The pageantry of a National Convention is a spectacle of modern democracy. But beneath the carefully choreographed display of unity and optimism, a National Convention at its best is something far more profound. It is a stage for tough questions. But it can also be a stage for tragicomedy.
In a speech on the First Day of Convention on August 15, 2025, President Cyril Ramaphosa posed a question that left many South Africans baffled. “We need to ask ourselves why so many people live in abject poverty and so few live lives of opulence,” he said.
One would be forgiven for thinking that the President only landed in South Africa a few months ago. Perhaps it explains why the president’s response to any significant matters is to appoint a commission of inquiry. Our billionaire president is simply out of touch.
The expectation is often that when a country is in a crisis’ such as poverty and inequality, the current reality in South Africa, it is the President who is the first to act. To rise above the crisis, call for policy reform and offer practical solutions to the problem, closing the gaps, rather than asking about the symptoms of this much bigger problem.
The question is rhetorical, deflecting from his government’s role in these long standing and ongoing economic disparities which begs the question, if it is the President asking this question, then who is to answer?
For too long, the national conversation has been about symptoms and not the underlying sickness which is the corruption and mishandling of state funds by those in power and appointed by him. Therefore, it was not his place to ask this question; instead, his place is to come into the gathering with solutions.
The National Dialogue is the opportunity for the President and his cabinet to account for how it is that more that 30 years into democracy, the issue of poverty and inequality in South Africa is still front and centre in and outside of the National Dialogue spaces.
In South Africa, as of 2024 approximately 55.5% of the population lives below the National upper poverty line. This means that more than half of the population struggles to afford necessities, highlighting significant economic inequality.
Abject poverty in South Africa is a daily struggle fought in informal settlements and overcrowded townships, the family that shares a single room, children who go to bed hungry and the parents who are unemployed. It is the lack of clean water, the failing sanitation and the constant fear of crime. The numbers in this category represent much of our population.
When democracy arrived, the hope was that this system would be dismantled. While legal segregation ended, the infrastructure of inequality remains in place, a stubborn architect of our current reality. The question that remains with ordinary South Africans is why has equality not been achieved more than 30 years later?
President Ramaphosa’s question is a diagnosis of what has and continues to be the consequence of the rot that he has power over in government. To answer his own question would require a great sense of accountability for his contribution to the problem. The President posing the question without tangible solutions, inspires debate but offers little practical direction.
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Zanele S. Maduma, 2025 Wits Vuvuzela Journalist. Photo: File/Paul Botes
National Dialogue exposes deep cracks between citizens and state officials, raises doubts about its impact.
Tensions rose during the launch of the National Dialogue at UNISA in Pretoria, where disruptions overshadowed the opening session.
Former President Thabo Mbeki, alongside several organisations and political parties, withdrew from the process over concerns about credibility.
Citizens and students voiced disappointment at what they described as exclusion and lack of genuine representation.
The first National Convention in Pretoria over the weekend was intended to begin shaping a shared national vision and create a space for forthcoming dialogue. However, the event revealed a clear disconnect between government officials and ordinary citizens.
Audience members during Day 1 of the first National Convention of the National Dialogue of South Africa at Unisa. Photo: Likho Mbuka
Proceedings on Friday, August 15, 2025, at the opening of the National Dialogue at UNISA in Pretoria, were interrupted when individuals not listed as panellists attempted to force their way onto the stage, demanding to speak before President Cyril Ramaphosa.
The event began with a welcoming address by UNISA Vice-Chancellor Professor Puleng LenkaBula, followed by a musical performance.
Tensions unfolded shortly after panellists were invited to the stage for the first engagement session before the president’s address.
While panellists representing the citizen-led National Dialogue roadmap – a framework drawn up by civil society groups and legacy foundations – were called to the stage, two men not on the list rushed the stage.
They demanded to speak ahead of Ramaphosa and other high-profile delegates. They were asked to respect the process and calmly escorted off the stage.
The day had already been marked by an earlier disruption when an attendee collapsed, prompting a brief pause while emergency personnel provided medical assistance. Delegates sang them off with struggle songs until order was restored.
The dialogue itself opened under a cloud of eleventh-hour withdrawals. Former President Thabo Mbeki, the Thabo Mbeki and FW de Klerk Foundations, several Government of National Unity (GNU) partners, and several civil society organisations pulled out of the process. Opposition parties, including the Democratic Alliance (DA) and Freedom Front Plus (FF Plus), also withdrew, accusing the African National Congress of hijacking the initiative for political gain ahead of the 2026 local government elections.
In an interview with Wits Vuvuzela, ANC spokesperson Mahlengi Bengu-Motsiri said,
“Our participation will be anchored in the values of the ANC, the resolutions of our national conferences, and the current lived experiences of our people,” she said.
Not everyone left convinced. Wits University first-year politics student, Sekhu Vivian Lerato, said she had hoped to witness inclusivity at work, but the disruptions only underscored her concerns.
“It felt more about political optics than citizens’ voices,” she said.
President Ramaphosa, however, cast the Dialogue in more optimistic terms, calling it “the real conversation” for South Africans to confront poverty, inequality, and poor service delivery.”
Whether the excluded voices will accept that invitation remains an open question.
