GroundUp

  The only registered preschool in NU11, Motherwell in Gqeberha has been forced to close down due to recurring spillages of sewage around the building. “All the streets around here are covered with sewage … Parents are struggling because they have to go to crèches far away. Most parents can’t afford to pay for transport,” says Alicia Sicwebu, owner of Luyanda Preschool. Sicwebu accused the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality of failing to repair the sewer system. She said the … [Read more...] about Gqeberha crèche shuts down because of sewage overflow

  The termination of the Covid-19 grant at the end of March has left neighbours Nocawa Maneli and Tembeka Zingela struggling to survive. The two women from Missionvale in Gqeberha both lost their jobs at the start of the pandemic. Without the grant, they live on pap, rice and flour supplied by relatives and go to a local soup kitchen. Fruit and vegetables are a luxury. Tembeka collects used containers in the township for recycling, in exchange for food. Nocawa … [Read more...] about No vegetables, no fruit: surviving without the Covid-19 grant

  Hundreds of elderly people waited in long queues outside the Raymond Mhlaba Sports Centre in Gqeberha on Friday for their turn to be vaccinated against Covid-19. They had heard they could get vaccinated at the site and word spread quickly. Many thought it was a one-day event so they rushed to be there. Although people wore masks, there was a lack of social distancing in the long queue that didn’t move for hours. People complained they were thirsty and hungry. They used their … [Read more...] about Elderly people wait and wait for vaccines in long queue in Gqeberha

  Despite the setback with the Janssen (Johnson & Johnson) vaccines, South Africa still has considerable vaccine stock that we need to use. The number of vaccine doses administered still lags far behind the number of vaccines received and promised by Pfizer. But we risk a supply crunch in July unless the government negotiates with more confidence with vaccine suppliers. South Africa’s vaccine rollout faces two major challenges: getting the vaccines we already … [Read more...] about South Africa’s vaccine rollout can succeed

  Wara Fana, a much respected and beloved journalist in Gqeberha, died of Covid-19 on Friday. He was 45 years old. Wara was the founder and publisher of Skawara, a community newspaper in Cofimvaba, and chairperson of the Association of Independent Publishers. He was also one of the panelists of the South African National Editors Forum Media Relief Fund, which has been assisting struggling journalists during the pandemic. Wara used to write for GroundUp but our main … [Read more...] about Hamba Kahle Wara Fana | GroundUp

  On Sunday and Monday police clashed with residents of Govan Mbeki Village in Gqeberha. Since Friday the informal settlement’s illegal electricity connections have not been working. Residents blocked roads when police stopped them from restoring their connections. For days tensions have been high in Gqeberha between police and Govan Mbeki Village shack dwellers over illegal electricity connections. On Sunday morning residents blocked Chatty Dip on the R75 … [Read more...] about Police and shack dwellers clash over illegal connections in Gqeberha

  The Libhongolethu depot in Cleary Park, Gqeberha, has been shut down for two days, paralysing the bus service. Shareholders of the bus service are in dispute with the board over outsourcing of maintenance and compensation payments. The Libhongolethu bus depot in Cleary Park, Gqeberha, was shut down on Thursday and Friday morning, disrupting service to commuters. Protesters, who are shareholders of the bus service, blocked the entrance to the depot with burning … [Read more...] about Dispute between shareholders and board leaves commuters without bus service

  About 50 unemployed security guards shut down a busy municipal customer care service centre in the Gqeberha city centre on Tuesday. The protesters, some of whom came from Kariega and Despatch, say hundreds of them were left out of an insourcing process proposed by the EFF and started while Athol Trollip was still mayor. Protest leader Zibele Sabisa said they have been protesting since 2019. The protesters accused the current administration of returning to a policy of … [Read more...] about Unemployed security guards shut down municipal customer care centre

  Unemployed security guards who were protesting outside a municipal customer service centre in central Gqeberha on Tuesday, opened a case of assault after they were pepper-sprayed. Police spokesperson Colonel Priscilla Naidu said four protesters (two men and two women) opened a case of assault at SAPS Humewood police station. “It is alleged that they were pepper-sprayed by a person from the municipality when they were protesting outside a municipal building. No arrests have … [Read more...] about Protesters open assault case, alleging municipal official pepper-sprayed them

  The Medical Research Council (MRC) SARS-CoV-2 wastewater surveillance project has detected a three-week-long surge in Gauteng, as well as hotspots in Gqeberha and Cape Town. The project monitors the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 viral loads at 70 wastewater treatment plants across four provinces: 20 plants in the Eastern Cape, nine in Gauteng, eight in Limpopo, and 32 in the Western Cape. MRC researchers collect samples from these plants and submit them for PCR tests. The MRC … [Read more...] about Gauteng sewage has shown high rates of Covid-19 for three weeks

  Circumcision schools in the Eastern Cape are not accepting that lockdown Level 4 applies to them, after President Cyril Ramaphosa announced stricter Covid-19 restrictions on Sunday night. The provincial Department of Corporate Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) says circumcision is suspended with immediate effect, but traditional leaders say they will continue until the president tells them to stop. On Monday morning, provincial COGTA spokesperson Mamkeli Ngam told … [Read more...] about Circumcision schools say new lockdown does not apply to them

  Laetitia Bam Day Hospital in KwaNobuhle, Kariega, was without clean running water since Thursday. The water was restored late on Monday following interventions by members of the National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union after staff threatened to protest. A staff member, who asked not to be named, told GroundUp that water supply has been intermittent in recent weeks. “When we want to relieve ourselves, there is sometimes no water to flush the toilets,” she … [Read more...] about Only 24-hour clinic in KwaNobuhle was without running water for five days

  Taxi bosses within the Norwich Taxi Association held a roadblock on Old Uitenhage Road in Gqeberha on Thursday morning, inspecting their taxis for Covid-19 compliance. This follows many complaints by commuters that taxi drivers and fare collectors were not adhering to level 4 lockdown regulations as well as other traffic violations on routes between Kleinskool and Missionvale townships. Commuter Lizeka Mfundisi from Missionvale works as a security guard in Cleary Park … [Read more...] about Taxi bosses surprise drivers with Covid-19 inspection

  A group of 40 small-scale fishers in the Eastern Cape this week finally realised a long-held ambition to go to sea to catch squid. They were joined by their friends and relatives at Gqeberha port to celebrate the occasion. The small-scale fishers are from a dozen fishing cooperatives in the province awarded licences to fish various species that have been the monopoly of large commercial fisheries. The Department of Forestry, Fisheries and Environment recently awarded them a … [Read more...] about Eastern Cape fishers celebrate chance to once again catch squid

  The Durban warehouse belonging to FoodForward SA was ransacked on Tuesday, prompting the organisation to close all its branches in five cities, leaving some 675,000 people without the food it supplies. More than 125,000 vulnerable people depend on the food sourced from the Durban warehouse, according to FoodForward SA’s fund development manager, Deidre Adams. She said looters had taken all the food in the warehouse. “They also vandalised our vehicles and managed to steal … [Read more...] about Food supply to 675,000 people cut off after Durban food bank ransacked