E F SASTERN REE TATE

TEL: 058 ­ 3035411 WEDNESDAY 19 FEBRUARY 2014 WWW.EXPRESS­NEWS.CO.ZA WWW.EXPRESSPAPER.MOBI FREE

} Tladi Moloi

SPECULATIONS are rife that theMaluti-a-Phofung Local Municipal-ity was responsible for sabotagethat resulted in the Free StateStars and Orlando Pirates leaguegame being called off due to theCharles Mopeli Stadium’s flood-light failure on Wednesdaynight.

Two lights on the west side ofthe stadium were off and resultedin the game being called off.

Even though many people putthe blame on the troublesomeRural Maintanance for the lights’failure, it is alleged that one ofthe municipality’s officials hadturned off the lights and left thevenue with the keys.

It is further alleged it wasbecause Free State Stars hadfailed to pay the required moneyto book the venue. However, FreeState Stars general manager,Rantsi Mokoena, dismissed therumours that they had not paidfor the bookings.

“These rumours are not true.We did pay to use the stadiumand it is obvious that the munici-pality would not have opened thegate for us if we had not paid,”he said.

Moeketsi Lebesa, the Member ofthe Mayoral Commitee for PublicSafety and Transport at themunicipality, said on his Face-book account which had 290comments: “Ke eo he RURAL . . .They threatened to sabotagehealth services. Today theyallegedly sabotaged the Free Statevs Orlando Pirates game. Whereare the agents of Rural? This iswar.”

However, Jacob Mabaso, publicrelations officer, said they were

not responsible for the floodlights’failure and that they were notresponsible for the maintenanceof the stadium.

“Our responsibility is electrici-ty, not to see if the lights areworking. There was electricity inthe stadium and everyonewitnessed that,” he said.

Mabaso said they had beencalled to assist at the stadium,

but when they arrived they foundthat the circuit breaker thatsupplied electricity to the lightshad been switched off.

“We wanted to help, but thearea was locked and we could notestablish who had a key. Wecould have helped them if theyhad called us earlier, but it waslate when we got there. In orderfor those lights to work we would

have had to bypass some of thecables and that process wouldhave turned off the lights in thewhole stadium. We could not dothat because there were people inthe stadium,” he said.

Mabaso said they had notthreatened the health services,but they had placed an advert inthe paper showing the communityhow much the hospitals owed in

electricity.Express Eastern Free State gave

the municipality ample time torespond by sending questions toKedibo Sentle, the municipality’scommunication officer, on Friday,but when going to print noresponse had been received.

A follow-up was done onMonday and she promised tosend a response immediately.

Was it sabotage?Blame thrown back and forth for failure of lights at stadium

THE Charles Mopeli Stadium in Qwaqwa. Photo: Sydney Mahlangu/Backpagepix

2 EXPRESS EASTERN FREE STATE, WEDNESDAY 19 FEBRUARY 2014

NEWS

THE Department of Labour warnsemployers to comply with labourlaws or face the possibility ofprosecution.The department’s Free State

chief director, MarshaBronkhorst, says the departmentdoes not derive any pleasure intaking employers to courtbecause of the time and resourceswhich could be used efficientlyelsewhere.This comes after six employers

were taken to different courts inthe province for failing to complyto several legislations.These legislations include the

Unemployment Insurance Act(UIA), Compensation for Occupa-tional Diseases Act (COIDA),Basic Conditions of EmploymentAct (BCEA) and Sectoral determi-nations protecting vulnerableworkers.“If employers continuously

ignore our plea to work

together, we have no any otheroption but to use our legisla-tive powers to force them tocomply.“It is the duty of Labour

inspectors to guide employers onhow to comply to the law,however it is the employer’sresponsibility to comply. If theemployer disregards inspector’sorders, we will unfortunately usethe stick approach,” saidBronkhorst.

Four employers in the EasternFree State were taken to theBethlehem Magistrate’s Court oncharges ranging from failing tocomply to Labour inspectors’instructions after they hadbeen served with complianceorders. Their non-compliancerange from non-payment ofprescribed minimum wages,salaries and overtime to employ-ees.Meanwhile, in Ficksburg, two

wholesale and retail employersalso appeared before theFicksburg Magistrate’s Court fornot complying with theWholesale and Retail SectoralDetermination, UIA and COIDAct.In terms of the BCEA section

92 (e), if convicted of such anoffence, the employer may besentenced to a fine or an impris-onment of not longer than oneyear.