FEATURED IMAGE: President Cyril Ramaphosa during Day 1 of the first National Convention of the National Dialogue of South Africa at Unisa’s Pretoria Main Campus. Photo: Likho Mbuka
Innovators, industry leaders, and seasoned professionals gathered to discuss AI’s purpose in Africa’s key sectors.
Experts agreed that AI is a powerful tool, particularly in the health sector.
From a legal perspective, the greatest threat from AI is its potential to concentrate wealth and power in the hands of a few corporations.
With AI as a resource in Africa, there is a clear call for models and frameworks that are designed to serve African-based principles and values.
Delegates explored AI’s transformative impact across various sectors whilst delivering important critiques about ethical applications and regulations of artificial intelligence (AI).
Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies, Solly Malatsi, highlighted its potential to revolutionise Africa’s future, which was the central theme at the CNBC Africa’s inaugural AI Summit at Indaba Hotel in Fourways.
Minister of Communication and Digital Technologies, Solly Malatsi, giving his keynote address Photo: Katlego Makhutle
The inaugural summit sponsored by Telkom in partnership with Forbes Africa and VISA, launched on Thursday, August 14, with important panel discussions moderated by CNBC Africa anchors.
Medical practitioner and CEO of Alpha and Omega MedTech, Dr. Brett Lyndell-Singh highlighted AI’s applications in healthcare, explaining how it is already being used to improve diagnostics in radiology, pathology, and dermatology.
Lyndell-Singh said, “I think it can be used for education [and] health awareness, but it cannot replace a doctor, especially [in] surgery. It’s not going to replace surgery, especially in Africa, any time soon…but you can actually have homoeopathic remedies that you can get from AI and ask it to give you some common remedies for flu, for example.”
Associate Lawyer at The Digital Law Company, Rorke Wilson, offered a legal perspective on the technology. Wilson acknowledged that AI introduces new digital security threats, such as a personal assistant AI that could compromise a user’s entire data ecosystem.
He argued that the primary threat is not the potential of a sentient AI, but rather AI being used to consolidate power and wealth to a few corporations. In the panel session, he noted that South Africa has its own commission in the works and later told Wits Vuvuzela, that perhaps the EU-AI Act-the first major legislation of artificial intelligence in the world, can be used as a “great framework” for creating a new regulation in South Africa.
The summit’s panel on education argued that it should be embraced for disruption. Professor Kat Yassim, Associate Professor at the University of Johannesburg’s Department of Education Leadership and Management, highlighted that young people are “digital natives”. She emphasised that universities must adapt their teaching and assessment methods alike.
Yassim challenged the traditional academic view that students have a propensity to cheat. “Should our measurements not be different? Should it always be about a mark? And that is what AI is forcing us to do. It’s forcing us to question. It’s forcing us to evolve,” she said.
She advocated for a collaborative learning environment where professors and students co-create knowledge and experiment with AI as a tool. Yassim provided a striking example from her own class, where 35% of students went on to become digital leaders in their schools after designing their own learning platforms using an AI-assisted process.
She asserted that this success is the true measure of learning and impact, demonstrating that when AI is used as a tool to enhance personal abilities, it can help students make a real difference in their communities and careers.
Overall, the summit painted two sides of the AI debate in Africa. One focused on the immense potential for innovation and the other on the critical need for ethical oversight and equitable development.
FEATURED IMAGE: From Left to Right: Founder of World Wide Worx, Arthur Goldstuck; Old Mutual Group Chief Technology and Data Officer, Dhesen Ramsamy & Openserve Chief Information Officer, Reubin Layman Photo: Katlego Makhutle
Israel adds to the already harrowing death toll of media workers reporting from Palestine.
Journalists Against Apartheid take a moment to commemorate lost Al-Jazeera colleagues.
Anas al-Sharif was among the six journalists recently targeted by Israel.
South African journalists and supporters emphasise the need for the media to speak up and to report the truth.
It was a sombre and almost muted affair, as a handful of South African journalists gathered on August 14, to honour slain colleagues in Palestine.
Journalists Against Apartheid gathered outside the Al-Jazeera office in Auckland Park, holding candles, placards and some draped in keffiyehs to remember those who have been killed by Israeli forces.
Journalist holding a candle in commemoration of lost media workers in Gaza. Photo: Ekta Seebran
Housed in a tent outside Gaza City’s al-Shifa hospital, Anas al-Sharif, a Palestinian journalist for Al-Jazeera Arabic, along with colleagues Mohammed Qreiqeh, Ibrahim Zaher, Mohammed Noufal, and freelance journalists Mohammed al-Khalid and Momen Aliwa, were killed in a targeted Israeli airstrike.
Israel admitted to targeting al-Sharif on the belief that he was the head of a Hamas terrorist cell but has yet to produce any evidence of this.
Faseegah Davids, coordinator of the Palestine Solidarity Committee, said, “making people feel powerless is the tool of the oppressor, journalists being silenced and killed in Gaza are used to misguide the world in terms of narrative and truth. But we know the truth. They have already been exposed.”
Since October 2023, 272 journalists and media workers have been killed in Israel.
