The Weekend Wrap

Huge surge in kidnappings hits SA; what will it take to transform NHI into universal healthcare? Plus, decoding the ‘Kamala Harris is BRAT’ memes with an expert.

Last year, the police recorded 15,342 kidnapping cases, a massive increase from 4,306 in 2013/14. The crime is becoming so prevalent that a growing number of people are taking out kidnapping insurance.

By Vincent Cruywagen

As the ANC’s top leadership discusses the election result and the new coalition government, there are already indications of how some parties have much to lose from the new arrangement — and it appears that some ANC ministers are concerned about DA ministers outshining them. This is not necessarily a bad thing.

By Stephen Grootes

gnu rivals ministers governance

South Africa’s most decorated men’s swimmer, Chad le Clos, is up for the fight in his fourth Olympics.

By Gary Lemke in Paris

The 2019 report of Health Market Inquiry shows that South Africa’s private healthcare overservices its clients, offers variable patient experiences, and varying quality of care. This inquiry goes on to call for regulatory reforms to enhance efficiency, competitiveness, affordability and service quality.

By Tracey Naledi, Krish Vallabhjee, Atiya Mosam and Mark Heywood

NHI

The 2019 report of Health Market Inquiry shows that South Africa’s private healthcare overservices its clients, offers variable patient experiences, and varying quality of care. This inquiry goes on to call for regulatory reforms to enhance efficiency, competitiveness, affordability and service quality.

By Tracey Naledi, Krish Vallabhjee, Atiya Mosam and Mark Heywood

Whether she embraces it explicitly or not, the meme-ification of Harris’s campaign has significant potential to make a positive impact on her campaign.

By Caroline Leicht

Whether she embraces it explicitly or not, the meme-ification of Harris’s campaign has significant potential to make a positive impact on her campaign.

By Caroline Leicht

It boggles my mind how it is possible that 30 years after democracy and eight years after this was first raised, black pupils still experience discrimination and feel unwelcome.

By Melanie Verwoerd

Although VBS Mutual Bank collapsed six years ago, it has been in the headlines this month following an affidavit by its former chairperson, Tshifhiwa Matodzi, that could well prove to be a smoking gun for many of the perpetrators of the fraud at the heart of the bank’s failure. In this video, journalists Pauli van Wyk and Neesa Moodley explain what happened.

By Neesa Moodley and Pauli van Wyk

The campaign to free Pretoria Zoo’s elephant has been sustained for years, often with angry words, accusations and protests. Finally it’s official: Charlie is on his way into wild retirement.

By Don Pinnock

Has the tide finally turned on the South African economy? While early days, it seems that the new business-friendly coalition government has wrested back control of economic policy from the suffocating clutches of Luthuli House. Investors are cautiously optimistic.

By Natale Labia

A supervised bus service for learners could have spared Lifalethu Mbasana from his traumatic 7½-hour ordeal after school last week.

By Velani Ludidi

A weekly movie review column written by everyone’s favourite replicant.

By Richard Poplak

In the kota beef between Gauteng and KZN, I’m extremely biased. I can confidently say that Gauteng, especially Soweto, is the home of the kota, the popular street food made from a hollowed loaf of bread. My musings might fuel a long-standing beef between Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal.

By Ray Mahlaka

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