Monday, July 27 2020
THE BIG ISSUES
LEADING THE AGENDA
Ideas FREE
The ANC is a grotesque failure. When will SA say ‘enough’?
There is something this administration knows about its citizens: they are either gullible or just plain dumb
Justice Malala
Columnist
4 min read
News FREE
It’s a giant fail for E Cape lockdown school feeding plan
Only 38,594 pupils arrived to collect food, while the feeding scheme is supposed to feed almost 1.6 million
Prega Govender
Journalist
3 min read
News FREE
Kids suffer months of ‘agony’ after school meals cut off
We speak to some of the impoverished families whose lifeline was severed when the feeding scheme stopped
Graeme Hosken
Senior reporter
4 min read
SMART NEWS
IN ONE TAKE
Ideas FREE
Keep your payments on track to keep track of your car
Some tracking companies will still recover a client’s car when they are in arrears, but the cost can be prohibitive
Wendy Knowler
Consumer journalist
4 min read
News FREE
Sheep lobbyists are pulling the wool over people’s eyes, say traders
NSPCA has gone to court to stop the export of 56,000 sheep, but exporters say their conditions are humane
Paul Ash
Senior reporter
4 min read
Want a Covid-safe taxi? Look out for the green stripe
A young inventor has implemented a clever and cost-effective way to keep taxi windows open and the viral load low
Alex Patrick
Reporter
5 min read
Just say the ward: Simple idea makes huge difference for doctors, families
Cape hospital devises communication system to ease the burden on health professionals and heartbreak for families
Claire Keeton
Senior features writer
4 min read
IDEAS
FEEDING YOUR MIND
EDITORIAL | School closures reveal the real failures of SA society
The water and toilet situation throws up the bigger human rights infringement in the wake of apartheid
Sunday Times Daily
Editorial
2 min read
Business FREE
There’s relief in store for business – but will banks play their part?
Banks have been given discretion to apply liberal credit criteria, but the scheme is not intended to be profitable
By Stuart Theobald
5 min read
Ideas FREE
They wrote it this week: Nobody loves a fairy when she’s farty
Extracts from diaries and letters written between July 27 and August 2
Robin Crouch
Journalist
8 min read
LIFE
ALL THE OTHER THINGS THAT MATTER
BOOK EXTRACT | Island of dreams: in search of a brand-new SA myth
The Story of Us So Far is about as uplifting as roadkill. Our new one has to transcend mediocrity and waste
Tom Eaton
Columnist
38 min read
‘We are not coping’: Women bear the brunt of SA tourism cataclysm
Of the nearly 1.2 million jobs on the line if tourism doesn’t reopen by December, 70% are women’s
Paul Ash
Senior reporter
3 min read
Blast from the past: Olympic first for SA as Esther nails her brand
Today in SA sports history: July 27
David Isaacson
Sports reporter
3 min read
SNAPSHOT
we'll huff and we'll puff Smokers and bikers gather in Cape Town on Saturday to protest against the cigarette ban, farm killings, lockdown and curfew regulations.
Image: Esa Alexander
Image: Esa Alexander
6 things you need to know
All 69 prisoners rearrested after daring escape
The remaining three of the 69 inmates who escaped from the Malmesbury prison on Friday have now been rearrested, the correctional services department said on Sunday. The escape took place just after noon on Friday during exercise time, when the centre had 451 inmates and 20 officials on duty. The escapees overpowered officials, took the keys and locked three of them in a cell before escaping through the main entrance and over the roof. Nine officials sustained minor injuries. Sixty-six had been rearrested by noon on Saturday. Justice and correctional services minister Ronald Lamola said some of the problematic inmates had been moved to maximum facilities in the region.
Zim’s Covid toll more than doubles in a week
It took Zimbabwe five months to reach 1,000 Covid-19 cases but within a week the country is approaching 3,000. As of Saturday there were 2,434 confirmed cases, including 518 recoveries and 34 deaths. For the past two weeks Zimbabwe has been registering an average of 717 cases per week. Healthcare workers fear the worst. On Saturday, the health and childcare ministry recorded 138 cases, of which 10 were from SA returnees and 128 were local transmissions. Last week there were 72 cases of returnees from SA in one day. The sudden surge in local transmissions forced the government to return to an almost total lockdown in Bulawayo and Harare.
Three held in pangolin bust
Three suspects were arrested for possession of a pangolin in Rustenburg. They are expected to appear in the Rustenburg Magistrate's Court on Monday charged with possession of an endangered species. The pangolin is one of the most trafficked animals in the world, according to the World Wide Fund for Nature. They are in high demand in countries like China and Vietnam. Their meat is considered a delicacy and their scales used in traditional medicine. North West police spokesperson Lt-Col Amanda Funani said the suspects were arrested on Thursday after the provincial organised crime unit ere tipped off about people who wanted to sell a pangolin at the Waterfall Mall.
Trump reins in the rambling drivel
Donald Trump's rambling speeches attacking opponents and angrily deflecting criticism could become more rare as he appeared to sharply change his rhetoric with 100 days to go until the election. The US president has markedly changed his tone over the past week in an effort to claw back a growing chasm between him and Democratic challenger Joe Biden, analysts believe. - Telegraph Media Group Limited (2020)
Found: larvae that polish down polystyrene
Scientists have discovered a new species of beetle larvae that can digest polystyrene, increasing hopes that it could help solve the plastic crisis. Polystyrene, one of the most -common packaging plastics, can take centuries to decompose naturally. But scientists at Pohang University of Science and Technology in South Korea found one larvae, or mealworm, of the darkling beetle could digest 34mg of Styrofoam boxes over two weeks. - Telegraph Media Group Limited (2020)
Can bone drug break corona’s back?
An osteoporosis drug reduces coronavirus infection by 85% in human cells, say scientists, opening the door to a quick treatment for the pandemic. The widely used Apilimod is one of 13 drugs found to fight coronavirus when scientists screened nearly 12,000 existing medications to see if any would be of use. Repurposing drugs is a fast way to find new treatments because safety concerns about their use have already been addressed. - Telegraph Media Group Limited (2020)
