State loses again in liquor war

19 November, 2008 in Botswana, Business

source: Mmegi
LEKOPANYE MOOKETSI
Correspondent

The government suffered another blow in the alcohol war after the Lobatse High Court ruled yesterday that the new liquor regulations should be suspended pending a case lodged by nightclubs.

Justice Key Dingake made the interim order in the case in which four nightclubs Havanna, Ozone, Satchmos and Trekkers are challenging the new regulations. The matter will resume in court on December 2. The new regulations, which stipulate that nightclubs should close earlier, will remain suspended until the case has been finalised. The ruling means that the nightclubs will revert to the old operating hours.

Since the introduction of the new regulations, nightclubs have been closing at midnight from Monday to Thursday and at 2am on Friday and Saturday. On Sundays they close at 10pm.

The nightclub operators sought [continue reading]

Sebetlela`s move to Tati Nickel evokes mixed reactions

19 November, 2008 in Botswana, Business, Mining

source: Standay Standard
by Godfrey Ganetsang
18.11.2008 8:35:13 A

The announcement that Debswana Orapa and Letlhakane Mines General Manager, Seb Sebetlela, will be leaving Debswana at the end of the year to join Tati Nickel has been met with mixed reactions from the employees and labour activists in the country.

Debswana Public and Corporate Affairs Manager, Esther Kanaimba, this week confirmed that Sebetlela will indeed be leaving at the end of the year, adding that Managing Director, Blackie Marole, has already communicated the new developments to members of staff.
Indications are that he will leave office on December 13 and assume his new post at Tati Nickel beginning 2009.

“Tati Nickel Mining Company is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr Sebetela Oletile Sebetlela as general manager with effect from January 1, 2009,” a statement signed by Rob Wagner, Operations Director of Tati Nickel, said. “On behalf of the Tati Nickel Board of directors and [continue reading]

Annan urges rich nations not to drop aid to Africa

19 November, 2008 in Africa

source: International Herald Tribune
By Katrin Bennhold
Published: November 17, 2008

PARIS: Kofi Annan, one of the world’s most outspoken activists for Africa, issued a stern warning to rich nations on Monday not to use the current economic turmoil as an excuse to turn their back on his continent.

“It would be incredibly short-sighted – as well as immoral – for wealthy countries to use this financial crisis to drop promises to help the poorest,” Annan said at a debate in Paris.

Instead, the former secretary general of the United Nations urged harnessing the current momentum for an overhaul of international financial institutions to revive stalled efforts for a more representative UN Security Council.

Speaking with some emotion about the election of Barack Obama, and the pressures on the president-elect to deal with recession at home, Annan made a direct appeal to Obama: “Some international issues cannot wait.”

Praising the weekend Group of 20 meeting in Washington as a [continue reading]

Molale officiates at KBL`s Kick Start function

19 November, 2008 in Botswana, Business

source: Standay Standard
by Prof Malema
18.11.2008 9:07:19 A

Eric Molale, the permanent secretary to the President, this week tried to bridge the difference between KBL and government by officiating at the beginning of the Kick Start and at the same time urged other companies to follow the KBL lead.
Speaking at the ceremony, Molale said that the Kick Start project—let alone the differences that government had with KBL over the 30 percent levy on alcoholic beverages—- is a national building block aimed at having the country competitive against its peers.

“Just imagine, if there were other 50 companies doing the same. That would mean that the standard of living for the promoters and the general economy would push forward. If that happens everybody benefits,” Molale said.
Kick Start, an innovative idea started by SAB Miller which is aimed at [continue reading]

South Africa: Mbeki to address Appeal Court

19 November, 2008 in South Africa

source: News24
18/11/2008 14:08 – (SA)

Bloemfontein – Former president Thabo Mbeki will get some 30 minutes to address the Supreme Court of Appeal on why he must be allowed as a party in the State’s appeal of the Jacob Zuma ruling.

The Supreme Court of Appeal decided on Tuesday that Mbeki’s application would be heard simultaneously with the appeal of the National Director of Public Prosecutions on November 28.

The NDPP is appealing against a Pietermaritzburg High Court judgment that declared corruption charges against the African National Congress president invalid.

The court said Mbeki and the South African government should file their heads of argument on both the procedural aspects as well as on the merits of the intervention without [continue reading]

BCP derides Khama`s military rule

19 November, 2008 in Botswana

source: Mmegi
OARABILE MOSIKARE
Correspondent

FRANCISTOWN: Botswana’s democracy and national planning processes are Confused, according to Botswana Congress Party (BCP) secretary general, Taolo Lucas, speaking at the launch of Francistown South parliamentary candidate, Vain Mamela and his council running mates.

“Parliament is ignored on major decisions involving huge sums of money. The presidential initiatives announced pay very little attention to the 2008/2009 budget passed by parliament. National Development Plan 9 has become just another document as it hardly guides development planning. Vision 2016, a collective blueprint for Batswana, has given way to the 4Ds which are for all intents and purposes a personal construction for the Khama presidency,” Lucas said.

He asserted that discipline is the key word and added that [continue reading]

Botswana differs with SADC on Zimbabwe

19 November, 2008 in Botswana, Zimbabwe

source: Standay Standard
by John Regonamanye and Tanonoka Whande
18.11.2008 8:41:33 A

While respecting governments’ consensus in the Southern African Development Community, the government of Botswana has made it clear that it differs with SADC on some of the decisions passed at the SADC Extra Ordinary Summit held in Johannesburg, South Africa, on November 9, 2008.

Addressing Parliament on Thursday, Phandu Skelemani, Botswana’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, described SADC’s decision to order the co-management of a Ministry by two ministers from different parties as “unrealistic, impracticable and unworkable”.
At the Johannesburg summit, SADC decided that Zimbabwe’s Ministry Of Home Affairs, which is in charge of the police, be run by two ministers from Robert Mugabe’s ZANU-PF and Morgan Tsvangirai’s Movement for Democratic Change.

“This does not reflect a [continue reading]

South Africa: Manuel rejects exchange control calls

19 November, 2008 in South Africa

source: IOL
November 18 2008 at 05:28PM

Finance Minister Trevor Manuel spoke out strongly against calls for new exchange controls on Tuesday, saying their introduction would slow South Africa’s economic growth.

Speaking in the National Assembly, he said the purchases of South African bonds and equities by foreigners had accounted for almost half the country’s financing needs between 2002 and 2007.

“Almost $20-billion per year – that’s roughly R200-million at today’s exchange rate – is needed to finance our current account deficit.

“So as people make these calls for new exchange controls and for isolating South Africa, we need to remember that that gap in financing our investment is in the order of R200-billion a year.

“If we impose harsh measures on foreigners, we won’t get [continue reading]