Employers should comply with labour laws

TWO elderly women and aminor were attacked in theirhomes during a robbery on twoseparate incidents which tookplace in Bluegumbosch andMabolela Village in QwaQwa.According to a police report,

one of the pensioners wasallegedly stabbed with a knifewhile her granddaughter waskidnapped and raped. The otherelderly woman was also allegedlyraped at her house.The police requests the

community to work with thethem in giving information thatmay lead to the locating, arrestand conviction of the twounknown suspects.Sgt Mmako Mophiring, police

spokesperson, says it is allegedthat on Friday at approximately02:00 at Bluegumbosch nearMbeki Park section, a pensioner(70) was sleeping with hergranddaughter in their housewhen they were attacked.“They were both awakened by

someone who had gainedentrance through a window. Thesuspect allegedly confronted thepensioner looking for money.The woman was then allegedlystabbed by the suspect. Shesustained a head wound. Hergranddaughter heard her

screams for help but the attackerturned to her. It is furtheralleged he forcefully took the10-year-old to an open veld wherehe raped her. He left herstranded while she went tonearby houses for assistance.Two cases of housebreaking,assault with intend to causebodily harm, kidnapping andrape are being investigated,” hesays.Mophiring says on the same

day at approximately 03:00 a65-year-old pensioner fromMabolela Village was alsoattacked in her house by anunknown man who allegedlyraped her outside her home.“It is alleged that the pension-

er was sleeping. She woke upand saw the man standing in herhouse. He demanded money.They got into a fight but sheended giving him money. Thesuspect took the pensioner out ofthe house where he allegedlyraped her. A case of houserobbery and rape is beinginvestigated,” he says.Any person with information

that may lead to the arrest andconviction of the suspects cancontact Crime Stop 08600 10111 orsend information via the SMSCrime Line 32211.

Girl (10) rapedby intruder

} Tladi Moloi

THE Tsheseng police are lookingfor three suspects including awoman who allegedly shot twopeople in the tuck shop at theTurffontein section in theMakeneng Village of Qwaqwa.A mother, Lebohang Mpela

(48), and her son, Lentswe Mpela(28), died in the MofumahadiManapo Regional Hospital twodays after they had been shot.The police spokesperson, Sgt.Mmako Mophiring, says theincident took place last Mondayat approximately 18:00. Lebohangand Lentswe were at theirfamily’s tuck shop when they

were allegedly attacked by twomen and a woman. Lebohangwas shot in the stomach and herson in his leg and stomach.“The suspects left the scene on

foot,” he says.Mophiring says the motive

behind the murder is unknownas nothing was stolen.The police are still looking for

the suspects and the investiga-tion continues.Anyone with information that

may lead to the arrest andconviction of the suspects cancontact Det. Lt Zimkaze Radebeon 082-419-7084, Crime Stop 0860010111 or send information via theSMS Crime Line 32211.

Murder suspects on the loose

EXPRESS EASTERN FREE STATE, WEDNESDAY 19 FEBRUARY 2014 3

NEWS

} Tladi Moloi

THE first meeting of the ThaboMofutsanyana Mining Associationin the Dihlabeng Local Munici-pality was a disaster.Only seven people attended the

meeting which took place in theBakenpark Hall on Wednesday.Matowane Mphuthi, the chairper-son of the association, and LipuoMatsoso, the coordinator ofMoripe Holdings IntegratedBusiness Solutions, say they weredisappointed with the attendanceconsidering the fact that Dihla-beng has a lot more miners.However, Mphuthi says they

will make sure that they go outto invite people to their meetingand adds that they will be hopingfor a better turnout for their nextmeeting.“We made a big mistake by

asking the municipality to invitepeople for us and this shows thatthe message might not havereached the targeted people. Wewill, however, go out and talk tothe miners,” he says.The meeting was aimed at

announcing the existence of theassociation as well as giving abrief overview of the benefits thatminers in the Thabo Mofutsan-yane district will get if they join.According to Mphuthi, the

association was established lastyear and they were hoping torecruit more members to join theassociation.Mphuthi says their association

is neither a forum nor a cooper-ate – it is an association where

they mobilise all the small-scaleminers.“We are talking about people

who mine sandstone, sand, coaland more. Those are mineralresources which are availablewithin our district,” he says.He says they will make sure

that they help all the illegalminers to become legal and help

them to obtain a market.“There are also those miners

who are legal, but do not have amarket. It is our duty as theassociation to help them get amarket. We are going to invite allthe stakeholders to the meeting topresent our association to them.“The Department of Human

Settlement is one of the stake-

holders that will be invited,because they will need sand whenthey build the RDPs,” he says.Matsoso says he was disap-

pointed with the attendanceconsidering the number of theminers that they had on the listfrom Bethlehem.“That was not the true reflec-

tion of what we had on paper,”

she says.She says after a summit in

Bethlehem sometime last year,they realised that there should bea miners association in theThabo Mofutsanyana district.“The association was formed

and we are hoping to help themwith policies, marketing andmany other things,” she says.