Placards made by supporters. Photo: Ekta SeebranSupporters taking a moment of silence for the lost journalists. Photo: Ekta Seebran
Josephine Kloekner, freelance journalist and organiser of the vigil, said, “It’s not a time we can just be hesitating, because all our colleagues are dying, we have to show our faces and speak up, because if we don’t, who will do it for us.”
The gathering heard voices from not only journalists and supporters of Palestine, but also from media workers on the field sent a message to be read to the crowd, which said:
“The target is truth. We knew them not as bylines, but as friends, as colleagues. Whenever we could get coffee, we shared it with them […] We ran towards danger, not away from it, because we are fearless. But in actual fact, we live in fear. It’s our natural state, and we know that the world must see. We mourn today, but we pick up our cameras tomorrow […] We can never allow Gaza to die without us.”
FEATURED IMAGE: Photos of Al-Jazeera journalists killed on 10 August 2025. Photo: Ekta Seebran.
With the world’s biggest polluters shirking their climate commitments, developing nations are left asking whether it’s our ‘turn to burn’.
As America turns away from climate action, countries question whether to follow its profit-driven lead.
Coal still powers South Africa and provides employment, making it hard to abandon immediately.
Resource-rich countries are at a crossroads on how to benefit from their fossil fuels, as developed nations have historically done.
South Africa’s climate efforts are a drop in the ocean if major emitters like the United States don’t meet their climate goals. So, why should we sacrifice if they are doing the opposite?
The talk by philosophy professor Lucy Allais presented this question to a packed audience at the Wits Club on Wednesday, August 13, during the Pro VC Seminar.
The event was the brainchild of Professor Imraan Valodia, Wits Pro Vice-Chancellor: Climate, Sustainability and Inequality. It brought together students, academics, and researchers to question what fair and equitable climate action looks like for developing nations.
For South Africa, deciding to abandon fossil fuels is not only a question of doing the right thing, but a major economic consideration as well. “We derive significant foreign reserves from coal, and we’ve got about 80,000 direct jobs in coal mining and even more indirect jobs. Burning coal is also our main source of electricity,” Allais said.
She also pointed out that for many, expecting South Africa to abandon this key energy source is unfair.
“We haven’t caused the problem and we’ve got resources that we could profit from. The developed world has profited from their natural resources, and from ours. Isn’t it only fair that we get to profit from our resources too?” Allais probed.
That sense of unfairness only grows when looking at the United States, a former climate leader that is now retreating from this responsibility. Allais argued that America’s confused climate agenda did not begin with President Donald Trump – it has long been a nation that often talks left and walks right. “The U.S. under Biden signed historical legislation investing in renewable infrastructure, but also increased oil production,” she said. Biden’s presidency saw the country become a net exporter of oil, with the share price of the Dow Jones U.S. oil and gas index rising by 120% between the first and last year of his presidency.
South Africa and America have vastly different impacts on the environment. Graphic: Mbali Khumalo
Still, Trump has accelerated the rolling back of America’s climate commitments.
Under his leadership, the U.S. has withdrawn from the Paris Agreement, an international treaty to keep global warming below 2°C. Trump has also revoked the country’s pledge to provide green energy transition funding, including R1.5 billion which would have gone to South Africa.
South Africa has not followed America’s lead in abandoning the fight against climate change. Neither have the other 194 countries still signed to the Paris Agreement.
While wealthy nations should be obligated to reverse climate change, Allais disagrees that developing countries have an entitlement to not reduce emissions. “All countries have an obligation to avoid collective catastrophe,” she concluded.
FEATURED IMAGE: The United States is no longer a climate action champion, leaving the rest of the world to forge its own path. Graphic: Mbali Khumalo.
In the space of just a few weeks, South Africa has been shaken by a flurry of political scandals, arrests, assassinations, and suspensions that read like the script of a crime thriller. But this is not fiction. From the corridors of government to the backrooms of political parties, we are witnessing either the collapse of our democratic institutions or the long-overdue reckoning with the criminalisation of politics. The real question is: is the rot finally being exposed?
One of the explosive claims made by KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi was that when Vusumuzi “Cat” Matlala was arrested, police discovered messages on his devices indicating he was receiving inside information from police “fixers”, including meetings arranged with suspended Police Minister Senzo Mchunu.
Cat Matlala, a name tied to shady tenders, including one linked to murdered whistleblower Babita Deokaran, has most recently received a tender with Tshwane SAPS. His case is not an outlier. It is part of a wider, disturbing pattern: police officials enabling criminal syndicates, with political figures complicit in the cover-up.
The suspension of Minister of Police Senzo Mchunu following Mkhwanazi’s damning claims is only the beginning. It is alleged that Mchunu protected criminal networks within the police turning the justice system into the very problem it should be solving. Journalist Mandy Wiener has called the positions of police minister and national commissioner a “poisoned chalice” and these revelations seem to prove it. Yet the idea of high-ranking police figures colluding with criminals is not new. Think Jackie Selebi and Radovan Krejcir. This is a cycle we have seen before.
Shortly after Mchunu’s suspension, Patriotic Alliance (PA) deputy leader Kenny Kunene, until recently a PR councillor in the City of Johannesburg, was found in the company of Katiso “KT” Molefe, the alleged mastermind behind DJ Sumbody’s assassination. Kunene claimed he was escorting a journalist – yet that journalist has never reported on what would have been the scoop of a lifetime: Kunene being found at Molefe’s house during the arrest.
