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TimesLIVE
4 days ago
- Business
- TimesLIVE
Ithala court battle rages on
Three judges in KwaZulu-Natal on Friday heard arguments which could determine the fate of Ithala SOC and about R2.6bn it holds through 'deposits' it took when it allegedly unlawfully operated as a bank. Ithala, a financial agency, held an exemption from the SA Reserve Bank prudential authority (PA) which entitled it to take deposits, many of which were South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) pensions. The exemption expired in December 2023. The PA has alleged the financial institution continued taking deposits up until January 2025. The PA appointed a repayment administrator (RA), Johan Kruger, to take control of Ithala and secure the deposits for repayment and redistribution. What followed was a flurry of litigation over his powers, including an application by the KwaZulu-Natal government seeking to review and set aside Kruger's appointment on the basis it was unlawful and an application by Kruger for the liquidation of the provincial government-owned entity which has been in existence for 40 years. At the heart of the dispute, which came before the full bench, sitting in the Durban high court on Friday, is an order granted in November last year by Pietermaritzburg high court judge Muzi Ncube, who ruled effectively Kruger had overstepped his powers by freezing all of Ithala's bank accounts, held at Absa Bank, not only those containing the deposits. He ordered Absa Bank to immediately unfreeze the accounts. In May this year, Ncube granted the PA and Kruger leave to appeal this ruling to the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA). This would ordinarily have the effect of suspending the ruling. However, Ncube, at Ithala's behest, granted an order in terms of the Superior Courts Act that his ruling remain in force, notwithstanding the pending appeal. It is this order the PA and Kruger are seeking to set aside. Ithala is opposing the application, arguing if granted it will be the end of the agency. 'Ithala is not some pyramid scheme that will disappear with depositors' money, it is a government-backed business. 'They are asking the court to condone and enable their continued unlawful self help,' it argued in papers. Ncube ruled Kruger could not involve himself in the normal operations of Ithala, did not have operational and management control over the day-to-day operations and affirmed the board continued to hold management powers. He said pending the final outcome of the liquidation application, Ithala was entitled to continue conducting its non-deposit taking business, pay salaries and related expenses, rent for properties it was leasing and other bills. The PA and Kruger believe the order will be overturned by the SCA because Kruger was acting in terms of the Banks Act. In a written argument, the PA said Ncube, when granting the enforcement order, had failed to consider the 'irreparable harm that would be suffered by depositors, creditors and the public interest' and the probability of a 'run' on deposits. Such an order could only be granted in exceptional circumstances, they argued. 'The court failed to appreciate it was common cause that Ithala had co-mingled its operational bank accounts relating to employees' payroll, pensions, medical aid, disability insurance and the UIF and other operational expenses, and those accounts that were used for taking deposits. 'The court had also impermissibly relied on a non-existent guarantee issued by the minister of finance and contended it would insulate depositors from a run on deposits. 'The purported guarantee was unlawful as it was not issued in terms of the Public Finance Management Act.' Any harm to Ithala was due to its own unlawful conduct, the PA said. Kruger said not only was he entitled to take control of the funds to prevent their dissipation, he was required to by law. He said in spite of the lapse of the exemption notice, Ithala had repeatedly refused to give an undertaking that it would immediately cease taking deposits and he had been forced to approach the court to enforce this. 'It is patently clear, even on Ithala's own version, that until January 16 2025, it continued to receive deposits unlawfully and paid lip service to the demands made by the PA or the RA. 'It is also clear the reason for this is it would in all probability lead to the demise of Ithala. If they stopped their unlawful conduct, it would be the end of their banking services and the entity itself.' Kruger, in his written argument, said the PA had directed and demanded Ithala to repay more than R2.4bn within 14 business days. 'The response was the PA and RA were aware it is practically impossible for Ithala to repay the money because Ithala doesn't hold enough cash to pay more than R2.4bn. 'It argued no other bank holds liquid cash equivalents to repay its depositors within 14 days. 'The comparison to other banks is without merit. Ithala is not a bank and has not been authorised to conduct the business of a bank. It was directed in December 2023 to stop taking deposits. 'It is common cause two directives to repay have been issued by the PA, and Ithala has not repaid the deposits and is not in a position to do so. 'This led to the liquidation application. On the common cause facts, the liquidation is a foregone conclusion. It is commercially insolvent on its own version.' Ithala, in its written argument, said the PA and RA seemed to believe they could act contrary to the constitution, employment and other laws. 