Only 7 attendminingmeeting

PEOPLE who attended the Thabo Mofutsanyana Mining Association meeting in the Bakenpark Hall. They are from the left Tshepiso Nhlapo,Ceaser Matla, Matowane Mphuthi (the chairperson of the Thabo Mofutsanyana Mining Association), Lipuo Matsoso (the coordinator ofMoripe Holdings Integrated Business Solutions), Lerato Mofokeng, Mantwa Mofokeng and Baile Mashinini. Photo: Tladi Moloi

4 EXPRESS EASTERN FREE STATE, WEDNESDAY 19 FEBRUARY 2014

NEWS

LEMAKO LEMA-KO (39), currentchairperson of theMunicipal AccountsCommittee (MPAC)of the DihlabengMunicipality, wasborn on Kleinste, afarm near Rosendal.He is the fifth andlast-born son.

He grew up inabject poverty,raised by a struggling divorced mother. Hewas her favourite child and she alwaysbelieved in his potential and encouragedhim to study and work hard.

He moved to Mautse at an early age andattended school there. He passed st. 10(gr. 12) at the then Mautse CombinedSchool (now Taung High School) in the late1990s. His mother could not afford to sendhim to any tertiary institution so she optedfor him to get a driver’s licence.Political life:Whilst at the Mautse Combined School,

he met Stimela Motaung, a local activistand clerk at the school. They becamefriends and eventually Motaung convincedLemako to join local youth politics,particularly the ANC Youth League(ANCYL).

He rose through the ranks as local youthleader and eventually became part of thelocal ANC leadership collective, later toserve as both branch chairperson andsecretary.

Currently he is the head of media for theANC in the Thabo Mofutsanyana region.Career:Lemako had a short stint working for

Vaal Colliers before becoming an ANCcouncillor after the 2000 local governmentelections. Since then he has served invarious capacities having been in theDihlabeng Local Municipality Exco, ThaboMofutsanyana Mayoral Committee, Dihla-beng Mayoral Committee and now asDihlabeng MPAC chairperson.

Since he became a councillor 13 yearsago Lemako has acquired numerousacademic accolades, including:) National Diploma in Youth Development:Unisa;) Executive Leadership DevelopmentCertificate: University of Pretoria;) CPMD: University of the Witwatersrand;) Master of Management in Public &Development Management: University ofthe Witwatersrand (currently finishing it);) A string of certificates in leadershipdevelopment and change management.

Lemako is married to Mmato Olga and isthe proud father of Tokollo (14).

From humblebeginnings

LEMAKO LEMAKO

DO you know of a teacher who haschanged the lives of the people in his orher community? A teacher who has gonethe extra mile, someone who made adifference in your life?

Via Afrika Publishers, in partnershipwith the Department of Basic Education,would like to acknowledge such specialpeople with the Via Afrika Publishers’People’s Choice Award.

The Via Afrika Publishers’ People’sChoice Award was established to honourand reward teachers who make a differ-ence in their communities. Communitymembers can nominate a teacher of theirchoice who made a difference in their life.

The teacher must, however, still beactively teaching. Entries close on 27February. A panel representing variousstakeholders will adjudicate all entries andthe provincial finalists and winner will beannounced at the National Teacher AwardsCeremony.

The call for nominations commenced on1 February and ends on 27 February, bothdays inclusive.

If Via Afrika Publishers are unable toreach any person or complete the verifica-tion process after drawing his/her entryfor whatever reason, such person will bedisqualified and another participant willbe contacted under the same terms andconditions.

Should any dispute arise in relation tothe interpretation of these competitionrules, Via Afrika Publishers’ decision willbe final and no correspondence will beentered into.

All queries relating to this competitioncan be directed to Maria de Witt on082-339-2687 during office hours on week-days only.