Kunene resigned, and the mayor has claimed the city’s “hands are tied.” This incident is yet another glimpse into the entanglement of political office and gangsterism.
Meanwhile, Gauteng Police Commissioner Fannie Masemola is reported to have attempted to intervene in Matlala’s arrest corroborating Mkhwanazi’s assertion that parts of the police are proverbially in bed with criminals. The system is protecting itself.
This past week, the Minister of Higher Education, Nobuhle Nkabane, resigned after being accused of lying to Parliament’s portfolio committee regarding the appointment of SETA board members. Her resignation means she escapes the very accountability that parliamentary oversight was supposed to ensure.
These are not isolated incidents. The list grows longer: the assassination of whistleblowers and construction mafia figures, allegations within the ANC, U.S. Treasury sanctions, and a justice system that increasingly appears either captured or hollowed out.
It is no coincidence that as state capacity erodes, criminal networks rise. The ANC, weakened and divided, can no longer police its own ranks let alone govern ethically. Political office is being used to legitimise criminal empires. Today’s councillors were yesterday’s construction mafia bosses. And tomorrow’s ministers? Who knows.
So what? This erosion of the line between politics and crime puts South Africa on the brink. As citizens lose faith in democratic systems, they may begin to embrace authoritarianism or strongman figures who promise order through force. The Patriotic Alliance’s recent calls to reinstate the death penalty while its leaders are under scrutiny are telling.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has responded by firing some implicated officials and promising yet another commission of inquiry. But after years of unattended recommendations gathering dust on his desk, society has little reason to believe that justice will follow.
Firoz Cachalia, a former ANC politician and now a Wits law professor, has been appointed interim Police Minister. He enters a poisoned environment, one where few believe the rule of law still applies evenly. Will he win public confidence in a country where institutions seem broken?
This last month has exposed a web of criminality so vast and interconnected that each new scandal feels less shocking than the last. Viewed in isolation, these incidents may appear as individual failures but step back, and the picture becomes clearer: a democracy under siege from within.
We cannot afford to normalise this rot. The fight against corruption must be unrelenting – not just for the sake of good governance, but for the survival of our democracy.
Creative Nestlings hosted a panel discussion about the importance of building community by working towards a profitable creative industry for filmmakers and online creators.
Creative Nestlings has facilitated key discussions and communal events for creatives, empowering them to step into the industry with the tools and connections to make informed decisions
The event featured a notable panel including Founder of NW+TV, Muthoni Waigwa, who emphasized the importance of authenticity and ownership of African content
Muthoni Waigwa, producer-filmmaker and Founder of NW+TV Photo: Katlego Makhutle
NW+TV is an African-centric platform that aims to foster a community of creatives that can monetize and digitize their content in Africa
#ConversationsOnCreativity is an events campaign facilitated by Creative Nestlings. On Saturday, 26 July, the NPO – which specialises in educating and connecting African creatives across the continent, hosted a panel discussion as part of their initiative to empower young creatives. The panel discussion focused on how African filmmakers and content creators can master methods of distribution and monetisation.
The event was also inclusive of online content creators, writers, producers, and directors who sought to learn more about the critical need of building an equitable and African-rich storytelling industry. Dillion Phiri, founder of Creative Nestlings, highlighted that the business side of creative work, such as pitching and licensing, begins with doing research, being resourceful and building a strong community.
Through #ConversationsOnCreativity, Creative Nestlings has dedicated their platform to do that, by partnering with NW+TV, an African-centric online streaming platform catering to small and independent content creators, filmmakers and producers.
Muthoni Waigwa, Kenyan producer and host of the podcast Moments with Nderru, stated that monetization of films, documentaries, podcasts and series’ starts with research and expanding your network. Waigwa, a passionate media buyer, emphasized that “owning our narrative and telling our stories bravely” is a powerful tool for preserving our cultures and languages, whilst working towards moving away from a Western way of telling African stories.
“What our platform is seeking to do is to elevate African voices,” said Waigwa.”For far too long, the Western media or audiences have dictated what our story should sound like, look like, and be produced, and so our stories have been diluted and misunderstood along the way.”
The panel also discussed the need for visibility in changing the perceptions of creative work and the continued challenges of sustaining a reputable brand in an ever-changing digital age. Additionally, challenges in distributing content are largely due to a lack in resources and understanding of the research required to make informed decisions on content licensing and distribution.
Producer, writer and actress and Wits alumna, Kirsten Muhammed. Photo: Katlego Makhutle
According to a report examining the impact of Digital Communication Technologies on the Film industry in SA, the shift from traditional media distribution to digital media distribution has changed the arts and entertainment industry significantly. There is a growing preference amongst audiences for films and other audiovisual content to be available online. Content distributed as large digital files rather than physical media has helped creators and producers spend less money on transportation and storage costs of physical footage.
Another key theme in the panel discussion was the importance of being “versatile” by occupying different roles in small to large scale productions, as it often creates a streamline for more opportunities and exposure to crucial employment networks.
