GALLERY: Looking back at 2020

January

• City of Johannesburg mayor councillor Geoffrey Makhubo condemns the acts of violence and crime that occurred at the 2019 City of Johannesburg New Year’s Eve Countdown at Mary Fitzgerald Square in Newtown on the early hours of January 1.

• Gauteng Education MEC Panyaza Lesufi congratulated the class of 2019 for the effort they put into matric results. They achieved 87.23 per cent.

• The family from Ridgeway Extension Three was involved in a horrific accident in Cape Town on January 3 and they were pleading for help to ease their financial burden.

• Johannesburg Harriers Athletics Club (JHAC) donates sporting gear to Kibler Park Secondary School.

February

• Unallocated learners get schooling in halls.

• Lucky Lekgwathi Foundation donates 50 pairs of school shoes to Ormonde Primary School.

• Tennis stars Kevin Anderson and Lloyd Haris made themselves available to be part of the Raising Stars Development Tournament at the Arthur Ashe Tennis Centre.

• Jan van Aswegen (64), a resident of Alberton and a member of the South Downs Country Club for the last 22 years, was fatally attacked by four pit bulls while trying to save a woman.

• Dead fish found in and around Wemmerpan Dam.

• A body of a man was found floating in Wemmerpan Dam.

March

• Naturena 8 remembered. The community of Naturena commemorate the lost souls and surviving victims of the shooting where eight people were shot and three of those lost their lives.

• JMPD recruits go back to the academy to finish their training.

• Believers Care Society (BCS) won the Thulasizwe Nkabinde-Khawe Awards (gold) for best performing NPO at the Gauteng Premier Service Excellent Awards.

• Three children died when a taxi and another motor vehicle collided on the R553 Golden Highway.

• City of Johannesburg mayor and leader of the Government of Local Unity councillor Geoffrey Makhubo announces the board and chairpersons of municipal entities.

• Forest Hill resident Naomi Moleme, a paediology major student who was studying with Southwest University in Chongqing, shared her coronavirus experience with the COURIER while she was still in China.

• City of Johannesburg mayor councillor Geoffrey Makhubo convened an urgent mayoral committee meeting as a response to the announcements of President Cyril Ramaphosa pertaining to the escalation of government’s response to Covid-19.

April

• Members of Jozi Ihlomile put their masks and gloves on and went into the streets of Joburg South to help the community to understand the importance of staying home to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

• Ward 124 councillor Mongameli Mnyameni thanked Joburg Water for their efforts to provide water to the people, especially in informal settlements.

• In a reply to a call for assistance, the community reached out and a large number of gloves and sanitisers were donated to Mondeor and Booysens police stations.

• Netball South Africa (NSA) president Cecilia Molokwane tested positive for Covid-19 after her business travels between the United Kingdom and Scotland.

May

• Ward 57 councillor Faeeza Chame thanked all the volunteers who helped during lockdown.

• Officials from the Department of Health Region F screened and tested EmaXhoseni informal settlement residents.

• Lefa (24) and his sibling Thabang Motloung (31) from Mondeor created Africa’s first and most technologically advantaged Covid-29 data-driven platform covering over 200 countries.

• An intelligent-driven operation led to a drug bust on Xavier Street in Robertsham.

• Denise de Witt (77), from Renaissance Retirement Home in Glenvista, helped over 20 women from the South by organising them to make masks and earn a living during lockdown.

• Guardian Angel Security (GAS) owner Steve Dwarika is home recuperating after he was shot in Turffontein.

• South’s Dr Arnold Mervyn Friedman retires at age 87.

June

• Former Banyana Banyana captain Portia Modise launched a foundation aimed at connecting the dots in women’s football through football development programmes, mentoring and training, and community outreach initiatives.

• Annie Burger Old Age Home resident praised President Cyril Ramaphosa for the way he handled lockdown, after 60 days.

• Dot van Eeden from Mulbarton is devastated and livid after vandalism caused chaos at the “den” in La Rochelle.

• Oakdene resident Imran Abbas braves the virtual comrades for good a cause.

• The private office of the executive mayor of Johannesburg, councillor Geoffrey Makhubo, recorded its first positive case of Covid-19.

• Rewlatch Primary School approached the community on social media to ask for donations to help fund sanitation stands.

• The South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) received numerous grievances with regards to declined R350 grant applications.