Email your entries to maria.dewitt@viaa-frika.com or fax to 086-535-4036 or callVuyani Jumba on 079-872-0533 or 073-403-4528.

Entry forms can be obtained from M.Smith on 051-409-8383 or 083-297-9799 forentries from Bloemfontein or the Gold-fields area.

Entrants from the Eastern Free Statecan call F. Molema on 051-404-8645 or079-503-5711 while Northern Cape entrantsshould call D. van Niekerk on 053-839-6500or 083-792-9827 and 082-202-5188.

Please take note that entries must be inEnglish only.

In the motivation, you should say whatevidence you have that the person hasdone the important things you are nomi-nating them for. This could be photo-graphs of them in action, a testimonialfrom a school principal or communityleader, or a newspaper article that hasbeen written about them.

As the nominator you must tell theperson you are nominating him or her sothat they can prepare evidence to supportthe entry.

Nominations awaited for teachers

} Nkareng Moloi

THE Thabo Mofutsanyana DistrictEducation in partnership with KagisoTrust held the awards ceremony for theschools and educators for the class of 2013achievement.

The ceremony was held at the Universi-ty of the Free State’s Qwaqwa campus onFriday. The awards were aimed atacknowledging the work done by the classof 2013.

Trophies, certificates and vouchers wereawarded to the deserving schools.Amongst the top schools was the Rant-sane Secondary School. They went from a59% to 100% pass rate, securing the fifthposition in the district. This school is theonly public school that received 100 % inthe district.

The MEC for Education, Tate Makgoe,says: “This is the great motivation to theschools and educators. We had this kindof event last year and the results moti-vated other schools to work harder, hencewe are number one in the country.”

Makgoe said last year at one of thefunctions he had promised that he wouldnot make a speech should they obtainposition one adding that said he wouldrequest Tshiame Kenneth Mopeli to dothe speech.

“That was because most of the schoolshere have been built under his adminis-

tration. It shows that he values educationmore than anything.

“You must remember that this districtcame first in the province. I am dedicat-

ing this achievement to him, even if he isnot here.

“We invited him, but he couldn’t makeit as he is not feeling well.”

Top school honoured

BUSI TSHABALALA (Thabo Mofutsanyana Education district director), Tate Makgoe(Free State MEC for Education), Tjhetane Mofokeng (Dihlabeng Local Municipality ex-ecutive mayor), and Mbongile Mthombeni (Free State Department of Education chiefdirector) were captured during the Thabo Mofutsanyana District education in partner-ship with Kagiso Trust awards ceremony. Photo: Nkareng Moloi

EXPRESS EASTERN FREE STATE, WEDNESDAY 19 FEBRUARY 2014 5

NEWS

THE Congress of the People (Cope) saysSABC acting chief operations officer(COO) Hlaudi Motsoeneng should befired as soon as possible.Cope says Motsoeneng should join the

ranks of unemployed people.“The SABC must not wait for a long

time to fire Motsoeneng. He should havebeen fired before business on Monday,”says Johann Abrie, the national spokes-person of Cope.He says the Public Protector’s finding

that Motsoeneng’s misrepresentation ofhis qualifications “is improper andconstitutes a dishonest act” must beacted upon immediately.“It is especially damning that the

Public Protector further finds thatMotsoeneng has shown no remorse.“Cope also is severely shocked by the

finding that, despite the fact that he hasno matric qualification, Motsoeneng’ssalary was increased by 63% in 12months.“Although Motsoeneng is a political

deployee of Pres. Jacob Zuma, he shouldhave been ensuring that the SABC wasan unbiased and objective broadcaster.Instead, there is obvious bias in broad-casting. Instead of being an unbiasedand objective state broadcasting service,the SABC has been turned into apropaganda tool for the ruling party,” hesays.Abrie says this is contrary to the

provisions of section 192 of the Constitu-tion which requires the broadcastingauthority to “ensure fairness and adiversity of views broadly representingSouth African society”.“Cope supports the remedial action

outlined by the Public Protector in herreport. We urge the board to implementevery single one of the recommendationswithout any delay and to restoreintegrity to the SABC.“It is worrying to note how many

senior officials at the SABC wereinvolved with giving Motsoeneng hisirregular salary increases. We echo theconcern of the Public Protector who hassaid it is discouraging to see how thecurrent SABC has leapt to the defence ofMotsoeneng,” he concludes.