Writer, producer and actress, Kirsten Muhammed, told Wits Vuvuzela that it was hard trying to break into the industry, but once she gained an opportunity as a writer, it motivated her to persevere and get seen in a serious light in other different roles, including film production.
Muhammed is the co-host of SABC2’s Disney Cookabaout and graduated from Wits University with a Bachelor of Dramatic Arts in Performance and Directing in 2015. The Wits Alumna said that the industry is shifting towards a truer reflection of portraying everyday African experiences. Motivating students and aspiring creators, Muhammed says, “We’re all still learning as we go. Budgeting, scheduling, storytelling…just keep learning and it’ll happen.”
FEATURED IMAGE: From left to right- Director Dumisani Phakhathi, Director Karabo Lediga, Actress Kirsten Muhammed, NW+TV founder Muthoni Waigwa, and Creative Nestlings Founder Dillion Phiri. Photo: Katlego Makhutle
GALA Queer Archive asks what does it mean to be queer and rooted in African traditions?
GALA Queer Archive held a powerful event to reclaim queer African identity.
The gathering highlighted how strict patriarchal norms, and traditional expectations often silence African queer voices.
Speakers emphasized that queerness has always existed in African societies.
In recognition of Africa Month, the GALA (The Gay and Lesbian Archives) Queer Archive celebrated the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT) on May 17 at Breezeblock Café in Brixton, Johannesburg — to re-assert queer African identity and challenge cultural exclusion at Breezeblock Café in Brixton, Johannesburg.
The GALA Queer Archive is an organization located at Wits University that preserves and promotes the history, culture, and experiences of LGBTQIA+ individuals in South Africa through archival collections.
During Africa Month, celebrated annually throughout May (with May 25 as the official date of commemoration in South Africa), the world marked IDAHOBIT as an opportunity for people across the continent to break down barriers.
IDAHOBIT raises awareness about the violence, discrimination, and prejudice faced by queer people worldwide.
Local Setswana handwritten on pink wall translating to: In my neighbourhood, being gay is a gender. Being gay is not being a boy or girl. It’s just being gay. Photo: Lukholo Mazibuko
This year’s commemoration focused on unpacking the painful disconnection between queerness and cultural identities in African LGBTQIA+ individuals.
The event discussed how culture shapes the way people live and connect. Traditions like family rituals, community events and ceremonies are meant to bring people together. But for queer individuals, these cultural spaces often do the opposite.
Researcher Nondumiso Lwazi Msimanga (left) reacting positively to panelist Desire Marea (right). Photo: Lukholo Mazibuko
Strict patriarchal rules dominate these traditions. They decide who belongs and who does not based on dress, behaviour and gender roles. As a result, queer voices are often ignored or silenced.
Dr Athinangamso Nkopo, host and moderator of the event, addressed this exclusion by telling Wits Vuvuzela that, “Those of us who are queer and African don’t understand how you can possibly mean that [we exist as] a contradiction.”
Panelist Albert Khoza challenged the myth of queerness as ‘un-African’ by emphasising that African communities had their own understanding of God long before the arrival of missionaries. Similarly, that queerness is not new; it has always existed within African societies.
“Maybe before it wasn’t called ‘queer’. Maybe before it was just a practice. It was looked down upon, but queerness is African. Africa is queer. It’s always been like that,” he said.
Panelist Albert Khoza. Photo : Lukholo Mazibuko
Keval Harie, the executive director of GALA Queer Archive, emphasized that queer individuals continually find unique ways to heal their human experiences and this day serves as another opportunity for such healing.
“We want to create a space where we bring our community together to share experiences in ways that allows us to heal and fight for another day.”
By aligning with Africa Month, this event insisted that queerness has always been part of the continent’s story. Through music, storytelling, traditional food, dress, and dialogue, attendees showcased how culture and queerness are not at odds but are deeply entangled.
From left to right: GALA coordinating team Keval Harie, Dr Athinangamso Nkopo and Kgomotso Kgasi playing Azanian games with an attendee in green sweater. Photo: Lukholo Mazibuko Event DJ, Buntu the Ghetto, jamming to beats.
FEATURED IMAGE: Banner of assorted pride flags hanging from GALA Queer Archive emblazed gazebo. Photo: Lukholo Mazibuko
On May 21, 2025, the US government met with SA’s presidency to discuss key issues that threaten SA and the USA’s longstanding alliance.
This follows the first group of Afrikaner refugees being granted asylum in the USA under the executive order by President Trump.
False claims of white genocide and persecution continue to threaten the stability of social and political relations.
Earlier this year, President Donald Trump publicly addressed accusations of white genocide in South Africa, highlighting the Expropriation Act 13 of 2024 as proof of these claims. Trump followed this up by issuing an executive order granting Afrikaners refugee status in the U.S.A. Three months later, the first group of refugees departed from O.R. Tambo International Airport on Sunday, May 11.
AfriForum’s media manager, Ilze Nieuwoudt said: “AfriForum is not involved in the resettlement programme of the refugees but has been involved in the debate as it has developed over the past few months.”
The highly anticipated meeting happened on May 21 at the White House. Ramaphosa was accompanied by Minister of Agriculture John Steenhuisen, Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition Parks Tau and Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshaveni. Interestingly, the entourage also included golfers Ernie Els and Retief Goosen, and billionaire Johaan Rupert.
