10. The Mercury report on how yet another "politically connected business" loaned money by KZN's Ithala Development Bank has folded:
Bronwyn Gerretsen writes that "Rio Ridge cc, which lists Eugene Desele, the husband of Nandi Mandela - a granddaughter of former president Nelson Mandela - as a director, borrowed R10-million from Ithala in 2006 to buy a company, Cascolor Aluminium Powder Coating KZN....Cascolor ground to a halt in June, 2009. Electricity and phones were disconnected, suppliers were not paid and the company could no longer supply customers...Cascolor went into voluntary liquidation in February, giving its employees about two weeks' notice. Many claim to have still not been paid for the two weeks of February that they worked. But Desele said only a few had not been paid."
9. Ivo Vegter's column in the Daily Maverick on how FIFA's greed has helped cripple South Africa's chances of making a long-term return on its massive investment in the World Cup:
Vegter notes that "During the 2004 Olympic Games, the Greek capital [Athens] gained a reputation as a rip-off destination among international tourists. By contrast, Barcelona kept its prices down and has enjoyed a massive tourism boom since its own day in the sun in 1992." In this context it is galling that the South African hospitality industry stands accused of price gouging "when it is not the real culprit. The biggest offender of them all is Match Services, the organisation that was granted monopoly rights by FIFA to sell tickets and tour packages to foreign visitors. Match is part-owned by a company run by Phillipe Blatter, the nephew of FIFA president Sepp Blatter. It has been cavalier in its treatment of South African businesses and rapacious in its sales to foreign tourists."
8. The Star report on odd happenings in the case against Molemo "Jub Jub" Maarohanye and Themba Tshabalala for allegedly killing four schoolchildren in a car crash:
Solly Maphumulo and Baldwin Ndaba report "that people who have vested interests in the case are seeking a ‘political' solution to the charges. It is understood that senior high-ranking ANC officials have been asked to intervene, and their alleged interference is attributed to the fact that Maarohanye played an important role in campaigning for the ruling party during last year's general election, while Tshabalala has strong family ties within the ANC....According to insiders, the investigators and prosecution team were under pressure to charge the two on the lesser count of culpable homicide instead of murder, which carries a minimum sentence of 15 years on each count."