2024 is done and dusted! The news highlights from July to December

July

Freitag's life ends in violence and misery

Few athletes in South Africa's history were as well positioned for a legendary career as Jacques Freitag – he won the high jump at the youth, junior and senior world championship levels and was the African record holder.

And few athletes' careers and lives took such a steep downward turn after an early peak, gold at the world championships in 2003. In 2004 at the Olympic Games, he barely finished in the top 20. In 2005 he set a South African record, which still stands, but after that his life was complicated by psychological problems, alcohol and drugs.

His life could hardly have ended in more shocking circumstances. His decomposing body, full of gunshot and other wounds, was found on July 1 in a field near the Zandfontein cemetery in Pretoria West. He was last seen alive by a guesthouse owner in Booysens in Pretoria, where he left on foot on June 18, after being dropped off the previous day by Rudi Lubbe, a lawyer for the former Boeremag, who has since been struck off the roll.

Coreth Naudé almost died at the hands of an assassin

When Adv. Coreth Naudé was shot in the face and chest in early July and ended up in critical condition in hospital, it was just another in a series of attacks on senior officials in the judicial system in recent years.

Naudé was conducting an investigation into the tax affairs of TV star and businesswoman Shauwn Mkhize in Umhlanga when she was ambushed in her hotel's driveway by two masked men who fired four shots through her car's windows. Naudé was conducting her investigation on behalf of the South African Revenue Service which was on Mkhize's case over unpaid taxes of almost R38 million.

Sars had a warrant to seize a series of vehicles at her home in La Lucia, including a Lamborghini and a Rolls Royce.

Adv. Peter Mihalik was murdered by gang members during a court case in 2018, Cloete Murray, a senior insolvency lawyer, and his son Thomas, were shot dead in their car in March 2023 while conducting a sensitive investigation, and in 2020 a senior detective, Charl Kinnear, was shot dead by members of a powerful gang outside his home in Bishop Lavis. These were just a few names on a long list.

Doctor threw gut at sister, hospital must fork out

A court in Bloemfontein in July ordered the medical hospital group Netcare to pay R300 000 in damages to a senior sister, theatre manager Tilana Louw, over the chronic verbal and even physical abuse she had to endure under gastroenterologist Dr. Stephen Grobler. Grobler died in 2022, but Louw continued with the case. Louw told the court how Grobler once threw a piece of colon at her while also swearing at her.

Take a few cents early if you must

The government changed legislation so that from this year people can access 10% of their saved pension funds or R30 000, or whatever is the lower amount, in emergency situations. The “two-pot" system came into effect in September. Experts warned that people should remember that tax would be deducted from the money, as well as all outstanding debt to the South African Revenue Service.

Uncle Barend was upset by the drag queens

Hundreds, even thousands of conservative television viewers, choked on their biltong and beer during a scene in the Olympic Games opening ceremony in France, which appeared to be a portrayal of Da Vinci's “Last Supper" painting of Jesus and his disciples. The scene was presented on a deck along the Seine by a group of extravagant and flamboyant artists, dressed up as provocative drag queens, and one naked singer lying in the middle.

Some South African viewers took the scene very personally, despite it happening more than 7 000 km away in a different world region and culture, and described it as “diabolical", “shocking" and a “mockery of God". The scene's designer tried to appease outraged viewers by explaining that it wasn't actually Da Vinci's “Last Supper" but a portrayal of the Greek god Dionysus and the idea was to make people aware of the absurdity of violence among people.

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August

Gayton wins hearts and minds

The new minister of sport, arts and culture, Gayton McKenzie, true to his nature, pulled a few populist tricks after being appointed to the government of national unity. For example, he began his own weight loss effort by weighing himself every Wednesday and sharing the results – calling it Wednesday Weight. By September 18, he had already lost 15 kg.

He got rid of the “Super Fan" programme, through which a few highly visible personalities like Mama Joy Chauke and Botha Msila travelled around the world, attending sporting events and staying in expensive hotels. McKenzie promised the money would rather be spent on athlete development.

He also promised to arrange for all major rugby, cricket and soccer matches to be broadcast free on SABC channels, but that turned out to be a little more complicated than weight loss. He managed to get a historic test between the Springboks and All Blacks in Johannesburg on the 30th anniversary of democracy broadcast free by the SABC.

Thank you, golden Tatjana!

Tatjana Smith (formerly Schoenmaker) became South Africa's most decorated athlete in history at the Olympics Games, but then announced her retirement. She won gold in the 100 m breaststroke and silver in the 200 m breaststroke in Paris. In the 2020 Tokyo games, she did it the other way around, with a world record in the 200 m too.

Libyans handled with mercy

A group of 95 Libyans who were arrested at a paramilitary camp outside White River were treated mercifully by the courts in August, and swiftly deported without further consequences. The group was found doing a 36-week military course, which was offered by one Bardo Buys through his company Milites Dei, at a cost of R36 million. The group were all associated with the Libyan opposition, the Libyan National Army under Gen. Khalifa Haftar.

