Latest news with #R720
eNCA
5 days ago
- Business
- eNCA
Auditor General flags weak controls at National Lottery Commission
JOHANNESBURG - Someone has won the R124 million lottery jackpot. READ: Lucky winner to claim R124-million powerball jackpot The bad news for The National Lotteries Commission that oversees the distribution of lottery funds to worthy causes is that the Auditor General has urged it to tighten its controls. For the 2023-24 financial year it issued the Commission with a qualified audit, flagging poor financial oversight, non-compliance and R720 million in unspent grant funding. The National Lotteries Commission has been plagued by corruption for over a decade. A new board was launched in 2022 was appointed to clean up. The Chairperson of the Board of the National Lotteries Commission, Professor Barney Pityana discussed this with eNCA.
IOL News
01-08-2025
- Entertainment
- IOL News
Hirome Shigeaki bridges the gap: wins 'Die Brug' season 2 and shares the wealth
Hirome Shigeaki, an occupational therapist from Worcester, bagged R720 000 as the winner of "Die Brug" season 2. Image: Supplied In an emotionally charged finale of "Die Brug" season 2, Hirome Shigeaki emerged victorious and took home the R720k prize pot. This series centres on a group of contestants who join forces to construct a bridge. The finale saw Suidhuis grappling with the emotional weight of deciding who would walk across the bridge. In a nail-biting vote, Hirome triumphed with three votes in his favour. In a heart-warming twist, the 28-year-old occupational therapist from Worcester decided to share a large sum of his winnings with his Suidhuis teammates, giving away R65 000 each to Melissa and Hanri, R40 000 to Johan and R70 000 to Jaco. "At first, I thought I'd take it all. I'm young, single and financially, I could use a boost. But then something unexpected happened, I started seeing people's hearts. I realised money doesn't last, but values and relationships? They last. I knew I'd share even before I knew I'd win," shared Shigeaki. He added that when deciding how much to give his team, he kept it "simple and listened to my heart". "I knew every Suidhuis member deserved to share in the victory. It wasn't about who contributed more or less. I specifically wanted to honour Johan, not just for his leadership, but because he was the only Noordhuis player who didn't take the money when he could have. "To me, that was an act of character." Hirome Shigeaki's bridge of trust crowns him as "Die Brug" season 2 winner. Image: Supplied. Hirome's journey on the popular reality show wasn't a straight road to success. After facing early elimination in episode two at Noordhuis, he was offered a second chance when he joined Suidhuis. This was when things took a turn. "When you enter a competition like this, you never really know how far you'll go. The truth is, I should've gone home on day one. And yet, something in me knew: this isn't just a game of strength or strategy, it's a game of people. Relationships. Trust. "And that's where I, as a person and as an occupational therapist, excel. So yes, I knew I brought something unique to the table. I wasn't the strongest physically, but my people skills worked in my favour." Reflecting on his journey, Hirome opened up about the challenges he faced on the show. "I entered the game with no idea how to build a bridge. I struggled with the ropes. I think I tied more knots in my head than on the rafts. But the bigger challenge was internal: the voices in my head asking if I was good enough and whether I was contributing enough. "Some days, your biggest enemy isn't another player – it's your own thoughts."
The Citizen
22-05-2025
- Climate
- The Citizen
Tshwane mayor blames rain for municipality not fixing potholes
Mayor Nasiphi Moya said the municipality has no excuse for delays in filling potholes because it produces its own asphalt. Tshwane Executive Mayor Nasiphi Moya said rainy weather is the reason the municipality could not attend to its pothole crisis. She announced a comprehensive road resurfacing initiative targeting the city's notorious pothole problem. Speaking during the city's progress briefing at Tshwane House in Pretoria West on Thursday, Moya outlined efforts taking place in four regions – Soshanguve, Mabopane, Hammanskraal and Olievenhoutbosch. 'Every day our teams are on site dealing with the issue of potholes. And remember, as the city, we produce our own hot asphalt. So we don't have an excuse not to attend to the potholes,' Moya said. 'No excuses' for Tshwane's potholes Despite this, the mayor said the city was unable to fix potholes because of the bad weather. 