Evita Bezuidenhout celebrates 20 years of her Darling venue Evita se Perron with a weekly episode of 'Evita's Free Speech'. Here's the Episode 95. By PIETER-DIRK UYS.

Will a new leader wake the party up to the realities of the 21st Century? By Peter Fabricius for ISS TODAY.

A poem by MBALI VILAKAZI.

When acting Secretary to Parliament Baby Tyawa and senior managers this week appeared before the Joint Standing Committee on the Financial Management of Parliament, they were sent packing to redraft financial statements and spending plans in a format that enabled proper scrutiny. And the oversight committee noted it had yet to be officially informed of the special leave for Secretary to Parliament Gengezi Mgidlana, or of the investigation by the institution’s audit committee into claims of mismanagement and irregularities. On Friday 9 June, Parliament publicly announced Mgidlana’s special leave with immediate effect amid calls from the National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu) for his suspension. By MARIANNE MERTEN.

Radical economic transformation has arrived. Mineral Resources Minister Mosebenzi Zwane’s new Mining Charter on Thursday introduced unexpected pro-transformation measures. But are they legal? Will they kill the sector? And how will they be monitored? By GREG NICOLSON.

A month after UK-based PR firm Bell Pottinger’s Financial and Corporate partner Victoria Geoghegan billed a Dubai-based company, part-owned by Gupta family lieutenant, Salim Essa, £100,000 for a consultation with President Jacob Zuma’s son Duduzane Zuma, the political spin doctors made a second trip to South Africa. This time they charged £34,086 for a four-day trip which included a suggested speech for Collen Maine for the ANCYL’s National Rally on 7 February 2016 in Tshwane. The team also composed a statement for the MK Veterans Association and suggested the firm might like to add to a statement by ANC North West Chair, Supra Mahumapelo, with regard to EFF leader Julius Malema’s threats to ban ANN7 journalists. By SCORPIO and AMABHUNGANE.

Civil society organisations were called “malicious” by the chair of the South African National Aids Council . By Ashleigh Furlong for GROUNDUP.

Not all rounds of by-elections serve up surprises like Nquthu. June 14 saw the ANC comfortably defend two safe wards in Mbombela and Mnquma, and hold on to the marginal Ward 7 in uPhongolo, while the DA retained its safe seat in Sol Plaatje. By WAYNE SUSSMAN.

With the country's unemployment rate at 27.7%, and with 58% of those sitting at home aged between 15 and 25, PUSELETSO NTHATE and ORATENG LEPODISE spoke to young people ahead of the 41st commemoration of 16 June to hear their views on a democratic South Africa.

In a series of unexpected tweets, the official account of ANC NEC member Fikile Mbalula has trashed Free State Premier Ace Magashule as an option for the position of secretary general position, saying he would kill the party. By NEWS 24

In a massive study, about 85% of patients on antiretrovirals had got the virus down to acceptable levels in their blood. By Ashleigh Furlong for GROUNDUP.

Talks between the National Taxi Association and SA Taxi Finance Holdings stalled resulting in taxi drivers turning off their engines. By Ihsaan Haffejee for GROUNDUP.

The health of the city can be seen in the condition of its waterways. By Kevin Winter for GROUNDUP.

Does Western Cape Premier Helen Zille still believe there were positive spin-offs from colonisation? Is she justified in saying the ravages of the Holocaust and colonialism cannot be compared? Perhaps it’s best not to prompt outbreaks of human combustion among sections of the population by getting into those particular twisters. The important question is this: what is the significance of Zille’s apology at this moment in time with South Africa in free-fall? Zille and Jacob Zuma are among a handful of South African politicians who apologised for their actions – Zuma has done so on three occasions. But Zille was forced to humble herself in a way no other political leader has been made to do. That is noteworthy, particularly when political accountability is so eroded. By RANJENI MUNUSAMY.

When reaching for ways and examples to understand what is happening in our politics, it is common to hear the more alarmist among us (and in British newspapers) suggest that President Jacob Zuma and his cronies are beginning to act in a way similar to Robert Mugabe and his ZanuPF. For some people, the only way to analyse our political situation is through the prism of Zimbabwe. Some of this is correct – there are indicators that Zuma, and some of the people around him, would like to act as Mugabe has. But the claims that South Africa will end up like Zimbabwe are deeply flawed. By STEPHEN GROOTES.

The number of new cases of tuberculosis is dropping. By Ashleigh Furlong for GROUNDUP.

The unprecedented outpouring of support from South Africans following the devastating fires that raged through the Southern Cape, and which saw more than 10,000 people evacuated from towns such as Knysna, was a bright silver lining to what was otherwise a heartbreaking event. By Western Cape Minister of Economic Opportunities, ALAN WINDE, and TIM HARRIS, Wesgro CEO.

