Author: The Free Stater

Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma will on Wednesday lead strategic follow-up engagements with the Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality and other organisations and structures. The municipality was placed under national administration following cabinet approval at the beginning of April. Dlamini-Zuma will be joined by her deputy Thembisile Nkadimeng, Deputy Minister of Finance David Masondo, Premier Sisi Ntombela and COGTA MEC Mxolisi Dukwana. A statement issued by the national COGTA office said the engagements are in keeping with the minister’s commitment during the District Development Model Presidential Imbizo recently held in Bloemfontein and cabinet’s approval to put Mangaung Metro…

The Free State and the North West provinces could be affected by extreme weather conditions similar to those recently experienced in KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape which resulted in widespread flooding, hundreds of fatalities and destruction of property. This was said by President Cyril Ramaphosa Ramaphosa during a televised address on Monday evening in which he declared the catastrophic floods which have devastated parts of KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape a national state of disaster. He said other parts of the country may also need assistance in the near future. “With the heavy rains and flooding in the Eastern Cape…

Mangaung Metro says its water supply infrastructure has come under attack from criminals whom it accuses of vandalising water reservoirs and pipelines in recent weeks. In some cases, security guards manning facilities are said to have been threatened and intimidated by the alleged criminals before they proceeded to destroy some of the infrastructure. “We are currently experiencing vandalism of reservoirs and pipelines on a daily basis,” said Mangaung spokesperson Qondile Khedama in a statement released on Thursday. “This is mostly happening at reservoirs close to South Park cemetery and around the southern landfill site,” he added. Khedama warned that damaging…

A 31-year-old man from Hennenman, northern Free State, has been arrested for allegedly kidnapping and assaulting his former girlfriend for several days while accusing her of killing a child they had together. Police spokesperson for the area, Captain Stephen Thakeng, said the victim, a 27-year-old woman, claims she was kept at the ex-lover’s house against her will for three days until she managed to escape. According to Thakeng, the suspect visited the victim under the guise that he wanted to solve their relationship problems. “She agreed and went together with the ex-boyfriend to his residence,” he said in a statement.…

With immediate effect every sale will have to have a declaration by the owner of a property on his knowledge about the property that they are selling. This means that an owner cannot hide any defects in the property that he is aware of as could have real consequences if they don’t declare properly. The declaration must be signed by the seller when giving a mandate to an estate agent to sell his property and will be attached to the offer to purchase. As part of the offer, it also must be signed by the buyer and the selling agent.…

The ANC Free State Interim Provincial Working Committee (IPWC) says it will soon be be reconstituting branches that are in disarray across the province as it sets out to strengthen and rebuild the party. A statement issued by ANC provincial spokesperson Oupa Khoabane on Tuesday says the decision follows consultations with party president Cyril Ramaphosa and chairperson Gwede Mantashe who were recently in the province to assess the progress made on work to renew and unite the structures of the organisation in the Free State. “On the basis of the reflections made about the level of strength and functionality of…

Patriotic Alliance (PA) president Gayton McKenzie has been elected as the new mayor of the Central Karoo District Municipality in the Western Cape province. He was elected unopposed, thanks to the backing of his party’s coalition partners, the ANC and the Karoo Democratic Force. The businessman and politician, born and bred in Heidedal in Bloemfontein, was first sworn in as a councillor of the Laingsburg Local Municipality and then joined the Central Karoo District Municipality as a representative last week. In his first speech as mayor, McKenzie apologised to the residents for the suffering they have endured in the past.…

The Department of Higher Education, Science and Innovation has launched the Medical Device Additive Manufacturing Technology Demonstrator Project (MedAdd) at the Central University of Technology (CUT)’s Bloemfontein campus. Additive manufacturing, better known as “3D printing”, is one of the technologies used in advanced manufacturing and is considered a cornerstone of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Developed at a cost of R97-million, the project is expected to significantly reduce South Africa’s reliance on costly imported medical devices for people living with disabilities. According to the CUT, the Department of Science and Innovation (DSI) funded the project through its entity, the Technology Innovation…

A 32-year-old South African Air Force officer was fatally attacked by unknown assailants outside a Bloemfontein pub in the early hours of Monday morning. He was a corporal with the air force’s 16 Squadron based at Bloemspruit in the Free State capital. A statement released by the police said the incident happened outside a pub and grill along Kellner Street in Westdene in the city. “(Police) received a complaint of an attack at the parking area near the pub at about 03:00,” read part of the statement. “A patrol vehicle was dispatched to attend to the scene and on arrival…

Staff Reporter President Cyril Ramaphosa interacted with Free State communities on Saturday as part of the Presidential Imbizo currently underway at the Dr Petrus Molemela Stadium in Bloemfontein. The event is part of the government’s engagement with communities in the Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality in the Free State. The municipality was this week placed under national administration after efforts by the Free State provincial executive to implement a financial recovery plan in the metro failed to turn it around. The intervention is directed at helping the metro to improve its finances, deliver on its mandate and to return to sound governance…