Discover the rhythm of the Vaal

The Vaal River Carnival kick-started with a launch held on a mayoral boat cruise at Stonehaven on Vaal. The Carnival which is in its ninth year in succession will take place over twenty-nine days staging numerous events starting on the 27th August until the 9th October.

The festivities are aimed at showcasing and profiling the beauty and splendor of the Vaal Triangle and the programme is part of a continued effort to enhance social cohesion and cultural expression, which will bring families together and both the public and private sector to share their skills in the quest of taking the region forward to revive its opportunities for economic and tourism development.

Emfuleni Local Municipality, Executive Mayor Cllr Greta Hlongwane, said; ''We want our communities to begin to look inwards with a view of identifying what they have in the area of cultural resources and using it to promote culture and tourism in their communities. Our intention is to expose those who will be visiting our region during the Carnival period to our state of the art hotels, conference, business and leisure facilities and the history of the Vaal.''

The retail sector is reported to be doing exceptionally well during this economic condition with the not-so-new Makro anticipating R1 billion during its first year of operation while Vaal Mall is expecting to reach R1.5 billion this year and this has encouraged the shareholders to add an additional 30 000 square meters to the current shopping mall.

Hlongwane urged role players in Emfuleni to join hands and expand the local tourism industry. ''There are many tourism opportunities especially in our township areas, I plea for greater financial support to individuals with bright ideas to expand our tourism product offerings in various categories such as tour-operators, guides, self-catering, guest houses, lodges, arts and craft entrepreneurs''.

As part of LED activities the region is currently busy drafting and finalizing some new initiatives to support business, encourage business to expand and attract new investments.

#SEE BELOW FOR DETAILS ON THE CARNIVAL

Vaal River Carnival - Calendar 2011Vaal River Carnival - Calendar 2011

Spring Beer Festival
Date: 27 August
Venue: Stonehaven on Vaal
Time: 12h00
Contact: 016 982 2951 / 072 394 3412
www.stonehaven.co.za

Vaal Wedding, Special Functions and Tourism Expo
Date: 27-28 August
Time: 9h00 am
Venue: Emerald Resort & Casino
Contact: 082 708 2834 info@vaalwed.co.za

Vaal Beach Pre-Party
Date: 2 September
Time: 8h00 pm
Venue: Club Illusions Vaal Walk, Vdbp
Contact: 082 223 6986 / 073 703 5100
www.masiasound.co.za

Commemoration of the Vaal Uprising
Date: 3 September
Time: 9h30am
Venue: Bophelong Stadium
Contact: 071 680 0157 / 016 450 3210 www.sedibeng.gov.za

Annual Vaal Tropika Beach Party
Date: 3 September
Time: 12h00
Venue: Cecil Oldridge Park
Contact: 082 223 6986 / 073 703 5100 www.masiasound.co.za

Vaal Beach Sunday Chilling Session
Date: 4 September
Time: 12h00
Venue: Planet Africa (Sonlandpark)
Contact: 082 223 6986 / 073 703 5100 www.masiasound.co.za

Spring Day Music Explosion: Soul Session
Date: 4 September
Time: 12h00
Venue: Vaal Show Grounds
Contact: 082 546 0909 / 082 837 5218 www.springmusicsa.com

Emfuleni Wheels at the Vaal
Date: 3-4 September
Time: 9h00 am
Venue: NWU Vaal Campus
Contact: 083 513 6632 mauritz.meyer@gmail.com

Vaal Water Festival
Date: 3-4 September
Time: 9h00am
Venue: Emerald Resort & Casino
Contact: 082 853 7995

SAPS Fun Day
Date: 7 September
Time: 7h30 am
Venue: Redan
Contact: 079 522 7774 wonderboy.jtsoari@gmail.com

TEKKIEFEES
Date: 9-10 September
Time: Fri - 15h00 Sat - 7h00 am
Venue: HTS Vereeniging
Contact: 083 287 5566 www.tekkiefees.co.za

Wet & Wild
Date: 10 September
Time: 11h00 am
Venue: Emerald Resort & Casino
Contact: 083 562 3365 www.spicedevents.co.za

Arts and Culture Expo
Date: 10-11 September
Time: 10h00 am
Venue: Mphatlalatsane Theatre
Contact: 016 950 6366 / 082 610 6723 www.emfuleni.gov.za

