New board for SA Express

Pretoria - Public Enterprises Minister Malusi Gigaba on Monday announced a new board of directors of South African Express (SAX), while urging the airline to address the challenges it is facing.

The new board was announced due to the high turnover of the previous board of directors, which saw a record number of non-executive directors resign. 

Speaking at the Annual General Meeting of SAX in Kempton Park, Gigaba said the financial year 2011/12 had been a tough and challenging economic year for the global airline industry and SA Express had not been immune from such challenges.

"The appointment of a new board at such challenging times in the history of the airline industry and South African Express was a necessary action which we needed to undertake. The shareholder has selected the new board based on diverse skills, expertise and experience," explained the minister.

Although the airline had been considered the jewel of the minister's portfolio with consistent reported profits, the past year had seen a drastic decline in, among others, performance, brand and reputation management as well as internal controls.

"I encourage the Board to provide leadership on the matters I have alluded to and build the company to sustainable levels. I am of the view that in accepting to serve on SA Express Board, you will fully apply your minds and hands-on approach that is required," said the minister, adding that the department would lend its support to the board.

The airline needed to regain its reputation in the market and seek to capture new opportunities and markets in the region. 

The failure of the company to present audited financial statements at Monday's meeting was irregular, the meeting said unanimously. The irregularities relate to non-compliance, miss-statement of financial statements and evidence provided to the Auditors which, in their opinion, did not meet the auditing standards. The company obtained an adverse opinion from Nkonki Auditors. Additionally, the meeting appointed new auditors.

"The appointment of external auditors is subject to annual review at the annual general meeting by the shareholder. Similarly the Board is appointed for a three year term subject to the annual review," said the department.

The Auditor General has been appointed to take over the audit function from Nkonki Auditors. The Auditor General will commence with the audit of the 11/12 financial year. 

Gigaba also emphasised the importance of strengthening internal controls within the state-owned company, stating that "systems within the entity would have to ensure that management is aligned to the shareholders expectations and national objectives".

The chairperson of the new board is Andile Mabizela, who has a strategy, aviation and legal background. The Board also comprises Ezrom Mabyana; Karabo Tshailane-Nondumo; Neo Priscilla Moshimane; Shumani Tshifularo; Nosipho Gxumisa; George Mothemba; Noni Dibate as well as Dr. Bridget Ssamula who has been reelected on the new board for the purpose of ensuring
continuity. - SAnews.gov.za

Transformed judiciary crucial to SA stability

Port Elizabeth - Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng says a transformed judiciary is crucial for the stability of South Africa's constitutional democracy.

He was delivering an address at the South African chapter of the International Association of Women Judges Conference currently being held at Port Elizabeth's Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University. 

The South African public continued to have confidence in the judiciary, Mogoeng said, but transformation to make justice accessible to all, particularly women, remained critical to maintain that confidence. 

He called on judges to ensure that the judiciary in South Africa performed as well as the Constitution promises, where people are treated fairly. 

"As we gather here ... as leaders, we've got to identify challenges that undermine the performance [and leadership] of the judiciary..." Mogoeng said.

He used his speech to call on women judges to use their positions to advance the rights of women and to protect and empower women throughout the world. He said through "pioneering" judicial education programmes and worldwide collaboration, they could work towards advancing human rights and the elimination of gender based discrimination. 

"Through your influence, you can make courts accessible to all and this should be supported by all of us involved in the justice system."

Mogoeng said striving for an inclusive and representative judiciary was a matter that "has been haunting" the leadership of judiciary in South Africa for many years. He recalled the days when the judiciary was referred to by Members of Parliament as the "boys choir" when a procession entered Parliament. 

"As a result of that, we had to ensure that even if there were no women in the leadership of the judiciary but during the procession, we had to have women in our midst so we are not called a boys choir," Mogoeng said. 

He said organisations like the International Association of Women Judges (IAWJ) had a critical role to play in ending perceptions that women could not handle critical cases. 