'We always say to residents, the reason we couldn't catch up [to fixing potholes] was [because of] the rains. The rains have subsided, we can now go back to [repairing] the roads.' Moya said the municipality has no excuse for delays given its capacity to produce hot asphalt in-house. However, Moya claimed that despite the unfavourable weather, municipal teams have made progress in their infrastructure repair efforts since the beginning of the year. She said maintenance crews have repaired 3 698 potholes across the metropolitan area. According to the mayor, 5 711 streetlights have been fixed and 231 high-mast lights were repaired. Additionally, workers have addressed sanitation infrastructure by unblocking 4 144 sewer blockages. ALSO READ: Millions needed to fix Tshwane sinkholes Massive funding gap threatens long-term solutions The Centurion region is a particular area of concern, facing unique geological challenges that compound typical road maintenance issues. The Citizen previously reported that DA ward 65 councillor Gert Visser noted that Centurion experiences the highest concentration of sinkholes due to its location in a dolomitic area, with new formations occurring regularly. Visser explained that exceptional weather conditions have exacerbated the problem this year. The councillor criticised delays in repair work, stating that 'these potholes could have been repaired in a shorter time period, but that did not happen as hot asphalt and bitumen were not in supply due to operational and procurement issues, which are unacceptable'. Visser outlined the stark financial reality facing the city, revealing that major sinkholes in key locations remain unaddressed due to budget limitations. 'To rehabilitate all the sinkholes, in the City of Tshwane, being 60 to 70, will cost at least R720 million while the current budget is R14 million,' Visser explained. ALSO READ: Tshwane mayor under fire for downplaying pothole crisis
The Citizen
16-05-2025
- Climate
- The Citizen
Millions needed to fix Tshwane sinkholes
Dolomitic soil and record rainfall have left Centurion with recurring sinkholes, while city-wide potholes remain unrepaired due to asphalt shortages and lack of funds. It will cost the City of Tshwane millions of rands that it doesn't have to fix roads across the city riddled with potholes and sinkholes that form overnight and are often left months or years unrepaired, says a city councillor. DA ward 65 councillor Gert Visser said not only did Centurion have the most sinkholes, but new ones were forming every other month due to it being a dolomitic area. Centurion potholes Visser said since January Irene, within the Centurion region, had experienced the highest rainfall in 22 years. The rain resulted in more potholes. 'Residents' reports were escalated and recently roads were repaired in Rooihuiskraal, Louwlardia, Highveld and Irene. 'These potholes could have been repaired in a shorter time period, but that did not happen as hot asphalt and bitumen were not in supply due to operational and procurement issues, which are unacceptable,' he said. ALSO READ: WATCH: In lockdown with no water or electricity … thanks to a sinkhole At least R720 million needed Visser said the most prominent sinkholes in Alexandria Road, Irene and John Vorster Avenue, Highveld would not be rehabilitated soon due to budget constraints. 'To rehabilitate all the sinkholes, in the City of Tshwane, being 60 to 70, will cost at least R720 million while the current budget is R14 million,' he said. 'The solution is public-private partnerships in the interim while parliament considers policy and a new legislation,' he said. Repairs needed in Hammanskraal Meanwhile, Apies Rivier Noord Gemeenskap Forum chair Johan Loots has also written to the City of Tshwane seeking help with the conditions of the roads in the Hammanskraal area. Loots said among the problematic roads were Apies River Road, Coin Road, Tambotie Road and Juliet Street, and repairing them would help boost service delivery. NOW READ: Tshwane under pressure as residents complain about water outages, power and potholes
Eyewitness News
14-05-2025
- Health
- Eyewitness News
Lesufi apologises to cancer patients for delays in treatment at Gauteng hospitals
JOHANNESBURG - Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi has apologised to cancer patients for the delays in treatment at the province's public hospitals. Earlier this year, the Gauteng High Court ordered the provincial Department of Health to provide oncology radiation services to about 3,000 patients who have been on a waiting list for about three years. The Gauteng government has since been granted leave to appeal the judgment, which it says would jeopardise the standard of oncology care at its hospitals if implemented. At the Gauteng legislature sitting on Tuesday, Lesufi acknowledged this situation could have been handled better by the government. READ: Gauteng DOH welcomes court granting it leave to appeal judgment on provision of radiation services "I want to take this opportunity this opportunity to apologise to all cancer patients, it was not our wish to put them through these difficulties. Unfortunately, when you have court cases and a backlog, it is very, very difficult for the department to balance the two, but this is not an excuse. I have received a detailed report on how this backlog will be eliminated, and I remain convinced this backlog will be eliminated and once more, my heartfelt apologies to the cancer patients in our province." Democratic Alliance (DA) Gauteng spokesperson on health, Jack Bloom, said Lesufi's apology has unfortunately come too late for some of the cancer patients. "It's far too late for hundreds of cancer patients who have died because they didn't get radiation treatment within the required 90 days. So if they don't get it within this specific required period, they are going to suffer and die, and their lives could have been saved, and really, in my view, this is as bad as the Life Esidimeni disaster." On Monday, Gauteng Treasury revealed the provincial health department underspent its budget this financial year 2024/25 by more than R720 million, something Bloom says is unacceptable.