The end of the Julius and Floyd party

In what can be described as the biggest blow to the EFF's existence, Floyd Shivambu resigned as deputy leader of the party in August. Shivambu's connection with his close friend, Julius Malema, dates back to their days in the ANC Youth League, and this was seen as the backbone largely responsible for most of the EFF's achievements.

The last straw for Shivambu was probably Malema's unilateral decision to turn his back on the government of national unity, which might have cost Shivambu a cabinet position. He immediately joined Jacob Zuma's MK Party where he is now the secretary-general.

September

Tshwane coalition shattered

The promising and dynamic young politician, Cilliers Brink, was dramatically removed from the mayoral position in Tshwane, firstly due to ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba's decision to withdraw from the ruling coalition, but also due to Gauteng ANC leader Panyaza Lesufi's decision not to enter into an agreement with the DA that could have kept Brink in power.

Brink governed through a fragile coalition, consisting of the DA, Action SA, FF+, IFP, ACDP and DOP. There was broad consensus in the city that Brink and his coalition, especially with his two pillars, Grandi Theunissen of the FF+ and, ironically, ActionSA's Dr. Nasiphi Moya, had achieved remarkable success in a short time, particularly in getting the city's troubled finances on the right track and beginning to fix infrastructure and services after a decade of neglect. Brink, back in the opposition benches, promised that the fight has only just begun.

The end of the podbros, for now

In certainly the best demonstration of the DA leadership's deafness to its own supporters' needs, as well as leader John Steenhuisen and federal council chair Helen Zille's tone-deafness to social media talk and discussion on the ground, two of the more controversial white so-called pod-bros rose in the DA's structures.

Roman Cabanac was appointed Steenhuisen's ministerial chief of staff, and Renaldo Gouws as parliamentarian. Both these fellows' controversial alt-right and libertarian statements were regularly “liked" or retweeted by Steenhuisen and Zille. Both characters like to tiptoe near the line of the unacceptable in racial terms in a continuous display of victimhood.

Cabanac, a legal expert and former leader of the Purple Cow Party, has several times described Ramaphosa with the c-word and has also said black people cannot be liberals. He has also several times taken the side of the Patriotic Alliance over that of the DA.

Gouws has been known for decades not to be shy on Twitter/X, even if it was to display a shallow understanding of the history of oppression and struggle in South Africa. He liberally used the k-word to demonstrate that reverse racism is worse towards white people than ordinary racism is towards black people.

Gouws was suspended from parliament and the party precisely because of an old video, but Cabanac has been ignoring an instruction from Steenhuisen to leave his post.

Eeny, meeny, miny, moe ...

Pastor Xandré Strydom and his Christ in Me International Collective (CiMIC) cult had a successful September in terms of media exposure, but only if you espouse the mantra “any publicity is good publicity". They were in the news primarily because of the flexibility applied when marriage partners are swapped in the church.

The church is in a legal battle with Tar and Susan Eloff, the parents of two congregants, the brothers Jaco and Johan, to stop them from further stripping the family trust to finance the church. According to Johan Eybers in Rapport, Susan's brother, Jurg Steyn, claimed that Xandré had told Jaco to marry Xandré's ex-wife, Titéca, because Xandré “received word from God" about it. Jaco and Titéca got married in 2020.

Xandré has since got married for a second time, to Janelle. In 2018, Jaco's brother, Johan, married congregant Antonie Bornman's sister, Marie, also after Xandré had allegedly “received word from God".

Xandré, Jaco, Johan and Antonie are all directors of companies connected to CiMIC. Jaco and Johan first went to court to remove their parents as trustees from the family trust, whereupon the parents filed a counter-application asking that the sons' right to make decisions about the trust be restricted.

The best Boks ever?

This question is quickly being asked on local soil, but one must admit that two World Cups in a row, a victory against a British and Irish Lions team, and two Rugby Championships in a row, is a rare string of achievements for a Springbok team.

Moreover, the Boks have begun to show, especially during and after the World Cup, that the arrows in their quiver have become more diverse and creative. The victory in the recent Rugby Championship series was convincing, with two wins over both the Wallabies and the All Blacks, and a clean sweep in the three European tests at the end of the year.

In the second test against Argentina in Mbombela to confirm the Championship series crown, we saw total rugby played like rarely before by a Springbok team. Indeed, a good All Blacks team would have been very proud of such a display. May Rassie Erasmus keep their feet on the ground until the next World Cup in 2027.

October

South Africans like the GNU

A poll by the Social Research Foundation in October showed that all parties in the government of national unity had gained support since the election and that 58,4% of registered voters believed the GNU worked well. Moreover, 58,7% believed the GNU would be successful.

The poll also showed that voters didn't believe the government should continue with the ANC's previous policies – 67.4% indicated that the GNU should get rid of race-based appointments in its ranks, and 55,1% indicated that contracts should no longer be awarded on a racial basis.