Indigenous Games
Date: 17 September
Time: 7h00 am
Venue: Saul Tsotetsi Sports Complex
Contact: 016 986 4883 www.emfuleni.gov.za

DM Khunou Choral Music Festival
Date: 17-18 September
Time: 9h00 am
Venue: Mphatlalatsane Theatre
Contact: 082 672 9086 www.sedibeng.gov.za

The Crowning of Miss Emfuleni
Date: 23 September
Time: 7h00 pm
Venue: Vereeniging Civic Theatre
Contact: 016 950 5152 / 016 950 5420 www.emfuleni.gov.za

Sports and Recreation Expo
Date: 23-24 September
Time: 10h00 am
Venue: Saul Tsotetsi Sports Complex
Contact: 016 986 4883 www.emfuleni.gov.za

Heritage October Fest
Date: 24 September
Venue: Dick Fourie Stadium
Contact: 083 303 3676

Vaal Show - Vereeniging
Date: 30 September - 8 October
Venue: Vaal Show Grounds
Time: 10h00 am
Contact: 083 418 1226 www.vaalskou.co.za

Street Parade
Date: 1 October
Venue: Starts Fire Station VDBP and ends Library
Contact: 016 950 6366 / 082 610 6723 www.emfuleni.gov.za

Gospel Festival
Date: 2 October
Time: 10h00 am
Venue: Vaal Show Grounds, Vereeniging
Contact: 082 223 6986 / 073 703 5100 www.masiasound.co.za

Campus to Campus Cycle Challenge
Date: 9 October
Venue: NWU Vaal Campus
Time: 7h00 am
Contact: 083 269 7659

Emfuleni Local Municipality launch 100 days action plan

In a bid to report back to the community after the elections that was held four months ago Emfuleni Local Municipality outlined its action plan on service delivery. Executive Mayor, Cllr. Greta Hlongwane who was recently elected as the deputy president of SALGA (South African Local Government Association) will be engaging with the authorities in a view that the municipality be reinstated to its metropolitan status as it is one of the biggest municility in terms of size.

Recently the municipality faced an avalanche of protests which among others saw residents of Debonair Park marching against the billing system and this was further fuelled by the council disconnecting illegal electricity. As it stand R4million in revenue was lost on a substation due to illegal connection.

Addressing the media, Hlongwane said ''We are a developmental municipality that continuously strives to improve the quality of life of its community by subscribing to Batho-Pele principles. We want to improve the system of inter-governmental relation and continue to build it in a coordinated way. Youth in Dialogue Indaba is already in place and are now working on convening a Youth Summit in the near future, will also be renovating sports facilities which will keep them away from crime and drugs. Audit on RDP houses that are being sold will be conducted as we don't understand why our people don't hand-over the houses to the government when they no longer need them. Residential place cannot be utilized for business because by so doing this reduce the supply of power to the other, we are also looking at implementing by-laws that will prevent people from erecting shacks and churches anywhere without the municipality's consent''.

Among projects the residents of the Emfuleni can look forward to are a number of jobs which will be created through the EPWP (Expanded Public Works Programme) and labour intensive construction methods with R11 million allocated, student accommodation problem resolved with stakeholders and Mayoral Imbizo's taking place once a quarter as part of public participation programme.

The municipality will be looking to name and shame contractors whose work was unsatisfactory as this is deemed wasteful expenditure. Unfinished projects will be finalised and as such no tenders will be awarded to them.

In conclusion she said: ''To complement women's month, workshops will be conducted with a manageable group of women entrepreneurs, starting from 22 August until 26 August 2011 and it will focus on issues such as entrepreneur skills, business training, registration of cooperatives and companies, taxes and funding''.

SOUTH AFRICA: The land that belongs to the rich and famous...

As I was going through my music library and playing Tumi Molekane's track 'the now rich' I encountered my own version and couldn't help but wonder what the once fierce, no-nonsense country of ours has become? Nowadays a thief breaks into your home and when you re-act in self-defence, you will be arrested as ''criminals'' now have rights and charged with attempted murder (sic)

DOCTOR KHUMALO

Recently soccer legend Doctor Khumalo was found guilty on charges of reckless and negligent driving three years after being involved in an accident and was fined R6K or 12-month imprisonment and that was it!