July

• Long queues for screening learners in the morning prompted Diversity High School learner Simphiwe Radebe to create an application that can help with the everyday screening in schools.

• Southern girl Anarzade Omar (21) made it into the top 15 for the Miss South Africa 2020 pageant.

• Art took young and promising local artist (from Regents Park) Joseph Somwe (20) to Chicago, in the United State of America.

• Petition to resolve power outages launched.

• A newborn baby was found in the drain of Cynthia Court in Chrisville.

• In a remarkable display of the true spirit of Mandela Day, over 300 chefs stood behind their stoves, united despite the devastation of the industry, taking collective action to put their heart where their passion lies – feeding people.

August

• Turffontein teenager Sbongakonke ‘Sbongarrrsa’ Cele wows online audiences with his acting skills during lockdown.

• Ntando Makwela from Mulbarton launched a campaign entitled #eAfrika.

• Tragedy strikes as shacks from EmaXhoseni and Booysens informal settlements were destroyed by raging fire on the same night of August 1.

• Police launched a manhunt for 10 suspected robbers following an armed robbery at one of the jewellery stores at The Glen Shopping Centre.

• The Door of Hope celebrated its 21st birthday.

• South Rand Hospital staff joined the world by doing the Jerusalema dance.

September

• SPAR challenge support the fight to end gender-based violence.

• Locals take a stand in a peaceful Move One Million (M1M) demonstration.

• Jeremiah, a nine-month-old baby from Turffontein, died from fourth-degree burn wounds on a hot two-plate stove.

• Equestrian Bafana Ndhlove shares passion for horses.

• Simphiwe Radebe from Elandspark develops another app.

• Moffat View SAPS staff celebrate Heritage Day.

• Bugsy Malone opened its doors in 1990, and turning 30 years old has been a major milestone for them.

October

• A Wendy House, used to store beds and other belongings, burnt to the ground at Nkosi’s Haven in Alan Manor.

• Pastor Freddy Tema from Turffontein gives wheelchairs, toys and clothes to the less fortunate in the area.

• Kgaogelo Bopape (17) from Horizon High School in Turffontein made a name for himself after receiving a bronze medal at the 61st International Mathematics Olympiad.

• Peaceful protesters from Turffontein Joshco Project handed a memorandum to City of Johannesburg officials.

• Cotlands is proud to announce the newly elected office bearers of the Cotlands board.

• Angels Baby Sanctuary moved to bigger and better premises in La Rochelle.

• Joburg Water donated 15 computers to Diversity High School.

November

• ANC Bertha Gxowa branch and its alliance partners, as well as the community of Ward 124, participated in a peaceful march to Booysens police station.

• Lionel Hunter, the big-hearted former boxer and trainer, died.

• Imran Abbas from Oakdene did it again and added another achievement in his long list. He cycled from Johannesburg to Durban with Esmero Cycling Club for the 11th year in a row, for a great cause.

• Women of the South speak out against gender-based violence.

• First-ever Miss Rosettenville crowned with the help of Active Youngins Foundation.

• The case against businessman Deon Pillay postponed at Palm Ridge Magistrate’s Court. He is accused of theft, fraud and contravening of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act.

• Booysens SAPS embarked on a series of workshops about routine compliance at second-hand goods dealers.

• Finance and e-Government MEC Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko announced an additional budget allocation amounting to R1.3-billion for job creation and job protection particularly for the youth, as part of effort to counter the adverse of economic impact of Covid-19 in the province.

December

• Dr Esther Mahlangu brings artistic flair to a revamped Southgate Mall’s food court.

• Humble Star Properties donated much-needed food parcels to an orphanage in Robertsham, Tarbiyatul Aytaam Fioundation.

• A man from Winchester Hills believes he has seen an unidentified flying object (UFO).

• The Gauteng premier, David Makhura, spoke on the strengthening of the healthcare system.

• JMPD trainees who were recalled from duty earlier in the year because of training discrepancies finally graduated.

• Two men killed, and another left critically injured, following a shooting on Xavier Street in Ormonde.

• The deacon of Saint Patrick’s Catholic Church in La Rochelle, Walter Middleton, launched his book titled Born to Serve.

• The Salaam Foundation decided that growing food as a means of survival and as a sustainable project is the best option to help the most vulnerable, and that’s when the idea of a Farm in a City was born.