When the African National Congress – much to their arrogant surprise – lost significant ground in the 2016 municipal elections, coalition politics quickly gained traction as a suitable alternative and sign of South Africa’s healthy democracy. While specific coalitions were formed between a variety of actors over the common enemy of the ANC, the future of coalition politics nevertheless remains divided, and seems unlikely to last long after the potential defeat of the ANC. By DAVID REIERSGORD.

Councillors in Mogale City were again unable to elect a mayor on Wednesday after the DA’s Michael Holenstein was voted out last week. The DA is trying to figure out which of its councillors has been voting against the party. The delays benefit the ANC but limit service delivery. By GREG NICOLSON.

Why the Swedish Model does not work for South Africa. By Nosipho Vidima for GROUNDUP.

Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa on Wednesday told MPs he supported a commission of inquiry into “current allegations in the public domain”, a reference to #GuptaLeaks without actually naming them. During his question time slot in the House, Ramaphosa consistently referred to “corporate capture”, not state capture. It’s an important nuance, one that seeks to shift the focus from the state governed by the ANC. A few hours later Public Protector Advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane announced “a preliminary investigation” to determine the merits of claims of improper conduct against officials in Eskom, Transnet and the Passenger Rail Authority of South Africa (Prasa) - and the role of two public enterprises ministers, Malusi Gigaba and his successor Lynne Brown. By MARIANNE MERTEN.

It is important not to underestimate the degree of alienation that South Africans may feel towards the political system in general, in the light of their experiences under Jacob Zuma, the squandering of resources, the pilfering from the state and the powerful evidence that appears to prove the reality of “state capture”. There was dissatisfaction earlier as people staged continued protests over failure to meet basic needs. The post-Zuma period will need to consider a more thorough rebuilding of confidence and commitment to the democratic system and constitutional order. By RAYMOND SUTTNER.

There are a plethora of criticisms of the bill before Parliament, as well as procedural problems. By GROUNDUP correspondent.

Zambia and Zimbabwe used to be pretty much one country – Rhodesia. Separated by a natural barrier, the Zambezi, one was Northern Rhodesia, one Southern Rhodesia. Political history determined otherwise, but recent occurrences seem to indicate that the countries have become one entity again – for all the wrong reasons. By MAYNARD MANYOWA.

Bereaved families are having to wait to bury their deceased loved ones as a result of an ongoing strike by workers at Gauteng's Forensic Pathology Services. The Gauteng Health Department has engaged the services of the SANDF to deal with the backlog while talks with striking workers have deadlocked. By BHEKI C SIMELANE.

A partnership between the University of Cape Town, Stellenbosch Municipality and the Western Cape government is turning an abandoned water treatment facility in Franschhoek into a centre for water reuse research and innovation. By Trevor Bohatch for GROUNDUP.

Intervention helps kids to adhere to their medication. By Ashleigh Furlong for GROUNDUP.

A chaotic event in Ceres highlighted problems with the social grant system. By Barbara Maregele for GROUNDUP.

Helen Zille has kept her job as Western Cape Premier, despite her tweets on colonialism. GREG NICOLSON looks at what it might mean for the party.

It’s been a busy few weeks. Let’s get caught up. By RICHARD POPLAK.

False prophets and pastors who have established churches across Mpumalanga have been encouraging their sick congregants to stop taking their medication and to trust that God will heal them. Their actions are expected to be exposed and discussed when the Cultural, Religious and Linguistics Commission presents its report on the commercialisation of religion to Parliament later this month. HEALTH-E NEWS’ Cynthia Maseko reports.

Within a week of his CV being passed to the Guptas, an old associate of Gupta lieutenant Salim Essa was given the top job at Eskom. Then the Guptas started collecting. By AMABHUNGANE and SCORPIO.

Anti-corruption politics in South Africa are now decisively focused on Jacob Zuma’s removal. It is not our intention to legitimise him. Governing requires a measure of disinterest in oneself and distance in balancing the interests of others. Zuma’s indiscretion in giving ample circumstance to claims that he is acutely self-interested and heinously partial means that he is incapable of governing. By RYAN BRUNETTE, PATRONELLA NQABA, JOEL PEARSON AND MOSA PHADI.

The SAPS could not answer why, over a year after it was alerted it to conflicts of interests in its ranks, no action had been taken beyond getting statements in which those implicated deny doing business with the state. Parliament’s watchdog on public spending, the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa), on Tuesday met the police top brass in a follow-up to an earlier briefing by the auditor-general’s office, when the SAPS had emerged as a serial offender. What transpired was a picture of no consequences, belying government talk of consequence management amid the ticking of legislative, regulatory and policy prescript boxes. By MARIANNE MERTEN.

