Latest news with #R89
Time of India
07-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Rs89,000cr dues: Mahajan assures contractors meeting with CM Fadnavis
Kolhapur: State irrigation minister Girish Mahajan has assured the Maharashtra State Contractors Federation and the Association of Engineers that he will soon arrange a meeting with chief minister Devendra Fadnavis during the ongoing assembly session. The meeting's objective is to address and resolve the R89,000 crore in outstanding payments owed by state govt to the contractors. The assurance came after office-bearers from both associations met Mahajan in Solapur on Sunday. The outstanding dues stems from various development works undertaken by contractors across different state departments. According to the associations, the public works department alone accounts for Rs40,000 crore in outstanding payments. Other significant debtors include the rural roads department with Rs18,000 crore, the irrigation department with Rs13,000 crore, and the Jal Jeevan Mission with Rs12,000 crore. The urban development department owes Rs4,217 crore, the planning department Rs2,515 crore, and the rural development department Rs6,000 crore. In light of these substantial outstanding amounts, the contractors have threatened to pursue legal action to recover their dues. Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Invertir en Cervecería Nacional CFD podría proporcionarte un ingreso adicional Empieza a invertir hoy Registro Undo by Taboola by Taboola "We met him (Mahajan) and urged to resolve the issue immediately as the contractors are facing severe financial issues. The minister told us that he will speak to the CM and soon get a meeting arranged," Milind Bhosale, state president of the state engineers association, said.
The South African
12-06-2025
- Business
- The South African
Donald Trump unveils website for $5 million US residency 'golden visa'
President Donald Trump touted a new website for his planned $5 million (R89 million) US residency permit on Wednesday, saying the waiting list for the golden visa has opened on 'Thousands have been calling and asking how they can sign up to ride a beautiful road in gaining access to the Greatest Country and Market anywhere in the World,' Trump wrote in a social media post. Donald Trump unveiled the first such visa aboard Air Force One in April, holding a golden prototype that bore his face and promising the special permit would probably be available 'in less than two weeks.' The visas are not available yet, but the website announced on Wednesday allows interested parties to submit their name, desired visa and email address under a header that says 'The Trump Card is Coming.' Trump previously said the new visa, a high-price version of the traditional green card, would bring in job creators and could be used to reduce the US national deficit. The announcement comes as deportation raids are being ramped up across the country, prompting protests, and as Trump's administration faces ongoing lawsuits and accusations of rights violations over its anti-immigration blitz. Donald Trump has said the new card would be a route to highly prized US citizenship. He said in February that his administration hoped to sell 'maybe a million' of the cards and did not rule out that Russian oligarchs may be eligible. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1 Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news. By Garrin Lambley © Agence France-Presse
Eyewitness News
06-06-2025
- Business
- Eyewitness News
SIU freezes more than R20m worth of assets linked to irregular Transnet contracts
JOHANNESBURG - The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) has frozen more than R20 million worth of assets linked to irregular Transnet contracts. This included luxury vehicles and high-value properties. The preservation order by the SIU and Transnet is part of an ongoing investigation into three allegedly irregular contracts for property valuation services with the port and rail company. Transnet had referred various suspicious contracts involving Transnet property to the SIU for further investigation. The contracts, awarded in 2019, 2021 and 2022, have a combined value of R89 million. Working closely with Transnet, the SIU's investigation revealed serious flaws in the procurement processes, raising concerns about compliance with supply chain management regulations and the possibility of undue influence in the awarding of these contracts. The SIU and Transnet believe that Transnet may not have received full and fair value for the payments made under the disputed contracts. Restrained items include a Porsche 718 Boxster, a Porsche Macan S, a Mercedes C200, a VW Amarok, properties in Bryanston, Fourways, Broadacres and four office units in Vanderbijlpark. The order interdicts MM Real Estate (PTY) LTD, Humphrey Tshepo Moyo, Neo Shawn Matlala and any other party from selling, disposing, leasing, transferring, encumbering (including by granting rights of retention), transferring, donating, or dealing in any manner whatsoever to the frozen properties, pending the finalisation of civil proceedings.
