The axe finally fell at 12:15pm yesterday (Friday) when the publisher and CEO of the Sowetan, Bongani Keswa upheld my dismissal as ruled by the earlier internal disciplinary hearing. To recap: I had been working as senior revise sub-editor (a kind of final quality checkpoint) for 18 months on the Sowetan. During that time I […]
News/Politics
Posted inLifestyle, News/Politics
PS: I am still living in the Military Republic of Sudan
The event depicted below occurred in December 2007. Today was not the first time that rough-talking “intelligence police” took me to an interrogation room after spotting me with a camera in public in Sudan. It’s the second time. And each time it’s been a deeply unsettling reminder that I am currently living in a country […]
Posted inNews/Politics
Elections
Another long delay before writing this piece … There have been various things happening over the past two months. We had Polokwane, Eid-ul-Adha, Xmas and New Year’s. I had my holidays in between, and, boy, was life eventful. The usual mad rush at the end of the year is expected, but throw in the curve […]
Posted inLifestyle, Media, News/Politics
Obsessed with teen sex
An alarmist report on e-tv about teenage abortions is sending the wrong message to our adults.
Posted inLifestyle, News/Politics
‘Africa’s not for sissies …’
If you’re to maintain your sanity, then “Third World Africa” or whichever politically sensitive term you wish to use has to be accepted with all its muddy streets, electricity shutdowns and taps that suddenly offer no life for hours on end. This is the comforting epiphany that hit me during a moment of numbness last […]
Posted inLifestyle, News/Politics
Another day of contradictions in Khartoum
Yesterday was one of those weird days showcasing the contradictions in Khartoum. I needed to collect some cash from Western Union. The money was from an Argentinian online journal, paying me for stories that I had done for it. I got to Western Union and the electricity had shut down. Power failure in the neighbourhood. […]
Posted inNews/Politics
Blair banks plenty on new job
Every now and then something hits the news that is so funny that hysterical laughter and streaming tears are inevitable. Such a news snippet was in the Independent online today and probably in a fair number of other news sources. Tony Blair has landed a job as a part-time consultant to one of the best-known […]
Posted inBusiness, News/Politics
Imagine, poor people with cars!
The Indian Tata group has unveiled the Nano, an aptly-named new car that will sell for just R17 500 (Rp100 000, or $2 550), not counting taxes and import duties. One would think that promising to improve the quality of life of millions of people who previously couldn’t afford the luxury of a motor vehicle would be hailed as tremendous news.
Posted inNews/Politics
Is arrest of Scorpions boss another salvo in a dirty war?
This week’s Talkback question on the Mail & Guardian Online: Is the arrest of Scorpions boss Gerrie Nel another salvo in a dirty war?
Posted inNews/Politics
Prosecute Zuma on principle — you must be joking
As my regular readers will know, I am a big fan of President Thabo Mbeki and supported his bid to reclaim the ANC leadership at Polokwane. That does not detract from the fact that the delegates at Polokwane chose Jacob Zuma as ANC president, and members and supporters of the ANC have to accept that. […]
Posted inNews/Politics
Kenya’s woes have warnings for South Africa
Kenyans have been frightened by the extent and scale of post-election violence and displacement, but what has shocked them most is how fast the economy has faltered. Tourists exited in droves when violence broke out after Kibaki assumed power. On an Airbus to Nairobi from Johannesburg that can hold 300, there were 30 passengers; all […]
Posted inMedia, News/Politics
For heaven’s sake, it’s a blog
Like Ebrahim Harvey, who could not be further removed from me on the ideological scale, I too “feel compelled” to take a broader view on the Vincent Maher/Dominic Tweedie; black/white; male/female; Thought Leader/Mail & Guardian; Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young/Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich brouhaha. Ebrahim argues a good case, until his bias […]