SABC’s Motsoeneng‘should be fired’

“Although Motsoeneng isa political deployee ofPresident Jacob Zuma, heshould have been ensur­ing that the SABC was anunbiased and objectivebroadcaster. Instead,there is obvious bias inbroadcasting. Instead ofbeing an unbiased and ob­jective state broadcastingservice, the SABC hasbeen turned into a propa­ganda tool for the rulingparty.” – Johann Abrie

} Sidwell Guduka

A RECORD number ofSouth Africans haveregistered to vote in theupcoming elections.According to the Inde-

pendent Electoral Commis-sion (IEC), over 25,3 millionSouth Africans are regis-tered and ready to vote inthe national and provincialelections to take place onWednesday, 7 May. Thefinal registration weekendsaw 1 259 560 new votersregistering a fortnight ago.“The new registrations

lifted the overall registra-tion level from 76.9 % priorto the (final registration)weekend to 80.5 % of alleligible voters today.“Combined with the 1,1

million new voters whoregistered for the first timein November, some 2,3million new voters willhave been added ontovoters’ roll for the first timesince 8 November 2013. Thisis about 17 % higher thanthe target the ElectoralCommission had set of 2million,” Kate Bapela, IECspokesperson, says.“Encouragingly, 79,89 %

of all new registrations inthe final registrationweekend (1 006 260) arevoters under the age of 30.This included 691 002 votersaged 20-29, 255 398 votersaged 18 and 19, and 59 860voters aged between 16 and17,” she adds.

Along with new registra-tion, Bapela says, a further1.48 million registeredvoters also used the finalregistration opportunity tochange their new votingstation.“About 183 377 people

re-registered at the samevoting station. In total, justshort of 3 million peoplevisited our 22 263 votingstations during the finalregistration. That is 16 %higher than the 2,5 millionwho visited voting stationsin November,” she explains.The upcoming elections

will be the first time SouthAfricans living and travel-ling abroad will be able toregister to vote whileoverseas.“Registration has also

been underway for overseasvoters at South Africandiplomatic missions abroad.As of yesterday (lastTuesday) we had received3 521 applications forregistration. According tofigures provided by theDepartment of InternationalRelations and Cooperation(DIRCO), we anticipateapproximately 700 more

applications are beingcouriered to us for captur-ing. Prisoner registrationwas also conducted atcorrectional service facili-ties throughout SouthAfrica. This processresulted in 9 949 applica-tions for registration byprisoners,” Bapela con-cludes.

Voters’ registrationincreased - IEC

THE overallregistrationlevel againstthe estimated eligiblepopulation for theprovinces is:) Eastern Cape: 85,3%) Free State: 85,8%) Gauteng: 77,0%) KwaZulu-Natal: 83,6%) Limpopo: 81,0%) Mpumalanga: 77,3%) North West: 78,5%) Northern Cape: 84,3%) Western Cape: 77,8%

Eligiblevoters

‘The new registrations lifted the overall regis­tration level from 76,9 % prior to the (final reg­istration) weekend to 80.5 % of all eligiblevoters today.’ – Kate Bapela, IEC spokesper­son

} André Damons

MORE than 600 000 prospective drivers weretested for drivers’ licences and learners’licences in the Free State during the pastfive years.The Free State Department of Police, Roads

and Transport said in a statement almost670 000 people have been tested over the lastfive years in the province. Between 1 April2009 and January this year 88 422 people whowere tested for their drivers’ licences passed,while 163 370 were not so lucky.This means an average of 50 000 people are

tested for licences each year, says SakiMohono, spokesperson for the Department of

Police, Roads and Transport.According to him, 217 537 people received

their learners’ licences during the same timewhile 205 480 have failed.On average almost 84 000 people are

annually tested for their learners’ licences.“The department has experienced problems

with many people who have appointmentsfor their learners tests, as well as theirdrivers licence tests, but do not show up.“We ask people to cancel their appoint-

ments on time if they know they will notmake it,” he says.According to Mohono, more than 11 000

people had appointments during said time,but never showed up for their appointments.

11 000 never pitched for test

For more news and photos go towww.express-news.co.za

6 EXPRESS EASTERN FREE STATE, WEDNESDAY 19 FEBRUARY 2014

No ce of Public Par cipa on Process

No ce is hereby given in terms of the Na onal Environmental Management Act, 1998 (Act No. 107 of1998) (NEMA) Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Regula ons of 2010 that the Dihlabeng LocalMunicipality has applied for Environmental Authorisa on to upgrade the exis ng Waste Water TreatmentWorks at Rosendal (on the Remaining Extent of the farm Rosendal No. 299, Ficksburg RD) and Fouriesburg(on the farm Groenfontein No.188, Fouriesburg RD), Free State province.