During the meeting, Ramaphosa expressed “joy” and said he wanted to “reset the relationship between the United States and South Africa” due to the longstanding alliance.
Trump’s attempt to corner Ramaphosa and his delegates by playing video clips of Julius Malema singing the controversial, ‘Kill The Boer’ (an Apartheid-era struggle song) at an EFF rally was unsuccessful. Another clip included former president, Jacob Zuma singing ‘Dubula iBhunu’ (Shoot the Boer) at an ANC rally.
South African Research Chair in Mobility & the Politics of Difference in the African Centre of Migration and Society at Wits University, Dr. Loren B. Landau, said that by any standards, white Afrikaners do not face persecution.
“Individuals may face discrimination or threats, but if you look at landownership, employment, government leadership, and business, Afrikaners are overrepresented.”
Echoing Landau’s statements, Director of Wits University’s Centre for Diversity Studies, Professor Nicky Falkof, highlighted that legitimate refugees are still being excluded while privileged white Afrikaner refugees get the “red carpet treatment” from the U.S.A.
“The less airtime we give to these ridiculous, self-serving, hysterical, sensationalist far-right mythologies, the better,” Falkof asserted.
Worried of the risks and the potential fallout, Falkof warns that racial violence could be on the horizon, with retaliation from armed local far-right groups looming due to the current misinformation crisis that is radicalising their political stances and ideologies.
Ramaphosa addressed Trump’s misinformed claims as false and urged that Trump listen to South African voices, including those of his white friends in the room.
The meeting concluded on a hopeful note. Ramaphosa said that he still expects the U.S. to remain a key ally, especially with the upcoming G20 summit in November 2025.
FEATURED IMAGE: Digital artwork showing the flags of South Africa and the United States of America, with side-by-side portraits of President Cyril Ramaphosa and Donald Trump while a fire rages beneath them. Graphic: Katlego Makhutle
Anglo American, African Rainbow Minerals, and Oppenheimer Memorial Trust donate millions but is it philanthropy or power play?
Mining-linked donations are funding new buildings and research at Wits University.
Some students and experts worry these gifts give companies too much influence.
The debate is growing over who controls public universities and whose values are reflected.
What do Duncan Wanblad, Patrice Motsepe and Nicky Oppenheimer have in common? They represent corporate interests that have embedded themselves into the heart of Wits University. With millions tied to South Africa’s contested mining industry, these power players are funding high-profile projects that promise innovation and progress.
Oppenheimer’s family trust committed R15 million over five years to fund the African Future Studies Initiative, Motsepe’s African Rainbow Minerals (ARM) sponsored R20 million into research for the engineering school, and under Wanblad’s leadership, Anglo American spent R90 million to transform Wits’ planetarium into the corporate-branded Digital Dome. Their philanthropy raises a pressing question: When mining companies fund public universities, do academics look through a telescope or a company lens?
The uncomfortable truth
Behind the gleaming new facilities and bold promises lies an uncomfortable truth – corporate donations to universities are not always neutral acts of generosity. The Oppenheimer family made their fortune from diamond mines that fuelled colonial exploitation. Just last month, ARM faced protests over claims it sold coal to Israel, GroundUp reported. Anglo American, on the other hand, promotes sustainability goals while remaining one of the world’s biggest coal producers, according to its website. These companies pour millions into the institution while their mines keep digging. Do they shape the future or protect a violent and extractive past?
The Wits African Rainbow Minerals Building, renamed in 2023 after a R20 million donation from one of South Africa’s largest mining companies. Photo: Rivaldo Jantjies
What’s given?
Headquartered in the economic hub of London with a secondary listing on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, Anglo American’s R90 million commitments granted the company naming rights to the new digital dome that opened to the public early this year, placing its brand at the centre of a major academic and public institution. In 2024, the company was ranked 654th on the Forbes Global 2000 list of the world’s largest companies.
Speaking about their shared legacy of advancing both mining and education, which has shaped Johannesburg and South Africa, Anglo American South Africa said, “The relationship between Wits University and Anglo American started in 1896 when the university, then known as the South African School of Mines in Kimberley, offered services to De Beers.
The new Wits Anglo American Digital Dome is more than just a facility – it’s a symbol of what’s possible when we unite in our vision to shape a better future through education, technology and innovation.” At the same time, Professor Zeblon Vilakazi (FRS), Vice-Chancellor and Principal of Wits University, told Wits News: “Through the Wits Anglo American Digital Dome, we hope to continue inspiring people from various disciplines, including those working in climate modelling, artificial intelligence and the digital arts.”
The Wits Anglo American Digital Dome, unveiled in 2024, was funded through a R90 million donation from the mining giant. Photo: Rivaldo Jantjies
In 2023, Wits University announced a partnership with one of the nation’s leading coal suppliers, African Rainbow Minerals. The JSE-listed corporation’s R20 million endowment is backing research that connects mining to the future — exploring energy transitions, automation, and the digital technologies that are transforming how resources are extracted and utilised. This partnership saw the company replace the then Chamber of Mines Building on the Braamfontein West Campus, facing the M1 highway, renaming it to the Wits African Rainbow Minerals Building. ARM selected Wits University for this partnership because “it is one of the globally respected academic institutions and the home of the Mining Precinct, a key hub where industry leaders can engage and ensure the mining sector’s contributions are recognised by both students and the broader academic community,” ARM said in a statement.