'They also believe they can unilaterally decide to halt the operations of a state-owned company and cancel all its contracts with its employees and service providers without a court order when there is pending litigation over the extent of their powers.' Ithala said the liquidation application had been brought as a matter of urgency with only one day's notice in January 2025. 'More than five months later, it has not been set down and is unlikely to be heard this year. So much for urgency. 'It is designed to destroy Ithala and bears no relation to the protection of depositors. 'They also want the court to disbelieve the minister of finance when he states publicity and repeatedly he will guarantee all deposits. They are driven by their desire to see Ithala fail.' Ithala said if it was forced to close its doors, its customers, who include poor Sassa grant recipients, will not be able to access their grants. The KwaZulu-Natal government, which is the sole shareholder of the Ithala Development Finance Corporation, has also entered the fray in support of Ithala. In its written argument it said Ncube had correctly found 'exceptional facts' to enforce his order because Ithala had been 'placed in limbo through the conduct of Kruger'.
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First Post
17-07-2025
- Entertainment
- First Post
Relooted: The video game challenging colonial theft by letting players reclaim African artifacts
The game developed by South African studio Nyamakop, revealed at the Summer Game Fest in Los Angeles in June, is set in an imaginary future in which one plays as members of a pan-African crew tasked with reclaiming 70 stolen artefacts and returning them to their rightful homelands. read more Western museums boast of a wide variety of artefacts from across the world, though the manner in which they were sourced – especially from countries that European colonian powers had ruled over for centuries – remains a controversial to this day. And while these museums, including and especially the British Museum in London, may or may not agree to return the artefacts to the countries they were 'transported' from back in the day, a newly-launched game aims to fix historical wrongs by allowing players to 'steal' these artefacts from said museums. Albeit in the digital world. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD #FirstpostAfrica: A new South African video game titled Relooted is turning heads by letting players reclaim stolen African artefacts from Western museums. @alysonle tells you more. — Firstpost (@firstpost) June 30, 2025 Relooted, developed by South Africa game studio Nyamakop, was revealed at the Summer Game Fest in Los Angeles in June. It is a stealth-driven game set in an imaginary future in which one plays as members of a pan-African crew tasked with reclaiming 70 stolen artefacts – all of which exist in real life – and returning them to their rightful homelands. From Kenya's Ngadji drum to Zambia's 'Broken Hill Man' Artefacts such as the sacred Ngadji drum from Kenya's Pokomo community, which was confiscated by Britain in 1902 and is currently housed at the British Museum. 'Its removal destabilised the community,' producer Sithe Ncube, one of a team of 30 working on the game, told AFP, while adding that players 'can see where it's from… and read about the history.' 'Sometimes the stories behind these (artefacts) are actually very upsetting. It makes you see how much colonialism has affected… and shaped the world,' she added. The game also features the 'Broken Hill Man' – a skull said to be about 300,000 years old originating from Ncube's native country Zambia that is currently held at London's Natural History Museum. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'Africans, to actually see these things that are part of their own culture, have to get a visa, pay for flights and go to a European country. My whole life, I've never seen 'Broken Hill Man',' Ncube added. A French government report has estimated that up to 90 per cent of sub-Saharan African cultural heritage is in possession of Western nations. Ben Myres, creative director of the Johannesburg-based studio, goes on to add that the idea behind the bold title came from a family visit to the British Museum. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'So, actually, me and my parents were visiting London about seven years ago, and I went to some game dev bar and my parents went to the British Museum, and then we came home in the evening and hung out, and my mom was filled with rage because in the British Museum, they have the entire front of a temple from the south of Turkey that they managed to move to the British Museum. And she was just aghast at the scale of that sort of looting,' Myres told Shacknews. 'And then she literally said, 'You should make a game.' And I was like, 'Oh, I don't know about the mechanics. What are the mechanics going to be about lifting a building out of a museum? That's usually a little tricky.' So then I basically, since that point, have been trying to figure out how to make a heist game,' he added. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD While Nyamakop hasn't set an official release date for Relooted, one can add it to their wishlist on Steam, Xbox Series X|S and the Epic Games Store.
