress'. !Kheis, a Khoikhoi name meaning 'a place where you live', is in Groblershoop in the Northern Cape Province and is home to just under 22 000 people as of the 2022 census. That province, the smallest province by population size with just 2.2% of all people in South Africa living there, has been under the Auditor-General's (A-G's) whip. The court bid, which was opposed by the MEC in the Northern Cape, stated that, in SAMWU's notice of filing it alleged that 'the Municipality was in serious and persistent material breach of its obligations to provide basic services and to meet its financial commitments as a result of a crisis in its financial affairs'. It also said that !Kheis was suffering a 'a crisis in its financial affairs'. SAMWU also wanted the Municipality placed under the government equivalent of business rescue, requesting that the Department 'implement a recovery plan aimed at securing the ability of the Municipality to meet its obligations to provide basic services'. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ The A-G's the latest audit report on the Northern Cape with regards to the Public Finance Management Act found that there had been an improvement in audit outcomes, although it had made 'No progress' towards 'improving [the] reliability and usefulness of [its] annual performance report'. There was also 'no improvement in the quality of performance reports submitted for audit,' while there were also 'increased levels of unauthorised, irregular as well as fruitless and wasteful expenditure'. The report does not specifically mention the !Kheis municipality. Following the publication of the A-G's report, the Premier of the Northern Cape, Dr Zamani Saul, welcomed the outcomes, stating that the 'audit results show a significant improvement in the province's audit opinions for various Government Departments and entities for the audit cycle'. He noted that the eight clean audits were 'the highest number recorded so far'. !Kheis was, in 2023, named and shamed by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana for failing to pay salaries for months. Last year, the A-G's office indicated that, based on its latest audit outcomes as of March, the Municipality had received disclaimed audits for the past five years – a concerning position. IOL
IOL News
08-05-2025
- General
- IOL News
100 years of Afrikaans: A language of diversity and complexity
The centenary of Afrikaans: Reflecting on Its complex history and diverse Identity. Image: Facebook Today marks a significant milestone in South Africa's linguistic history—100 years since Afrikaans was officially recognised as a state language. While many celebrate this centenary, it also prompts a deeper reflection on the complex history and diverse identity of Afrikaans in contemporary South Africa. A Heritage of Diversity and Complexity On Thursday, author and heritage advocate Patrick Tariq Mallet emphasised during the SABC segment that Afrikaans is much more than a language rooted in a specific community. 'This language, which we celebrate today, is spoken by over 7 million people in South Africa,' he explained. 'More than 60% of these speakers are not white, and even among white Afrikaans speakers, only about 30-40% identify with a broader Afrikaner identity. It's crucial to recognise that Afrikaans belongs to a diverse and multifaceted population.' Mallet also highlighted the historical depth of Afrikaans, tracing its origins back nearly 400 years. 'The development of Afrikaans began in the early 17th century, around 1616-1652, when ships from five European countries arrived at the Cape, interacting with the indigenous Khoikhoi people. 'Early figures like Croto and Alama are some of the first linguists to shape the language. The language emerged as a mixture of Dutch, Portuguese, Malay, and other European influences—a true 'melting pot' of cultures.' He pointed out that the first written Afrikaans appeared in 1793 in Arabic script, and that the language was further codified with the translation of the Bible into Afrikaans between 1875 and 1925. 'This was a period of significant growth and standardisation, laying the foundation for what Afrikaans is today. 'But I'm concerned that celebrating the centenary of Afrikaans's official recognition in 1925—when South Africa was still a segregated, white-only state—does not reflect the full, inclusive language history.' Mallet wanted the celebration to be more inclusive and representative of the diverse communities that speak Afrikaans today. 'Afrikaans belongs to over 7 million South Africans, many of whom are from different racial and cultural backgrounds. It's a language that can be a bridge, not a division symbol.' Academic Perspectives on the Language's Evolution Hennie Van Coller, Emeritus Professor of Afrikaans at the University of the Free State, echoed the importance of recognising Afrikaans's evolution. 'Official recognition of any language is vital—it affirms its cultural significance. But in South Africa's history, language has often been intertwined with identity politics and power struggles.' Van Coller pointed out that recent academic developments have expanded the understanding of Afrikaans' origins. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ 'There has been a significant shift in how we view the history of language, especially in university curricula. We now teach various dialects and varieties of Afrikaans, including the poetic, colloquial, and even indigenous influences. 'The South African Academy of Arts and Sciences now incorporates words from different Afrikaans varieties, reflecting the language's rich diversity.' However, he also acknowledged past injustices. 'In 1925, Afrikaans was officially separated from other indigenous languages, and many African languages were marginalised or suppressed. 'This was a travesty, rooted in colonial and nationalist policies. Today, with all of South Africa's languages being officially recognised, we've made significant progress—though there remains much work to ensure inclusivity and historical justice.' A Call for Inclusive Heritage and Future Dialogue