The Citizen
30-05-2025
- Politics
- The Citizen
The honeymoon is over: ANC and ActionSA's marriage turns 'toxic'
Morero is accused of not consulting his coalition partners on the budget and on his state of the city address. Just a few months after ActionSA helped ANC regional chairperson Dada Morero become the mayor of Johannesburg, the party has described its relationship with Morero as 'toxic'. This comes after Morero allegedly ignored ActionSA's concerns over the 2025/2026 budget, despite ActionSA being considered a coalition partner in the governing of Johannesburg. Morero is accused of lobbying smaller parties to vote in favour of a controversial R89 billion budget that has been described as anti-poor and flawed. Speaking to The Citizen on Friday, Mashaba said the passing of the budget is a sign that Morero no longer needs support from ActionSA. 'He has shown us that he does not need us but we will not become voting cows to serve his agenda,' he said. Mashaba said he had complained to the ANC provincial task team about Morero's questionable leadership in Johannesburg. This includes the appointments of tainted individuals to powerful positions and unethical behaviour. 'He is failing the residents of Johannesburg; he does not appoint people on the basis of merit. For him to tell me that he appointed the MMC of finance because he wants to control her is shocking. 'I have made the ANC aware of these things and they are also concerned,' he said. Motion of no confidence Mashaba said ActionSA had not decided which way it would vote when Morero faces a motion of no confidence vote next month. 'We will take the next step as it comes. He does not need our vote, it is clear that he has his partners that will protect him,' he said. The DA and the African Democratic Christian Party (ACDP) have already indicated that they will vote in favour of the motion. Will ActionSA take the opposition benches? Meanwhile, Mashaba said even though ActionSA occupies the speaker position in the legislature, the party will not support questionable decisions by the mayor just to keep the position. 'We did not beg or ask anyone to give us the speaker position. If they decide that they do not want us, that decision is not ours. 'They are the ones who approached us to give us the position. If they gave us the position to soften us to become voting cattle, then they made a big mistake,' he said. Mashaba said ActionSA will continue to use its position in the legislature to hold Morero's administration accountable. 'We will hold them accountable officially as long as we run the legislature,' he said. Local government elections He said the party still hopes to boot the ANC out of power in the upcoming local government elections next year. 'What we need to work on is to ensure that residents of Johannesburg vote ActionSA into power and remove the ANC. 'Residents cannot keep empowering the ANC, we have demonstrated that where we govern, we always act in the best interests of our residents,' he said. Mashaba said it is unlikely that the ANC would remove ActionSA from the legislature, as negotiations for that position had taken place at the provincial level. ALSO READ: Joburg's new city manager? Botes is a bad choice, says DA Mashaba's soft spot for Joburg The Citizen sent questions to the ANC in Johannesburg and Morero spokesperson Chris Vondo about tensions with ActionSA. There had been no response at the time this article was published. Meanwhile, Ntsikelelo Breakfast a political analyst from Nelson Mandela University (NMU) told The Citizen that Mashaba had leaned towards a relationship with the ANC despite challenges along the way to avoid working with the DA. 'One could say ActionSA is stuck between a rock and a hard place. The reason that this party was started wa because of the discontent that Mashaba had with the DA. 'So instead of Mashaba gravitating to a party that made him have a broken heart I think he chose to work with the ANC which was a surprise because ActionSA has always said they will never work with the ANC because the ANC is corrupt,' he said. Breakfast said it is clear that Mashaba has a soft spot for Johannesburg because he had been mayor before and perhaps wanted to preserve his legacy. NOW READ: How Joburg plans to spend R89 billion
The Citizen
29-05-2025
- Business
- The Citizen
Joburg budget hanging by a thread: ANC fights to get their way as partners gun for them