The following ac vi es, listed in GN 544, Lis ng No ce 1 of 18 June 2010, are being applied for: Ac vi es11(xi), 18(i), 28, 40 (iv), 56 (Ac vity 56 is only applicable to the Fouriesburg project).

Basic Assessment processes are being undertaken for the above two projects in accordance with theNEMA EIA Regula ons of 2010.

Water Use Licence Applica ons will also be submi ed to the Department of Water Affairs for ac vi es thatwill require licences or general authorisa ons in terms of Sec on 21 of the Na onal Water Act, 1998 (ActNo. 36 of 1998).

Invita on to comment on the Dra Basic Assessment (BA) Reports: The Dra BA Reports for the abovetwo projects will be available for public review and comment at the following places from 20 February to10 March 2014:

* Rosendal Project: On the following website: www.enviroworks.co.za

* Fouriesburg Project: On the following website: www.enviroworks.co.za

Note: The above projects were also adver sed on 28 August 2013 in terms of the Na onal EnvironmentalManagement Waste Act, 2008 (Act. No. 59 of 2008). The relevant scheduled ac vi es in the NEM:WA weresubsequently repealed by Amendments to the NEMA Regula ons, hence this re-adver sement.

To register as an Interested and Affected Party, and/or to comment on the proposed projects or the DraBA Reports, please submit wri en comments to: Emmeren a Marais (Rosendal Project) or Jano Louw(Fouriesburg Project) at: e-mail: emmeren a@enviroworks.co.za or jano@nsvt.co.za Postal address: Suite116, Private Bag X01, Brandhof, tel. 086 198 8895 or fax 086 719 7191.

PERSONAL

SEVICES

HERBALISTS

1435

GENERAL &

HOME SERVICES

MISCELLANEOUS

1845

FOR ALL TOMB-STONES and repairs todamaged tombstones, aswell as epitaphs, etc.Phone 058 303 4840. BHM.

LEGAL & TENDERS

GENERAL

NOTICES

4010

NOTICE OF THEISSUING OF WASTE MANA-GEMENT LICENCES FORTHE CONSTRUCTION OFNEW WASTE WATERTREATMENT WORKS ANDCLOSURE OF OLD OXIDA-TION PONDS AT PAUL ROUXIN THE DIHLABENG LOCALMUNICIPALITYWith reference to the WasteLicence application for theconstruction of a new wastewater treatment works andclosure of the old oxidationponds at Paul Roux. Pleasebe advised that the NationalDepartment of Environmen-tal Affairs (DEA) grantedthe waste licence on 5February 2014, in responseto the submitted Environ-mental Impact Assessmentand Basic AssessmentReports.If you wish to lodge anappeal, a notice of intentionto appeal must be submittedto the MEC of DEA within 10days of this notification.A copy of the waste licenceswith the licence and appealconditions, as isssued byDEA in this regard, is availa-ble from our office. Pleasecontact Mr Tom Hugo on cell082°070°0735 or fax086°743°6864 or e-mail:tom@emtrix.co.za for fur-ther information.

SEEK, BUY, SELL

EXPRESS EASTERN FREE STATE, WEDNESDAY 19 FEBRUARY 2014 7

NEWS

} Tladi Moloi

THEMBA SITHOLE, the FreeState Stars coach, has finallyregistered his first win sincetaking the Stars’ coaching reins.

The win was also the team’sfirst since November last year.Ea Lla Koto narrowly beatGolden Arrows 2-1 in a relega-tion battle which took place atthe Goble Park Stadium onSaturday afternoon.

Paulos Masehe and RichardHenyekane netted the two goalsfor Stars while BonginkosiNtuli scored the consolation forthe Durban-based side.

As a result of their win, theBethlehem side now has athree-point gap from Arrowswho are at the bottom of theleague.

However, they still lie secondto last on the league tableregardless of their win.

They are two points awayfrom Polokwane City and onepoint from Maritzburg Unitedwho are sitting 13th and 14threspectively.

A win came as a boost forStars since they last celebrateda league victory againstPolokwane City on 9 Novemberlast year under the mentorshipof Steve Komphela who iscurrently with United.

