Sunday round-up: Municipal elections under review, brutal Zandspruit mob attack, and ‘Izinyoka’ create electricity connections for R2 000 or less

IEC announces municipal elections are under review

Retired deputy chief justice Dikgang Moseneke has been appointed by the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) to lead a panel that will assess if it is possible to hold free and fair elections during a global pandemic. Read more on this here.

Zandspruit ‘mob-justice’ death toll rises to eight

Around 200 community members forcefully rounded up individuals they believed to be ‘terrorising the community’. The individuals, reported to be between 20 and 30 years of age, were taken to a sports field, beaten, tied up near tyres, and reportedly set alight. The nine people were alleged to have been involved in several robberies in the area. The death toll, as a result of the incident, has risen to eight.

‘Izinyoka’ supply electricity for a fee to informal settlements – illegally

For a once-off fee of R2 000 or less, informal communities on the North Coast can get connected to street lights and transformers to bring power to their shacks. Read the full report on the North Coast Courier.

Over one-million students qualify for financial aid

Funding shortages remain a concern for the National Student Financial Aid Scheme. During a media briefing, board chairperson Ernest Khosa announced the number of eligible students for 2021 funding includes 712 428 first-time entry students and 551 243 continuing students, with 323 445 from technical and vocational education and training colleges and 940 226 from universities. For more details, click here.

Woman arrested for fabricating hijacking, kidnapping story

Police arrested a woman for making up a hijacking and kidnapping story in Mohlakeng, Randfontein, and sending a search party on a wild goose chase. In spite of giving police a statement under oath, the woman was caught out by the authorities, who found her story had too many holes. Read the full story on Randfontein Herald.

Trendsetting on TikTok

Dr Siyamak Saleh, who has over one-million TikTok followers, was named one of the top 10 creators on the platform in SA at the end of last year. His fun yet informative videos dispel medical myths, such as ‘too much screen-time is bad for your eyes’, ‘sugar is addictive’, and the ‘Covid-19 vaccine will kill you’. Read more about the famous doc here.