Government

The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality wishes to inform residents that its Library Service re-opened today, Monday, 11 January 2021 and will continue receiving library materials. Libraries will receive materials from 09h00 until 15h30 on Monday to Thursday and from 09h00 – 13h30 on Fridays. The Walmer Library will receive materials on alternate days every week; on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. On Monday and Wednesday, the Walmer library will open for receipt of library materials from 09h00 until … [Read more...] about Libraries re-open after Christmas closure

The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) has called on the public to disregard conspiracy theories linking the deployment of Fifth-Generation (5G) technologies and infrastructure to the spread of the novel Coronavirus. In a statement issued on Monday, the authority said this narrative should be ignored as it was aimed at bringing instability and fear. ICASA again debunked the conspiracy theories, which first came to light in April last year. “The … [Read more...] about ICASA debunks link between 5G and COVID-19

Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality Member of the Mayoral Committee for Electricity and Energy, Councillor Luxolo Namette, on Monday (January 11, 2021) officially switched on the electricity supply to shacks in the Westville informal settlement near KwaDwesi. Nelson Mandela Bay continues to experience a high demand for housing, creating a housing backlog of approximately 80 000 units, hence the mushrooming of informal settlements across the City. As a result of this phenomenon, most of these … [Read more...] about Electricity Delivered to Westville Informal Settlement

South Africa recorded 17 421 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday, which represents a 28% positivity rate. This pushes the number of total COVID-19 cases to 1 231 597 since the outbreak. Meanwhile, the death toll has climbed to 33 163, after 339 more people passed away due to Coronavirus complications in the last 24 hours. Of the latest fatalities, 113 are in the Western Cape, 77 in the Eastern Cape, 71 in KwaZulu-Natal, 28 in Gauteng, 14 in Limpopo, 10 in Mpumalanga and seven in … [Read more...] about SA records 17 421 new COVID-19 cases

Municipal facilities within the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro, including community halls, libraries and sports grounds, are under constant attack by vandals and other criminal elements, who are hell-bent on destroying what should be the crown jewels in the daily lives of residents of the Bay. The dire state of our facilities was highlighted during my oversight inspection today at the Lillian Ngoyi Community Hall in KwaZakhele, Port Elizabeth. During this inspection, I found the hall in total … [Read more...] about Mayor Bhanga calls urgent Mayoral Committee meeting to tackle vandalism of municipal facilities

Health Minister, Dr Zweli Mkhize, says while the fiscus will carry the burden of procuring the COVID-19 vaccine aimed at preventing the further spread of the virus and loss of life, government will reach out to medical schemes to make a contribution. (See: SA Will Acquire 1 Million Doses of the COVID-19 Vaccine). Mkhize on Thursday said they will also consider asking medical schemes to co-subsidise some members of the public, as government makes a push to raise funds to procure vaccine doses … [Read more...] about Govt turns to medical schemes to co-subsidise vaccine

Eastern Cape MEC for Education Fundile Gade, has paid tribute to Head of Department, Themba Kojana for his dedication in transforming the education sector. Kojana passed away in the early hours of Thursday following a short illness that led to him being admitted to hospital on Tuesday evening. The MEC said Kojana passed on after working tirelessly to improve the performance of Eastern Cape schools while serving as its Head of Department. “[Kojana’s passing] has shattered us as the … [Read more...] about Condolences for Themba Kojana

South Africa has logged over 800 daily Coronavirus deaths for the first time since the outbreak, while new cases also hit a record high on Wednesday. A total of 844 people lost their lives to COVID-19, pushing the death toll 31 368. According to Health Minister, Dr Zweli Mkhize, the Eastern Cape reported 452 deaths due to the respiratory disease. However, Mkhize said the staggering number of deaths in the province was due to “data reconciliation” dating between May and November … [Read more...] about SA records 844 COVID-19 deaths as cases surge

Time is running out to comment on the annual review and adjustment of the National Minimum Wage for 2021. The Department of Employment and Labour has alerted the public to the Friday deadline for their input into the review of the National Minimum Wage (NMW). Written submissions are made to the NMW Commission in line with the National Minimum Wage Act. The Act seeks to provide a more equitable pay structure that ensures working people do not live in poverty and also provides for … [Read more...] about Have your say on the National Minimum Wage adjustment

Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality Member of the Mayoral Committee for Safety and Security, John Best, called on Bay residents to guard against coronavirus fatigue as the second wave of the pandemic causes havoc with alarming increases in new national infections. “However, we are happy to report that the recent stricter lockdown regulations, announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa, had the desired effect in Nelson Mandela Bay as we noticed a remarkable decline in activity this year. “Even … [Read more...] about Bay residents must guard against coronavirus fatigue

COVID-19 continues to spread in South Africa amid the second wave of infections, with 11 859 confirmed cases identified on Sunday. According to the latest data, this represents a 32% positivity rate, bringing the total number of cases to 1 100 748 since the outbreak. Meanwhile, the country has 167 492 active actives, with KwaZulu-Natal now being the hardest hit province, with 63 690 people who are currently infected. The Western Cape has 42 388 active cases, followed by Gauteng with 31 … [Read more...] about SA records 11 859 new COVID-19 cases, 402 deaths

In outlining the outlines rollout plans for the COVID-19 vaccine, Government has set a minimum target of 67% of the population to receive the COVID-19 vaccine in an effort to achieve herd immunity, says Health Minister, Dr Zweli Mkhize. South Africa recently made the down payment to secure the COVID-19 vaccine for 10% of the population. In a media briefing on Sunday on the country's COVID-19 Vaccine Strategy, the Minister said the rollout of the vaccine will be done in phases beginning … [Read more...] about Government has set a minimum target of 67% of the population to receive the COVID-19 vaccine

Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality Executive Mayor, Cllr Nqaba Bhanga has commended resident and fitness instructor Sharon Jessop for fund-raising more than R40 000 during her brave 101 consecutive half marathons challenge to save animals. Jessop who started the challenge on World Rhino Day on 22 September 2020, broke the Guinness World Record on Thursday, 31 December 2020 when she completed 101 consecutive half marathons in an effort to save Rhinos and other vulnerable animals. Mayor Bhanga … [Read more...] about Mayor commends record breaking 101 consecutive half marathons by PE resident