Sithole believes that theyhave turned a new page,adding that the win has boostedthe moral of the players.

“We have worked very hardin our last games but theresults were not showing. Weare happy that we had managedto collect three points today.

“Hopefully, this is the begin-ning of the good things tocome,” he says.

Sithole has bemoaned the lackof goals, pointing out thatplayers should score more goalswhich will help them at theend of the season.

When asked how he motivat-ed the misfiring Henyekane hesays: “We don’t just motivatethe players; we also teach themhow to convert the chances.

“They are doing everythingright at the training sessionsbut come game time, things aredifferent. We will keep onworking on that because weknow what we want as a team.”

Stars will welcome theNational First Division cam-paigners of Witbank Spurs inthe last 32 of the Nedbank Cupon Saturday. Kick-off is at 15:00.

The two teams have battled itout before. They once sharedthe stage in the same tourna-ment. Stars kicked them out bywinning that game 1-0 at theCharles Mopeli Stadium.

Sithole says they will makesure that they respect Spursregardless of them playing inthe NFD.

“We know those small teamsare full of surprises and we willhave to be very cautious. Wewill also use that game to buildour confidence ahead of theOrlando Pirates game,” he says.

)Do you think Stars willescape from the relegationzone? Send us your commenton our Facebook page QwaQwa Express Eastern FreeState.

Finally a winfor FS Starsunder Sithole

What is your opinion? To shareyour view, go to Facebook and search forQwaqwa Express Eastern Free State.

} Tladi Moloi

MIGHTY WITS FC and Dla2 FCare back at the top of theirrespective streams of the SafaThabo Mofutsanyana SAB RegionalLeague.

This after both teams’ competi-tors, Free State DevelopmentAcademy and United WanderersFC, dropped points at the weekend.

Academy played to a 2-2 drawagainst FK FC from Senekal whileWanderers lost by 1-0 to GreenVultures. Wits moved to the top ofthe B stream after they had ham-mered A-Z FC of Paul Roux by 3-0in the Bohlokong Stadium onSunday while Dla2 FC defeatedDikwena FC, securing a place atthe top of the A stream. In the Bstream, Wits have collected 27

points in 13 games. Academy isjust one point behind with 10games, followed by FK who arethird with 25 points in 11 games.

Meanwhile, Dla2 are four pointsclear from their strong challengers,Wanderers. They have secured 28points in 12 games while Wander-ers has 24 after the same numberof games. Dikwena is sitting thirdwith 21 points after 10 games.

Wits and Dla2 top of league

SUPERSPORT’S LET’S PLAYand Express Qwaqwa andEastern Free State are searchingfor youths in the region whoexcel at sport.

Are you good at sport or issomeone in your school or placeof education good at sport? Areyou a young coach who iscoaching future stars? Are yougetting people active at yourschool, community or gym? Wewant to hear from you.

SuperSport’s Let’s Playidentified the need amongst theyouth to get more sports active.

With this in mind, SuperSportand Let’s Play, in associationwith Express Qwaqwa andEastern Free State, have launch-ed a special initiative for 2014.

They want to find and giverecognition to learners at eitherprimary or high school level whoexcel in sport or who are helpingothers to be more active.

SuperSport’s Let’s Play SportsStar of the Month is a competi-tion for anyone aged six to 18.

You can nominate yourself orbe nominated by a friend, anyteacher or coach at your place ofeducation. You can even benominated by a family memberor friend who knows how goodyou are.

The winner is chosen from allthe nominations received forthat month. The monthly winnerwill receive a Let’s Play hamperfilled with goodies.

From all the entries receivedeach month, one athlete will bechosen as the SuperSport Let’s

Play Sports Star of the Month.At the end of the year one

candidate from all the Star of theMonth winners will be chosen asthe SuperSport Let’s Play SportsStar of the Year.

Do not worry, the organisersdo an overall annual summary ofall entrants’ achievements at theend of November before theyear’s winner is chosen.

Send us your nominationtoday. Nominations receivedbefore the 20th of every monthwill be included in that month’sselection. Nominations receivedafter the 20th of every monthwill be carried over to the nextmonth’s selection. Nominationsmust include your name, age anda short paragraph (200 words orless) on what you have achieved,as well as your contact details.

For example: Name, age andgrade, school or place of educa-tion’s name and contact tele-phone number or address.

You can email your nomina-tion to supersport@zpr.co.za orsend a fax to 086-552-4922.

For information call Lynne orJuanré on 051-522-9574.