The incident took place when law-abiding citizens trying to make a decent living were on their way to work when the former football star's german-sports car collided with a minibus taxi near Maraisburg off-ramp on the N1 north in Jozi in May 4th 2008

A life was lost, injuries sustained and loss of income was lost but the court dismissed the drunken-driving charge after evidence from a blood sample was not presented by the state, could it be because it's a popular personality involved or just that the law in our country is lenient to culprits?

Sinah Shongwe, Bongani Baloyi and Elizabeth Slater was the passengers in the taxi. Shongwe is believed to have died from injuries related to the accident two weeks prior to judgment while Slater suffered back and leg injuries and taxi driver Willy Sanyane escaped with minor injuries.

To rub salt into the wounds '16 valve' (as Khumalo is affectionately known) pleaded not guilty despite the state argument that witnesses testified that he reeked booze, had bloodshot eyes, slurred speech and was unsteady and three times over the legal limit, to add a little bit of arrogance Khumalo missed court appearances which resulted in the case taking long to finalise.

In true honesty the fine is a slap on the wrist, the amount fined is a monthly installment for the said car which he can pay instantly while the lives of the victims are ruined and will not be getting any penny.

Meanwhile the taxi owner Perry Kgasoane is suing Khumalo for loss of income - R500K over a three year period. He was served with summons long time ago and can settle out of court as the date has not been set. It remains to be seen if he will budge and own up to his deeds.

MOLEMO MAAROHANYE

This is another high-profile case which should have been concluded ages ago. On March 9th 2010 Molemo ''Jub-jub'' Maarohanye and his co-accused Themba Tshabalala drove into a group of school children killing Andile Mthombeni (16), Phumelelo Masemelo (16), Mlungisi Cwayi and Prince Mahube both (17) while Fumani Mushanana (17) and Frank Mlambo (18) were injured when the two were allegedly drag racing in their sports cars along Mdlalose Street in Protea, Soweto.

The state 'again' alleged that witnesses testified that the music star and his friend were intoxicated with alcohol and drugs, cellphone footage of the racing was taken but there is a lot of controvesy around it. The case is still on-going.

# Transport Minister, Sbu Ndebele urged law enforcement officers to crack down on illegal drag racing, this comes after three people were killed in Pretoria.

TEBOGO 'Proverb' THEKISO & BRYCE MOON

Just other high-profiled personalities whose fate is still to be decided but don't read too much into it as the saying goes ''Money is the root of all evil''

Print versus Digital media

Media as it is known is an informative, educating and entertaining field and with times come change. The industry has grown over the years and continues to do so, it is also noted that technology has brought about change in this field and as such we have seen numerous media houses adapting to change in a sense that they aren't left behind in comparison to competitors.

I am so glad that I grew up in an environment where newspaper and a magazine were the order of the day; I can't help but realize advantages such setup brought.

Today we have online news subscription which is convenient but print was and still is my preferred choice; Though online media save time but it is relatively known to be unreliable with hacks taking place every second you blink while with print it's a different take altogether.

The introduction of Media 24s tabloid, Daily Sun back in 2002 set the scene alight giving Sowetan a run for its moolah. Initially the paper was seen as a gossip mouth-piece as its content was somehow unbelievable (e.g witchcraft, tokoloshe, etc) but it has managed to polish itself and aligned to a point that even an illiterate can be home with it; which was a first in the country.

From the early days of its inception to the late 90s Sowetan enjoyed a free role as it had absolutely no competition that's until ''The People's Paper'' came along and changed all that which led to its regional branches closure.

During my tertiary days as a media student a certain newspaper called ''This Day'' headed by Justice Malala hit the shelves and I still remember vividly when I laid my eyes on it I told my mates that it won't stand the test of time and rise against all odds, the reason being it was a duplicate of an already existing daily paper and my sentiments were proven right as it ceased to exist.

We have ample daily newspapers which carries serious news that people can relate to and I'm saying this with an ordinary person on the streets in mind as weekend papers are mostly about gossip but I would like to see the introduction of citizen journalism where communities are fully in charge maybe just maybe news will not be biased and the mentality will be broader.