Doc Wim doctors report

In a controversy that threatens to become the biggest storm in a teacup in decades, the Wilgenhof hostel debacle over two “secret rooms" full of artefacts used in disciplinary and initiation rituals, the rector of Stellenbosch University, Prof. Wim de Villiers, himself raised the temperature.

Chancellor and former judge Edwin Cameron submitted a sworn statement as part of the Wilgenhof Bond's court application to have the Wilgenhof investigation panel's report reviewed. Cameron declared that De Villiers had requested that the panel's report be adjusted before being submitted to the university council.

The report strongly called for the permanent closure of Wilgenhof, while Cameron said closure initially was not the only option. A campus conversation about possible “deep and lasting change" in Wilgenhof culture was included, and the panel saw this as an attractive option.

The “doctored report" was submitted to the council on June 24, which led to the decision to close the residence for a year, after which it will reopen in a “reimagined" form. The process is now subject to the court application by the Wilgenhof Bond to have the report reviewed.

Liebenberg finally in court

A development that a growing number of South Africans who lost money in diamond trader Louis Liebenberg's Tariomix company had been hoping for, finally occurred on November 22 at a restaurant in Benoni when Liebenberg and his wife Dezzi were arrested. They appeared in the Bronkhorstspruit magistrate's court two days later on 42 charges of fraud or theft, five of extortion, and six of money laundering.

Liebenberg's associates in his companies were also arrested and charged in the same week: Walter Niedinger, his former attorney, Nicky van Heerden, his personal assistant, Helena Schulenberg, the former office manager, Christelle and Hannes Badenhorst, Schulenberg's daughter and son-in-law, and Dewald Strydom.

Among the allegations is that the group enriched themselves to the tune of R326 million, taken directly from investor money. The case has the quality of an ongoing soap opera, with Liebenberg defending himself and throwing frequent tantrums while singing struggle songs and chanting MK Party slogans.

November

Lifman pays with his life

One of Cape Town's longest-surviving top “underworld businessmen" and a major player in the nightclub extortion industry since its inception, Mark Lifman, was assassinated in George.

Lifman had built up notoriety credits for allegedly being involved in the assassination of Cyril Beeka years ago and also in the murder of steroid king Brian Wainstein. Beeka was the first major figure in the underworld to dominate the club scene. Lifman was also fairly unique in this world because he was openly gay.

Lifman was due to appear in court the day after his murder along with his old associates, Jerome “Donkie" Booysens, leader of the Sexy Boys gang, and André Naudé, a Cape Town “bouncer boss". Lifman's removal could trigger a new power struggle in the underworld. Jakes Jacobs (53) and Johnny Bezuidenhout (37) have been arrested in connection with the murder.

The plight of the zama-zamas

In one of the most dramatic news stories in the world, an unknown number of illegal gold miners were trapped underground in an old mine shaft in Stilfontein after police had cut off their supply lines. By November, about 1 000 miners had already emerged. How many are still underground in and around Stilfontein is impossible to determine – anywhere between 400 and 3 500. Dozens are likely to be dead.

Emergency supplies are being provided by non-governmental organisations after a court ordered the police to allow them to do so. Meanwhile, wives and mothers of the miners have been waiting on the surface for weeks for them to emerge. Because the 2 km deep shaft is officially closed, the only way to get them out is by hoisting them one by one with ropes.

Nice one Jordan and Jaden!

In what is a South African first, two brothers ran out for the Springboks on November 23 in a test against Wales in Cardiff as the halfback pair – Jaden Hendrikse at scrumhalf and Jordan Hendrikse at flyhalf. Rapport's rugby writers gave Jaden 7/10 and Jordan 8/10.

December

Bela becoming more of a predicament

As if the two controversial clauses of the Basic Education Amendment Bill (4 and 5, which deal, among other things, with school governing bodies’ control over the medium of instruction in schools) were not delicate and emotional enough, various parties have contributed to the political negotiations heading into a maze.

There seem to be two processes – the regular negotiations in the government of national unity, where a committee apparently decided on a conference on mother tongue education to be held in 2025. The committee should have already handed over its findings to deputy president Paul Mashatile’s house-clearing panel.

ANC members, including Mashatile himself, feel that it is high time the law was signed since it has already gone through all the necessary legislative processes once, and was only held back as a concession by Pres. Cyril Ramaphosa.

On the other hand, Ramaphosa followed a completely different process under the guise of Nedlac in discussions with the DA minister of basic education Siviwe Gwarube, and representatives of Solidarity and Afriforum sponsored by DA leader John Steenhuisen. Solidarity and Afriforum claim that there is an agreement, which they say means that the signing of the bill cannot proceed until a new process has been followed to create norms and standards for the clauses.

Ramaphosa is therefore in a tricky position, although he has already indicated that he will not be held to ransom by Solidarity and Afriforum.

♦ VWB ♦

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