Sihle Mavuso presents the latest news from KwaZulu-Natal.
Pietermaritzburg – The controversial R27-million sponsorship of the Royal AM football team by the cash-strapped ANC-run Msunduzi (Pietermaritzburg) municipality is under threat. The move to have the deal reviewed is contained in a circular sent to staff on Wednesday as the municipality tries to contain costs following a cash crunch. The memo did not specify which sponsorship deals would be reviewed but said the council would take decisive action to stop all sponsorships it cannot sustain. The DA opposed the sponsorship deal and has already taken the matter to court to have it scrapped.
Ottawa – The battle for teaching posts in schools in KwaZulu-Natal is heating up. Some long-serving teachers who have been dumped after serving for more than a decade are refusing to leave their posts. On Friday a teacher allegedly dumped by the principal of Ottawa Primary School in the north of Durban returned to teach her class. However, the principal allegedly told her to leave. The teacher, who has been at the school since 2013, was told on Wednesday that her contract had not been renewed by the KZN Education Department.
Greytown – The leader of the Abantu Batho Congress, Philani PG Mavundla, has rejected claims by the ANC’s KZN secretary, Bheki Mtolo, that a Zulu state is not feasible and would be poverty-stricken. Mavundla said he would have to give Mtolo a crash course in economics. He said Eswatini, with a population of only 1.2-million, has achieved statehood and prospered, with no squatter camps or homeless people. Mavundla said the Zulu kingdom with 16-million people and Durban Harbour could easily prosper if it was well governed.
Vryheid – The long-awaited report on the investigation into the suspended municipal manager of the IFP-run Abaqulusi (Vryheid) local municipality is out. The report recommends that Zweli Dhlamini be fired. However, the duty to discuss and ratify the recommendation now lies with the council, which will meet next week. Dhlamini was suspended in October last year after he was allegedly recorded telling a staff meeting that the IFP interferes with the employment of staff.
Esikhawini – The management of Esikhawini TVET College in northern KZN has been forced to convene talks with the student representative council after students, led by the EFF Student Command, boycotted classes and engaged in a strike. The students tabled a long list of grievances. Among them is that there is no proper food, some students have not received their NSFAS allowances and the college must force landlords to improve the poor accommodations where students live.
Pictured above: Royal AM.
Image source: X