The Star
27-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Star
Game 'reloots' African artefacts from Western museums
Ncube plays a game called 'Relooted' at their office space in Rosebank near Johannesburg. Relooted is set in an imaginary future but tackles a topical issue: calls for Western institutions to return to Africa the spoils of colonisation. — AFP JOHANNESBURG: Under the cover of darkness, Nomali jumped over a wall, burst into a museum and snatched a human skull from a pedestal before escaping through a window to the wail of an alarm. The daring heist was not the work of a real-life criminal. Nomali is the protagonist of a new action-packed video game where players "reclaim" artefacts taken from African countries to be displayed in the West. Developed by Johannesburg studio Nyamakop, Relooted is set in an imaginary future but tackles a topical issue: calls for Western institutions to return to Africa the spoils of colonisation. Players are tasked with taking back 70 artefacts – all of which exist in real life – with a "team of African citizens", said producer Sithe Ncube, one of a team of 30 working on the game. The items include the "Benin Bronzes" sculptures removed from the former kingdom of Benin more than 120 years ago, and which The Netherlands officially returned to Nigeria on June 21. Another is the sacred Ngadji drum from Kenya's Pokomo community, which was confiscated by British colonial authorities in 1902. "Its removal destabilised the community," Ncube said as an animated drawing of the wooden instrument flashed on her computer. Players "can see where it's from... and read about the history," she said, giving a demo. 'Is it stealing?' On the screen a crew of characters in Afrofuturist costumes debated a plan to recover the remains of Tanzanian chiefs hanged by German colonial forces. One asked: "Is it stealing to take back what was stolen?" "We are going to do whatever it takes to take back Africa's belongings, and we are going to do it together," said the character Nomali. "Sometimes the stories behind these (artefacts) are actually very upsetting," Ncube told AFP. "It makes you see how much colonialism has affected... and shaped the world." Growing up in Zambia, she knew of her country's iconic "Broken Hill Man", a skull about 300,000 years old held in London's Natural History Museum and which is also featured in Relooted . But it was only when working on the game that Ncube realised how many African cultural artefacts were held abroad, she said. In France alone, museums stored about 90,000 objects from sub-Saharan Africa, according to a 2018 report commissioned by the government. "Africans, to actually see these things that are part of their own culture, have to get a visa, pay for flights and go to a European country," Ncube said. "My whole life, I've never seen 'Broken Hill Man'." Skewed identity The looting of artefacts over centuries robbed communities of their "archives" and "knowledge systems", said Samba Yonga, co-founder of the digital Museum of Women's History in Zambia. "Our history predates colonisation by millennia," she told AFP, but many people "don't even realise that we have a skewed sense of self and identity." Reclaiming these objects would enable "a shift in how the next generation views their culture and identity," she said. The same hope underpinned Relooted , which was unveiled this month at Los Angeles's Summer Game Fest where it attracted a lot of interest from the diaspora and other Africans, Ncube said. "I hope that the game encourages people from other African countries to want to tell their own stories and bring these things to light," she said. One character felt personal for the producer: Professor Grace, Nomali's grandmother and described as "the brains behind the mission". "I started seeing my own grandmother in her," Ncube said with emotion. "She represents a connection between our generations, fighting for the same thing we've always been fighting for." – AFP
The Citizen
27-06-2025
- The Citizen
Zimbabwean man sentenced to 50 years for violent Rosettenville robbery
