Wednesday, December 9, 2009
From Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I'm Lindsey Berry.
Making headlines:
New National Director of Public Prosecutions Menzi Simelane has scoffed at "armchair critics" opposed to transformation, in his first reported reaction to the controversy surrounding his appointment.
National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Mthunzi Mhaga says that Simelane's "plans and strategies for the NPA will be seen through actions rather than words. He would not be drawn into commenting on archbishop emeritus Desmond Tutu's call on President Jacob Zuma to reverse Simelane's appointment, which he described as an "aberration".
The Pretoria Bar Council is currently investigating a complaint against Simelane, related to his appointment despite the findings of the Ginwala commission, which suggested that Simelane had tried to interfere in the NPA decision to arrest former Police Commissioner Jackie Selebi for corruption. Simelane maintains that he "has not formally received any complaint" about his new posting.

Former United Nations chief Kofi Annan has warned that some Kenyan politicians are reverting to the dangerous ethnic campaigning that fuelled the country's postelection violence last year. Annan chaired meetings that resolved last year's political and ethnic clashes, which were triggered by a disputed poll in December 2007. At least 1 300 Kenyans died and another 300 000 were uprooted in violence that lasted several weeks.
Speaking in Nairobi, Annan said that he was worried by the way some local leaders were promoting their agendas. "It is as though 2007 didn't happen, as though there were no lessons there," he said.
The country's fragile coalition government is under growing pressure from Kenyans and international aid donors to implement wideranging reform, end endemic corruption and prosecute high-profile masterminds of the postelection violence.

The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) said yesterday that it is disappointed in the number of employees and employers that have taken up government's training lay-off scheme initiative. President Jacob Zuma said last week that the R2,4-billion scheme had saved around 4 482 jobs.
Cosatu general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi said that the training lay-off scheme still had a long way to go before making up for the estimated 959 000 job losses that had occurred in South Africa, since the start of the economic recession. Millennium Labour Council chairperson Bobby Godsell added that the training lay-off scheme is a "fantastic opportunity".
Briefing a gathering at the National Economic Development and Labour Council, Godsell and Vavi also called on labour and business to investigate all avenues of cost cutting, before considering retrenchments.

Also making headlines:
Madagascan President Andry Rajoelina leader rejects an oppositon unity government deal.
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime says that chaos in Somalia is making East Africa a focal point for crime and drugs.
Minister in the Presidency for National Planning Trevor Manuel admits that government is at fault for inertia around the country's power-crisis structures.
And, developing nations demand more commitments from rich countries in order to unlock climate negotiations.
That's a roundup of news making headlines today.