All eyes will be on Thursday's budget debate and vote Johannesburg City Council meeting at the Connie Bapela House in Braamfontein. Picture: Neil McCartney / The Citizen Coalition partners in the City of Johannesburg have expressed outrage at the latest budget, putting it at risk of not being passed in council. Finance MMC Margaret Arnolds on Wednesday presented the City's R89 billion plan to boost service delivery and increase revenue collection. The presentation contained proposals for increase in tariffs for water and wastewater, electricity, and property rates, among other charges. The City also maintained a R200 surcharge that remains a thorny issue among coalition partners. ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba said one of the reasons his party supported mayor Dada Morero was that the ANC had agreed to scrap the burdensome surcharge. He claimed he was told it would not be in the latest budget, only to be surprised by its inclusion this week. 'This charge punishes low-income residents who rely on prepaid meters to avoid debt, with no published cost-of-supply to justify it. While the proposed increase to R270 was dropped, the core injustice persists,' he said. Will ActionSA block the budget? He claimed not to have been consulted on the budget and would make his feelings known when council votes on passing the fiscal framework on Thursday. 'We will never vote in favour of a budget that sustains unjust charges on the poor, enables financial mismanagement, or ignores basic service delivery failures. 'We stand with the people of Johannesburg, and we vote accordingly,' he said. How many votes does the ANC need to pass budget? There are 270 seats in council. The ANC would need 136 votes to pass the budget. Below is the breakdown of seats by party in the City. African National Congress (ANC): 91 seats 91 seats Democratic Alliance (DA): 71 seats 71 seats ActionSA: 44 seats 44 seats Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF): 29 seats 29 seats Patriotic Alliance (PA): 8 seats 8 seats Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP): 7 seats 7 seats Freedom Front Plus (VF PLUS): 4 seats 4 seats African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP): 3 seats 3 seats Al Jama-ah (ALJAMA): 3 seats 3 seats African Independent Congress (AIC): 2 seats 2 seats African Heart Congress (AHC): 1 seat 1 seat African People's Convention (APC): 1 seat 1 seat African Transformation Movement (ATM): 1 seat 1 seat Congress of the People (COPE): 1 seat 1 seat GOOD: 1 seat 1 seat Pan Africanist Congress (PAC): 1 seat 1 seat United Democratic Movement (UDM): 1 seat 1 seat United Independent Movement (UIM): 1 seat While ActionSA voted with the government of local unity (GLU) coalition to bring Morero to power, Mashaba said the party only votes with the ANC on an issue-by-issue basis. There were talks that one day ActionSA would be included in the governance structures of the city, but for now, they only occupy positions in the legislature. Morero running a puppet council? Mashaba said he had lost faith in Morero's leadership, and claimed he was running a puppet council. He claimed to have reported the mayor to the ANC's mother body for allegedly saying that he had appointed Arnolds to control her. 'I know Margaret, you could see she did not understand what she was reading. Dada told me he had appointed her because he could control her,' he said. The Citizen has reached out to Morero's office, the ANC in Johannesburg, and the City of Johannesburg for comment on this claim. Any update will be included once received. GLU partner slams budget The African People's Convention (APC) also disapproves of the budget. 'Only a mere R3 billion is allocated to the poor communities. This budget does not speak to the needs and expectations of the previously disadvantaged communities who continue to live in squalor conditions whilst the city prioritizes the affluent areas of the metropole. 'It does not effectively address the common crime in the CBD, nor does it address the continued shortage of water supply in Joburg,' said the party in a statement. It said it would adopt the budget with reservations and raise the issues it has within the council. Parties outside of GLU won't vote for budget either The second biggest party in the council, after the ANC, the DA was also expected to vote against the budget. They will be joined by African Democratic Christian Party (ACPD). ACDP councillor Norman Mkhonza told The Citizen the allocations in the budget were 'all over the place'. He also questioned the City's ambitions to put sewage pipes and electricity in informal settlements. 'So, are they saying is they are promoting illegality. Do they know who stays in these informal settlements and if those people are even legal in the country,' he said. ALSO READ: DA tables motion of no confidence in Johannesburg mayor and speaker No budget could spell disaster for the City Political analyst Ntsikelelo Breakfast told The Citizen that in a coalition all members should be consulted on matters. 'When there is power sharing, it means that there is no political party that has won elections. Therefore, there must be a consensus across the spectrum. 'If this does not happen, it means it is a serious omission that might cause a serious threat to the stability of the municipality,' he said. Breakfast warned that if the municipality takes time to adopt the budget, it could affect service delivery in the City. NOW READ: How Joburg plans to spend R89 billion