The Minister for Women, Children and People with Disabilities, Lulu Xingwana, is expected to address the conference later on Friday as part of nationwide Women's Month celebrations. 

Earlier, different speakers raised concerns about what they described as a threat to the institutional independence of the judiciary, lack of confidence in the judiciary by members of the public and the attacks of judgement by politicians. 

"Despite all our challenges, the judiciary still has a responsibility to make the public regain the confidence in the system," said Eastern Cape Judge President Temba Sangoni. 

He said the bench was eager to have more women "as they could do well in transforming the system".

"So we must do all that we can to push this transformation agenda in all areas starting with gender and race."

IAWJ President Eusebia Munuo emphasised the promotion of judicial ethics, saying people who come to courts should not be exposed to misdemeanours by members of the bench.

"Our conduct should be beyond reproach," Munuo said. 

She said women judges had an important role to play in society, adding that in her country, Tanzania, more young females saw law as a career of choice. - SANews.gov.za

Appoint more female juries - Mogoeng

Port Elizabeth - While women continued to be under-represented as judges in South Africa's court system, the country has made great strides in promoting their participation in the judiciary, says Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng. 

But he called for more female appointments, especially women judges and judge presidents. 

Speaking to SANews on the sidelines of the International Women Judges Conference underway at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University in Port Elizabeth on Friday, Mogoeng said given the fact that there were more women in South Africa than men, government needed to pursue "aggressively" gender equity on the bench. 

"I know that we have made some progress but I think we could do better. We must push to ensure this agenda of gender equity in the South African justice system. There is no doubt about that," he said. 

The conference, which is being organised by the International Association of Women Judges, paid tribute to the world's top female judges, including South Africa's own first female Judge President Mashangu Monica Leeuw from the North West. 

Mogoeng added there were now more black people on the bench and that almost all leadership in top judiciary institutions had a good representation of Africans. 

"So we have made significant strides in transforming the judiciary but what we need to focus on now is to develop a pool of legal practitioners out of black people and women in particular that can be appointed to the High Court, the Supreme Court of Appeal and the Constitutional Court. That would require the support of government and non-government organisations," Mogoeng said. - SANews.gov.za

Govt pushes for equitable use of all official languages

Pretoria - Government took a major step towards promoting the equitable use of official languages when Arts and Culture Minister Paul Mashatile tabled the Use of Official Languages Bill in Parliament on Tuesday. 

The Bill is aimed at ensuring that government elevates the status of especially indigenous languages and promotes their widespread use. The Bill will also make a massive contribution towards the national effort to promote multilingualism.

"We wish to reiterate that this Bill is not aimed at diminishing the significance and use of any of the South African official languages. Through this Bill, we will promote equitable use of all official languages. In the long run, we will endeavor to equally promote the use of sign language," said the minister.

As a result of this Bill, South Africans will have an opportunity to use the official languages of their choice in interacting with government.

"This, we believe, will strengthen efforts to ensure equal access to government services and programmes; and thus contribute to the goal of building an empowered citizenry.

"Specifically, this Bill seeks to provide for the regulation and monitoring of the use of official languages by national government and public entities for official purposes," he said.

Mashatile added that the Bill provided for the establishment of a national language unit. The unit will, amongst other things, advise the Minister of Arts and Culture on the policy and strategy to regulate and monitor the use of official languages.

It also provides for the establishment of language units in every national department, public entity and national public enterprise to advise the national department on the development, adoption, and implementation and monitoring of its language policy. 

He said through the Bill, government was giving effect to the provisions of Section 6 of the Constitution, which not only identifies 11 official languages but also obliges the state to take practical and positive measures to elevate the status and advance the use of indigenous languages.

The minister said the Bill applied to all national departments, national public entities and national public enterprises. It obliges every national department to adopt a language policy on the use of official languages for official purposes.