You can be a star

8 EXPRESS EASTERN FREE STATE, WEDNESDAY 19 FEBRUARY 2014

E F SASTERN REE TATE

PRIMARY SCHOOLS across thecountry are invited to become part ofthe biggest youth football tournamentin the world by entering their u.12teams in the Danone Nations Cup. TheSouth African leg of this worldwidecompetition will start in April andschools have until 27 March to get theirentries in.The competition is organised with the

support of the South African SchoolsFootball Association (SASFA). Gamesbegin at Cluster level with the winnersprogressing to regional finals culminat-ing in the nine provincial winnersplaying in the national finals to deter-mine the national champion.The eventual national winners are

awarded the honour of representingSouth Africa at the Danone NationsCup World Finals in Brazil later thisyear and will be one of 32 nationalchampion schools from across the globe.Last year’s world finals were in

London and Mpumalanga’s DaniyePrimary School represented SouthAfrica and will be back in action againthis year. Yenzani Ernest Mabunda,Daniye’s principal, says he believesthey can still win the tournamentbecause they still have players whoplayed in London last year. Mabundasays that winning the title last year hashad a positive effect on the school.“We have become a popular school in

the area with a 20% increase in ourregistrations as a result. It makes meproud as the headmaster to know thatmore kids want to be a part of ourschool,” says the principal.For their achievements, Daniye was

named the 2013 Developing School ofthe Year at the South African SportsAwards.“More kids have signed up for soccer

this year, they know the benefits ofbeing part of the school’s soccer team.Going to London also changed the boys.They gained a lot of confidence. Theycame back as different people.The attention they received made

them feel that they matter and thatthey are important too,” he says.Njombo Aden Mabunda, who played

for the team in London last year, sayshe never gets tired of talking about thetrip.“We learned a lot. We got to learn

about healthy eating and after we hadmet all these countries we went back toschool and started asking our teachersto teach us about them. So we learnedduring the trip and even after the trip,”he says.) From Intune Communications &Entertainment

Soccer registration now open

SANDILE MHLABA in the South African jersey, fights for the ball with a player in the Argentinian colours. Photo: Supplied

For more sportnewsand photos go to

www.express-news.co.za

Conversation among the presidents:RUSSIA – “We are the first to go to the SPACE.”USA – “We are the first to land on the MOON.”South Africa (Zuma) – “We will be the first toland on the SUN.”USA – “No, the SUN is too hot, you cannot landon it.”Malema – “We are not stupid, we’ll go at night.”H

avealaugh

} Teboho Setena

THE participation of the amateur Free StateBoxing Organisation (FSBO) nationally andmembership of the South African NationalBoxing Organisation (Sanabo) remainsuncertain. This follows the national body’sleadership reiterating the stance to notrescind its decision to suspend the provincialleadership indefinitely from participationfrom all activities amateur boxing events.The provincial body also faces the threat tohave its membership terminated by thenational structure due to unresolved internalbickering.A week ago the Free State leadership was

notified of its suspension after the provincialelective annual general meeting held on 1February did not produced the desired result.This was after the provincial leadership dis-mally failed to elect new office bearers at theelective meeting. It failed on three occasionsto elect a dignified leadership due to a powerstruggle. The first and second electivemeeting was held in Welkom in Novemberand December. However, due to the powerstruggle it was adjourned to 1 February thisyear in Bloemfontein. After members failed

to reach consensus at a meeting in Bloemfon-tein, the national leadership decided to sus-pend the Free State leadership. The provin-cial leadership has been at loggerheads thatnow seems to have paralysed amateur boxingprovincially. Sanabo’s national executive isset to decide the participation and member-ship of the FSBOat its meeting on 11 March.In a letter address to the FSBO leadership,

the national body has instructed the provinceto make written submission to Sanabo forconsideration of the lifting of its suspension.The FSBO leadership has further been

instructed to submit proof of operation.These include a copy of the FSBO dulyadopted Constitution, a declaration that theFSBO will adhere to Sababo and the AIBAregulations, districts’ constitution, districts’financial statements, minutes of all districts’annual general meeting, a yearplan for 2014,complete membership list and proof ofaffiliation and list of districts’ executivemembers. This instruction comes after thetrouble-ridden FSBO leadership disputed itssuspension from participation from allactivities. The provincial leadership has alsotaken its case to the Free State MEC forSport, Dan Khothule, for intervention.

Infighting floors boxing in FS