Comrade Malema, you are just another ruthless politician

The media revelations of how you made the wealth to fund your lifestyle can't be brushed aside anymore.

I don't know if you know the saying: ''Behind every great fortune there is a great crime''. But recent reports prove just that.

Comrade, the wealth and comfort enjoyed by whites in South Africa is a product of historical violent theft of our land, labour and destruction of the African way of life.

Instead of fighting to redress these historical injustices, you have now literally joined those who stole from us to set yourself up, while the people continue to suffer.

When I heard that you were demolishing a R3,6million house in Sandton to build a better one for R16million, I calculated that you would be living in a R20million house.

I found the idea of destroying a house in a country that has a huge housing backlog a cruel act by one who claims to represent the poorest of the poor.

I know you know a place called Setswetla in Alexandra township. You were there just before the local elections with Human Settlements Minister Tokyo Sexwale and others.

The R20million could solve the appallingly hellish condition of the people of Setswetla. Do you know how many RDP houses could be built with R20million?

Exactly 50 years ago Frantz Fanon wrote that the curse of post-colonial Africa were the leaders who took over from the colonialists only to become black colonialists themselves.

He warned that such people take power from the whites to serve themselves, not the people, while using the rhetoric of a better life for all.

He called such leaders the comprador. You have become the comprador even before you take formal power as an official politician. The comprador, according to Fanon, is engaged in ''conspicuous consumption''. Please check the meaning of this concept in the dictionary, sir.

I'm disappointed because of all the leaders we have, you have stood up and spoken about the real issues that your party has avoided.

But it is clear now; you have been an opportunist who raised these issues, not to solve them, but to trick the poor who have been waiting for a better life for almost 20 years now under your party's rule.

Instead of leading the new struggle as a selfless of the poor, you only pay lip service to the plight of our people while you amass great amounts of wealth through your political influence.

You could have chosen a different path sir, the path of Thomas Sankara, who sacrificed all personal comforts to serve the people.

Or you could have chosen, just like the youth leaders of June 16 1976, such as Tsietsi Mashinini and Khotso Seatlholo, to be guided by the principle of ''the people first''.

No, instead you put yourself first! The black youth of this country has been abandoned by the ANC government. They looked up to you and you have let them down badly.

You are just another ruthless politician in the ANC alliance, who uses words to deceive.

* Mngxitama's new essay in New Frank Talk is titled Is Malema a Mugabe? A short political biography of Julius Malema.

Source: SowetanLIVE

A lifetime gift for 107-year old gogo

On a day that South Africa's icon Nelson Mandela turned 93, one elder felt how its like to finally have a house she can proudly call her own and was further showered with blankets, bed and groceries. A day filled with activities in an effort to play a part in a call to do something positive for the less destitute, Emfuleni Local Municipality made an old citizen's dream come true. 107-year-old Lettia Mthimkhulu from Sonderwater received an RDP house in Tshepiso North Extension 1, Sharpville from the municipality; this comes after her plea in the media to own a house before she dies.

ELM, Executive Mayor Greta Hlongwane said ''This is an unfortunate incident where we had to learn about gogos plight through the media, we have councilors and would like the community to liaise with them should something of this nature occur. An audit will be conducted to find out how many others can receive help, complete and empty houses will be allocated to the elderly and we acknowledge that this cannot all be done in 67 minutes. It is our mission to eradicate shacks but make no mistake as these houses are not for family and friends. We also won't tolerate people flocking into our area in a sense that they will get houses.''

She further urged mothers within the community to help those in need, they know of elders who can't do anything for themselves therefore it won't hurt to give a helping hand not only on Mandela day.

LAUNCH OF A MOBILE CLINIC

Meanwhile a mobile clinic was launched and presented to the residents of an informal settlement in Barrage, Vanderbijlpark. The clinic which will be situated next to a police station will be made available to the community three days a week.

Sindiswa Moeketsi, Acting Environmental Management, Health & Social Development demonstrated the clinic which consist of a generator on board. ''The clinic is a breath of fresh air to this area because long distance trips to health care centers elsewhere will no longer be necessary, it will render numerous services ranging from primary health care such as pap smear, chronic illnesses and mental health treatment. In circumstance where the situation is severe an ambulance will be called, I urge those who are infected with HIV/Aids to live positively by getting treatment;'' she said.