Latest news with #WeekendWitness
The Citizen
17-05-2025
- Business
- The Citizen
RAF concerned over rising court cases amid backlog reduction efforts
The Road Accident Fund (RAF) said it is not pleased with the rising number of RAF-related matters appearing before the courts, even as efforts to reduce the backlog of claims continue, according to The Witness. In recent weeks, Weekend Witness observed over 60 RAF matters on the roll in a single day at the Pietermaritzburg High Court — significantly more than typically seen. During the 2024 Judicial Service Commission interviews for the position of Deputy Judge President of the KZN Division of the High Court, Judge Nkosinathi Chili said delays in RAF cases were often due to administrative issues within the fund itself. The RAF, however, has repeatedly said that the backlog stems from court processes, not internal shortcomings. At the time, Chili identified three key challenges facing the division: Delays in finalising RAF cases, delays in criminal appeal outcomes, and the need to upgrade outdated court equipment. He said he had taken it upon himself to personally handle RAF matters to better understand the cause of the delays. Responding to Weekend Witness, RAF head of corporate communications McIntosh Polela said: 'The RAF can never be happy with the increase of matters in court because this means the RAF is being sued. It is regrettable that lawyers representing claimants opt for issuing summons rather than seriously considering the offers that we make.' He said that RAF rarely initiates legal action. 'If you carefully consider the 60 matters on the roll that day, you will hardly find one where the RAF is the initiating party,' he said. Despite the mounting pressure on the courts, Polela said the fund remains committed to meeting its annual performance plan target of settling claims within 120 days of submission — provided that all required documents are supplied by claimants. 'The RAF remains committed to putting the claimant first and encourages those with long-outstanding claims to contact the RAF contact centre on 087 820 1 111 to check on the progress of their cases.' While the high number of RAF cases suggests that the courts are working through the backlog more efficiently, the fund maintained that it would prefer out-of-court settlements to reduce litigation costs and speed up compensation. Breaking news at your fingertips… Follow Caxton Network News on Facebook and join our WhatsApp channel. Nuus wat saakmaak. Volg Caxton Netwerk-nuus op Facebook en sluit aan by ons WhatsApp-kanaal. Read original story on At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
The Citizen
03-05-2025
- Climate
- The Citizen
Mudslide displaces 200 Umlazi residents
At least 200 people, including 60 children, who were displaced after the Umlazi mudslides this week have been relocated to a facility on Dr Pixley KaSeme Street in Durban. Mudslides, caused by heavy rain in Durban this week, destroyed 56 homes in Umlazi's H Section forcing the immediate evacuation of the families. Speaking to Weekend Witness, one of the victims, Amokuhle Ngcobo, said that they were relocated to a building on West Street on Thursday. She said their problems started after the heavy rains before Easter. 'After the rain, houses started to crack, and the soil started to shift. As we observed this, houses started to fall one by one. 'It was horrific because we have children. In my home alone, I stayed with my mom, two brothers and two sisters, and we all have children — 10 altogether. 'We feared for the worst, and we started contacting ward committees, and the councillors got involved. 'People in leadership positions were quick to respond to our plight, and an assessment was done, and it was concluded that we needed to move away from the place, as the structural integrity of the remaining houses was compromised,' said Ngcobo. She said people were moved in batches to their respective accommodation. On Friday, the evacuation process continued. In a joint statement, the KZN Transport and Human Settlements departments, and eThekwini Municipality, said evacuation efforts for the affected residents continued until 2am on Friday. Transport and Human Settlements MEC Siboniso Duma said he received an evacuation report at 3am and confirmed that the evacuation process would resume at 9am on Friday. He said an additional 144 residents, including children, were yesterday accommodated at the Lagoon Centre in Amanzimtoti. He said they inspected the self-catering accommodation on Thursday afternoon and were satisfied with its condition. 'This facility will help them recover from the traumatic experience of living in collapsing houses. 'The team is working with the ward committee to finalise the evacuation of the remaining 72 people, some of whom are at work and others are living with relatives elsewhere. 'We continue with the verification process to ensure that nobody is left behind,' he said. Regarding the displaced children, Duma said they were working with the Department of Education to ensure that scholar transport is provided to the pupils. The cracked and collapsed houses will be demolished and electrical cables will be removed. During a visit to the area on Thursday, Human Settlements Minister Thembi Simelane ordered the immediate evacuation of families whose homes had collapsed or were structurally unsafe. 'Within two weeks, the National Home Builders Registration Council (NHBRC), an agency of Human Settlements, is expected to present a report on the structural integrity of the damaged houses, along with a geotechnical assessment to guide necessary interventions. 'Based on what I have seen … relocation of these households would be the best solution,' she said. On Friday, the partners issued a notice stating that free meals will be provided for 14 days in the morning and evening from this weekend. Thereafter, food parcels would be made available for people to start cooking for themselves. Meanwhile, Eskom reported that heavy rain and severe lightning storms experienced in various parts of the province resulted in network faults and interruption to electricity supply on Thursday evening. Eskom spokesperson Joyce Zingoni said restoration efforts were under way as the company's technical teams worked through the night to restore supply to most customers. Breaking news at your fingertips… Follow Caxton Network News on Facebook and join our WhatsApp channel. Nuus wat saakmaak. Volg Caxton Netwerk-nuus op Facebook en sluit aan by ons WhatsApp-kanaal. Read original story on At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