In terms of the Bill language, policies by national departments should, among others, identify at least three official languages to be used for official purposes. When identifying these three official languages, national departments must take into account its Constitutional obligation to take practical steps to elevate the status and advance the use of indigenous languages whose historic use and status was diminished.

The Bill also gives powers to the Minister of Arts and Culture to monitor the use of official languages by getting reports from departments on the activities of their language units. 

The minister is required, on an annual basis, to table a report to Parliament on the use of official languages for the provision of government services. - SAnews.gov.za

Council clamps down on unlicensed liquor outlets

Pretoria - The National Gambling and Liquor Policy Council will continue to work towards the reduction of unlicensed liquor outlets.

The Council, which is constituted by Trade and Industry (dti) Minister Rob Davies and provincial MECs of Economic Development, met last week to discuss the number of liquor licences in the country, with the focus being on rooting out traders operating without licences.

"The Council appreciated the process of licencing that is used at present where each application will be approved only if it had a zoning consent from the relevant authority [municipal or tribal]. 
The council resolved that the drive at this point should be to minimise the number of unlicensed outlets and bring them into the mainstream and enforce compliance," explained Davies.

The Council also adopted the Amended Strategy to Combat Alcohol Abuse. At a previous meeting, the strategy had been presented, with the emphasis that Liquor Regulators [at national and provincial level] should improve the areas of intervention and penalties that could be meted out to those that infringe their licence conditions. 

The strategy is in line with requirements by government's Programme of Action to combat substance abuse. It aims to combat alcohol abuse as well as put in place actionable measures at local, provincial and national level to combat alcohol abuse as well as to set priority areas for regulation of the liquor industry.

On the issue of amending National Norms and Standards, the Council approved the document for areas that are within the Liquor Act 59 of 2003 with amendments on the trading days that should recognise South Africa as a secular country, and that the focus should not be on Sunday as a religious day but rather focus on reducing the overall availability of liquor daily.

"The standardisation of trading hours was to be rephrases to accommodate the competencies of all spheres of government especially local government," said the minister in a statement on Sunday. -SAnews.gov.za

Incarcerated women need care, counselling - Ndebele

Pretoria - Correctional Services Minister Sibusiso Ndebele says women inmates need care and counselling as part of their journey towards rehabilitation.

He advised women not to stay in abusive relationships up until a point where they took the law into their own hands and committed irreversible crimes.

"We call on women who are living in abusive relationships to seek help now through mediation, relationship counselling and if all fails, for their sake, to walk away from such unions," he said at a departmental event to mark Women's Month in Port Elizabeth.

"Over the years, we have witnessed an increase in the number of women serving life sentences as a result of killing their partners. What is even more disturbing is that some of these women are serving time together with their daughters, who assisted them in committing these murders after they themselves were direct, or indirect, victims of abuse by their fathers."

The minister said in order for rehabilitation to work, women should be assisted to deal with the trauma caused by years of physical and emotional abuse.

The Department of Correctional Services (DCS) Women's Month programme is being celebrated under the theme, "Addressing Inequality and Empowering Women Officials and Offenders in the DCS: Together Contributing towards the Progressive Future for Women".

Since 1994, South Africa has been engaged in a process to transform the penal system from one that emphasised punishment, to a system that seeks to correct offending behaviour and prepare offenders for successful reintegration into society.

Ndebele also expressed concern about women who were pregnant at the time of their incarceration, and those mothers with babies younger than two years who did not have any family members to look after these vulnerable children.

"Most of these women are sentenced by magistrates, and incarcerated for petty crimes, and are serving sentences below 24 months," he said.

The month of August is dedicated to the memory and legacy of women from all walks of life, who on 9 August 1956, marched to the Union Buildings in protest against pass laws.

Ndebele said government was prioritising issues surrounding women in conflict with the law, and called for strengthened partnerships to eradicate gender inequality. - SAnews.gov.za