People inside the ANC are scared of breaking the party and losing the alliance it has with the Cosatu and the SACP. Their fear is understandable. The ANC has been their “political home” for decades and loyalty to the party has been passed from generation to generation. The ANC used to drip with nostalgic liberation street cred. But of late the party has been reeking from the symptoms of factionalism, corruption and client deployment (read cadre deployment). The rot has become so bad that even ANC Secretary General Gwede Mantashe, who has demonstrated a profound capacity for double-speak, is beginning to forgo his ailment denialism and admit that the party is in trouble. By MARIUS OOSTHUIZEN.

The world’s seas are in deep water – and with them, the future of the planet. By Timothy Walker for ISS TODAY.

DA leader Mmusi Maimane has accepted Helen Zille’s apology for saying colonialism’s legacy was not all negative. Zille, who issued another apology on Monday, will remain Western Cape premier, but will not participate in party structures and will limit her communication on DA issues. By GREG NICOLSON.

A power failure brought Cape Town trains to a halt across the city and thousands were stranded. By GROUNDUP Staff.

The criminalisation of hate speech in an otherwise good draft bill provides a space for the right-wing to rally around. By Sanja Bornman for GROUNDUP.

The GuptaLeaks continue to reveal in astonishing detail how the Gupta family used, manipulated and coaxed politicians to siphon off what may amount to billions of rands to their offshore bank accounts. During the past three years their trusted lawyer Gert van der Merwe has defended his clients with ardour. But now Van der Merwe himself stands accused of money laundering. BY PAULI VAN WYK.

British politician, Lord Anthony St John of Bletso, recently said: “South Africa needs to come to the table. It needs to show transparency; it needs to show good governance; it needs to show accountability.” In this article, we do not discuss accountability from the perspective of the election prerogative of voters to vote new people into government every five years. Rather, we look at the effective and immediate enforcement of accountability from the perspective of immediate responsibility, answerability, trustworthiness and liability of politicians for their actions, decisions and conduct. By ANDRIES HAVENGA.

Western Cape Judge President John Hlophe has found himself the focus of a searing SCA judgment handed down last week with regard to his conduct in another matter involving the alleged theft of R48-million by a businessman. The man was represented in court by the same attorney representing Hlophe in pending disciplinary proceedings before the Judicial Services Commission over allegations that the Judge President approached two Justices of the Constitutional Court in 2008 in an attempt to improperly influence that court’s pending judgment in a case involving Jacob Zuma. Hlophe was excoriated by the SCA for potential bias in ruling in favour of the crooked businessman. By MARIANNE THAMM.

A parliamentary question by DA Shadow Minister in the Presidency Sej Motau to Minister of Tourism Tokozile Xasa has revealed that controversial UK-based PR Company, Bell Pottinger, was appointed by the SA Tourism UK office from January 2014 and paid a whopping R9-million for PR and other communication services relating to South Africa. Bell Pottinger, #GuptaLeaks emails also prove, not only helped the Gupta family and Duduzane Zuma to shape a particular economic narrative inside the country but also partly determined how we should be viewed by the outside world. By MARIANNE THAMM.

Who, in their right mind, would want to be Malusi Gigaba? Our Finance Minister is now at the centre of several storms, and under attack from almost all sides. It is a position few would envy. It is hard to see how he gets out of this with any credibility at all, never mind with any senior position in government or the ANC. Much of this, but not all, is of his own making. And it is becoming increasingly clear he simply cannot get away from the Saxonwold Embrace. By STEPHEN GROOTES.

Since the beginning of the year, outbreaks of cholera and later measles have been spreading across Somalia. The severe and prolonged drought has also caused high malnutrition among children. Unicef estimates that 1.4-million children will suffer from acute malnutrition this year, including 277,000 severe cases. By KUN LI.

A threat to cut off water and electricity sparks protests, but a multitude of festering problems underlie community’s anger. By Ihsaan Haffejee for GROUNDUP.

An obstacle has been removed to making the HIV drug PrEP widely available in South Africa. By Ashleigh Furlong for GROUNDUP.

Hlaudi Motsoeneng, who tried to turn the SABC into a private fiefdom, was finally fired on Monday. The SABC’s interim board is only starting to come to terms with the havoc he inflicted. By GREG NICOLSON.

Judgment clarifies what must happen in eviction hearings. By Safura Abdool Karim for GROUNDUP.

It has been two straight weeks of non-stop revelations about the Gupta tentacles and interference in state affairs. The tranche of leaked Gupta emails have removed any doubt that the family is the controlling force in government. As the methods of courting and manipulating people in government and state-owned enterprises continue to be exposed, panic has set in among some of the people who are compromised or in danger of being outed for their dealings with the family. Some are now seeking legal advice and considering options to “come clean”, while others are banking on the next Zuma presidency providing continued protection for the racket. But how long before the dam walls burst? By RANJENI MUNUSAMY.