Plaque outside the Wits African Rainbow Minerals Building, unveiled in 2023 to mark the renaming of the former Chamber of Mines Building following ARM’s donation. Photo: Rivaldo Jantjies
In the third quarter of 2021, the Oppenheimer Memorial Trust (OMT) donated R15 million to the African Future Studies Initiative at Wits University. The partnership was announced as a five-year commitment to support university research focused on challenges in Africa. The OMT was founded in 1957 by Harry Oppenheimer to honour his father, Ernst Oppenheimer. The memorial trust, established by the Oppenheimer family, is connected to Nicky Oppenheimer — the family’s heir and Africa’s third-richest person, with a net worth of $10.5 billion, according to Forbes’ real-time billionaire rankings.
At the time of the announcement, Tracey Webster, Chief Executive Officer of OMT, told Wits News, “The Oppenheimer Memorial Trust has a long tradition of investing in higher education and building the local academy. Given the ever-changing context we live in, it is imperative that we focus on developing a generation of researchers, scientists and academics that will ensure South Africa remains competitive and relevant in the 21st Century.” These contributions follow earlier markers of the family’s legacy at the university, including the Ernest Oppenheimer Hall of Residence, established in 1967, and the Oppenheimer Life Sciences Building. The trust did not respond to a request for comment from Wits Vuvuzela.
This bar graph shows the value of donations made to Wits University by major mining-linked donors between 2021 and 2024, highlighting contributions from the Oppenheimer Memorial Trust, African Rainbow Minerals, and Anglo American. Graphic: Rivaldo Jantjies
Who Really Benefits from University Donations?
Professor Imraan Valodia, Professor of Economics, Pro Vice-Chancellor of Climate, Sustainability and Inequality, and Director of the Southern Centre for Inequality Studies at Wits, said donations to universities often come with multiple motivations. Some alumni give because they benefited from the education they received. Others do it for tax reasons or because they want their names attached to buildings or projects. “A third reason may be the companies that have benefited from having a university related to their business feel that they need to contribute to that university,” he said, pointing to the long-standing relationship between Wits and the mining sector.
While this funding can support important academic work and help students, it also raises questions about influence. “There is of course, always a danger that by accepting these sorts of donations, universities may become beholden to these wealthy people’s interests,” Valodia explained. He noted that Wits has a Naming Policy to guide how donations are handled and believes that the university’s academic and management decisions remain independent. However, he warns that the risks are real, especially when donors or even governments try to shape what universities teach or research. This is now playing out in the United States, where debates at Harvard and Columbia University highlight how both private and political interests can pressure universities.
Tlhompo Thogomusi, a fourth-year LLB student and chairperson of the Wits EFF Student Command, sees these donations as more than just financial support. He argues that philanthropy from mining magnates is “a form of tokenism,” used to legitimise their power and wealth while “distracting from the exploitative nature of their business practices.” For Thogomusi, this isn’t just about naming rights — it’s about the consolidation of class power and ideological control. “Exploitation is a fundamental aspect of this relationship,” he says, suggesting that the financial support from powerful donors helps shape the university’s intellectual space and may even silence criticism. In this view, such relationships are not neutral; they reflect the broader struggle over who gets to shape public knowledge and values.
Inside the Wits Anglo American Digital Dome, launched in 2024. Photo: Rivaldo Jantjies
Living with it
The deals are signed in boardrooms, but the consequences play out in lecture halls. For many students, the university’s partnerships with mining giants aren’t abstract — they are part of daily life. Walking past buildings named after billionaires whose wealth came from extractive industries feels jarring, especially for students from communities affected by mining. According to a student who asked to remain anonymous, “It’s hard to sit in a lecture about inequality in a building named after someone who profited from it.” The university’s efforts to position itself as a future-facing institution are complicated by a past — and present — that many students are still reckoning with.
The money flows in, new buildings fill the skyline, and the questions keep piling up. In a city built on the profits of mining, the past still casts a long shadow. As universities align with major industry players, students and academics are left wondering who really shapes the future, and who pays the price.
FEATURED IMAGE: The Oppenheimer Life Sciences Building at Wits University, named after one of South Africa’s most prominent mining families. Photo: Rivaldo Jantjies
Local reality television mirrors a deeper societal truth, where marriage is still seen as a prize, men are the gatekeepers, and women carry the emotional cost of being “chosen.
The media frequently reflects societal values, challenges, and hidden realities. In South Africa, reality television programmes such as Makoti: Are You the One?Marry Me Now SA, andYou Promised to Marry Me highlight a lingering social problem: the imbalanced power dynamics in romantic relationships.
These programmes show that women are still required to demonstrate their value for marriage, whereas men possess the authority to determine whether that commitment takes place. Amid tears, conflicts, and public appeals, these shows expose a cultural truth where being “chosen” is a woman’s responsibility and a man’s choice.