Thapelo Ncube (26), a Zimbabwean national, was sentenced to lengthy imprisonment for robbery with aggravating circumstances, kidnapping, and the illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition. Magistrate Habib sentenced him in Booysens Magistrate's Court on June 11. He was sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment for Count 1, 10 years for Count 2, 15 years for Count 3, and five years for Count 4. The sentence for Count 2 will run concurrently with Count 1, while the sentence for Count 4 will run concurrently with Count 3. Ncube was arrested alongside two co-accused, who were later found not guilty by the court. On October 24, 2023, in Rosettenville, the accused, acting in furtherance of a common purpose, unlawfully assaulted a victim and, through force and violence, robbed her of four cellphones, jewellery, an HP laptop, two watches, and cash. Aggravating circumstances included the wielding of firearms during the commission of the offence. The magistrate also ruled that Ncube is unfit to possess a firearm and ordered that he be deported upon completion of his sentence. At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
New Straits Times
27-06-2025
- Entertainment
- New Straits Times
Game 'reloots' African artefacts from Western museums
JOHANNESBURG: Under the cover of darkness, Nomali jumped over a wall, burst into a museum and snatched a human skull from a pedestal before escaping through a window to the wail of an alarm. The daring heist was not the work of a real-life criminal. Nomali is the protagonist of a new action-packed video game where players "reclaim" artefacts taken from African countries to be displayed in the West. Developed by Johannesburg studio Nyamakop, "Relooted" is set in an imaginary future but tackles a topical issue: calls for Western institutions to return to Africa the spoils of colonisation. Players are tasked with taking back 70 artefacts – all of which exist in real life – with a "team of African citizens", said producer Sithe Ncube, one of a team of 30 working on the game. The items include the "Benin Bronzes" sculptures removed from the former kingdom of Benin more than 120 years ago, and which The Netherlands officially returned to Nigeria on June 21. Another is the sacred Ngadji drum from Kenya's Pokomo community, which was confiscated by British colonial authorities in 1902. "Its removal destabilised the community," Ncube said as an animated drawing of the wooden instrument flashed on her computer. Players "can see where it's from... and read about the history," she said, giving a demo. On the screen a crew of characters in Afrofuturist costumes debated a plan to recover the remains of Tanzanian chiefs hanged by German colonial forces. One asked: "Is it stealing to take back what was stolen?" "We are going to do whatever it takes to take back Africa's belongings, and we are going to do it together," said the character Nomali. "Sometimes the stories behind these (artefacts) are actually very upsetting," Ncube told AFP. "It makes you see how much colonialism has affected... and shaped the world." Growing up in Zambia, she knew of her country's iconic "Broken Hill Man", a skull about 300,000 years old held in London's Natural History Museum and which is also featured in "Relooted." But it was only when working on the game that Ncube realised how many African cultural artefacts were held abroad, she said. In France alone, museums stored about 90,000 objects from sub-Saharan Africa, according to a 2018 report commissioned by the government. "Africans, to actually see these things that are part of their own culture, have to get a visa, pay for flights and go to a European country," Ncube said. "My whole life, I've never seen 'Broken Hill Man'." The looting of artefacts over centuries robbed communities of their "archives" and "knowledge systems", said Samba Yonga, co-founder of the digital Museum of Women's History in Zambia. "Our history predates colonisation by millennia," she told AFP, but many people "don't even realise that we have a skewed sense of self and identity." Reclaiming these objects would enable "a shift in how the next generation views their culture and identity," she said. The same hope underpinned "Relooted", which was unveiled this month at Los Angeles' Summer Game Fest where it attracted a lot of interest from the diaspora and other Africans, Ncube said. "I hope that the game encourages people from other African countries to want to tell their own stories and bring these things to light," she said. One character felt personal for the producer: Professor Grace, Nomali's grandmother and described as "the brains behind the mission." "I started seeing my own grandmother in her," Ncube said with emotion. "She represents a connection between our generations, fighting for the same thing we've always been fighting for." - AFP