South Africa’s obsession with marriage reality shows reveals more than just romantic drama, it exposes a deep-rooted gender power imbalance that places men as the ultimate decision-makers and women as the hopeful, often desperate seekers.
These shows are popular for a reason. Many South African women, especially in their late 20s and early 30s, are navigating a cultural terrain where marriage is still seen as the ultimate stamp of success. The ticking biological clock, family pressure, and patriarchal norms all converge to create a powerful sense of urgency and anxiety within these women.
In Makoti: Are You the One?, women go to their partner’s family homes for 21 days to prove they’re ready to be wives, performing household tasks, enduring awkward family interrogations, and sometimes facing humiliation.
Marry Me Now SA features women taking charge by proposing to their boyfriends after secretly planning the whole thing- only to sometimes be met with rejection.
You Promised to Marry Me, the Moja Love hit sees scorned women confront men who ghosted them after making promises of marriage. Each episode is a theatrical unmasking of betrayal, entitlement, and emotional manipulation.
These all mirror the way South African society often places a woman’s value in her ability to be chosen. They mirror the way many men are socialised to delay commitment, weaponize uncertainty, and maintain control. And they mirror the way we, as Africans, celebrate the idea of marriage but often ignore the emotional labour it demands from women to “earn” it.
Although these women are not forced to go on these shows and are driven by hope, love, or even desperation for closure, that choice is shaped by a deeper imbalance where men still hold the final say in whether a relationship becomes a marriage.
Polygamy reveals that men are the gatekeepers of marriage, and women are left negotiating love on uneven ground. I believe that is often used as a cultural excuse to justify emotional neglect, with women expected to accept sharing a partner in the name of tradition, even when it hurts.
Marriage, in this world, is not a mutual milestone, it’s a trophy, and women are expected to compete for it.
While it’s easy to dismiss these shows as mindless entertainment or scripted drama, why are women constantly put in positions where they must prove themselves? Why do so many of these shows feature women doing the proposing, begging, or exposing while men remain emotionally unavailable, detached, or even smug?
Of course, not all men are commitment-phobic, and not all women want marriage. But the overwhelming narrative across our screens still casts men as the guards and women as the petitioners. This has real consequences for how viewers, especially young people, understand relationships, self-worth, and gender roles. Over time, these messages shape how young people view love not as a partnership, but as a performance where one is always auditioning to be chosen.
Serious journalism is losing ground as short-form videos increasingly become the public’s primary source of news
Graphic content and privacy violations raise serious ethical concerns
Popularity on the app overrides accuracy
TikTok delivers fast, engaging news but lacks fact-checking
TikTok is designed to promote short videos, catering to a shorter attention span among its target audience. In a few scrolls on the app, one can learn about natural disasters in other countries, corruption, and bombing of ATM’s etc.
Scale showing the preferred platforms for news consumption among younger generations. Photo: Dikeledi Ramabula
At first the app was used for comedy, dance trends and lip-syncing challenges but now TikTok is changing the way media works. As more users make use of it for news, an important question emerges: is this good for journalism?
The answer is complicated. Comment sections of TikTok news creators like Jaxx Amahle, Amani Dube and Dylan Page, have people saying, “I don’t watch news at all, I follow you to get latest updates” and some say, “You make news sounds fun. That is why I follow you because generally news is boring”.
TikTok’s reach is indisputable, with the dominant presence of Gen Z, it has the power to shape public opinion faster than traditional outlets. In time of crisis, from the war in Gaza to wildfires in California, the app has outpaced traditional media providing unfolding, raw, and unfiltered events. The users offer real time flow of information that is immediate and feels authentic.
However, this is where the danger lies. On TikTok there is no fact-checking, which makes it easy for inaccurate information to spread faster. The accounts that have a large following and number of likes, are most likely to be seen as credible meaning people believe what is shared on such accounts without questioning.
It is difficult to tell the difference between what is true and what is not from TikTok citizen journalists. This comes with several risks because if individuals don’t recognize when something is false, a lot of damage can be done like the spread of misinformation, damage to reputation etc.
Some of these creators share information inaccurately and unethically. For example, they often reveal the names of sexual assault victims, along with where they go to school or work.
Sometimes, while scrolling through the app, I come across graphic footage of people bleeding to death at accident scenes, all because so-called “citizen journalists” feel the need to show every detail. Imagine being a parent and opening the app only to see your child dead in such a scene—how does one ever heal from something like that?
What is undeniable is that many find TikTok a convenient and fun platform to get news. But it is also true that some of the so-called news may be misinformation or disinformation. Thus, good fact-based journalism remains relevant regardless of the increasing influence of platforms such as TikTok.
FEATURED IMAGE: Scale showing the preferred platforms for news consumption among younger generations. Photo; Dikeledi Ramabula
Since her announcement as the Democratic Alliance’s mayoral candidate for Johannesburg, Helen Zille has dominated national headlines. In this bonus episode of We Should Be Writing podcast, hosts Lulah Mapiye and Bonolo Mokonoto dissect a media meet-and-greet with the mayoral hopeful. From her extensive political résumé to her controversial public utterance, we examine why the Democratic Alliance has chosen Hellen Zille as their candidate for the 2027 local mayoral elections. Additionally, […]
