Zandile Christmas Mafe, a suspect in connection to a fire at the South African Parliament, appears at the Magistrate Court in Cape Town on January 11, 2022. – He is suspected of starting a devastating fire that gutted South Africa’s parliament.
A blaze broke out in the Cape Town complex before dawn on January 2, 2022 spreading to the National Assembly, the roof of which collapsed. (Photo by GIANLUIGI GUERCIA / AFP)

South Africa: Today’s latest news and headlines, Wednesday 12 January 2022 [Video]

In the latest news in South Africa on Wednesday 12 January 2022, Mafe was remanded in custody for psychiatric evaluation.

by Corné van Zyl

12-01-2022 05:30

in News

Zandile Mafe, the man accused of starting the devastating Parliament fire, made his second appearance before the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday, 11 January.

Mafe’s defence, now led by “The People’s Advocate” Dali Mpofu, was caught off guard by new evidence submitted by the State.

Zandile Mafe’s legal team was presented with documents, by the State, before the trial on Tuesday morning, which said Zandile Mafe was preliminarily diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia by district surgeon Dr Zelda van Tonder.

Shortly after that the State also told the court that it is withdrawing the earlier charge of destruction of essential infrastructure and replacing it with a new charge related to the Contravention of the “Terrorism Act” – a schedule 6 offence, which means the onus now rests on the defence to argue why Mafe should be granted bail.

At the end of the day, Mafe was remanded in custody for psychiatric evaluation.

In other news, the matric results will no longer be published in newspapers or online due to the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA).

The kidnappings in South Africa are getting out of hand now, with yet another local businessman in Johannesburg who has allegedly been kidnapped on Tuesday. He was kidnapped outside of his own property after returning home from Mosque.

TODAY’S LATEST NEWS IN SOUTH AFRICA, Wednesday 12 January

Zandile Mafe: Three things that will happen next after court ruling

Zandile Mafe, the man accused of starting the Parliament fire, made his second appearance before the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday, 11 January. The accused was represented by Senior Counsel Dali Mpofu.

He was remanded in custody for psychiatric evaluation – but first, he will need to return to prison. Depending on the outcomes, the accused could face no charges the next time he appears in court.

The State initially charged the 49-year-old with housebreaking, two counts of arson, possession of an explosive device and destruction of essential infrastructure.

According to Mafe’s charge sheet, he was allegedly found in possession of stolen laptops, documents and crockery.

Click here to read more about what happened in court on Tuesday.

Zandile Mafe charged with TERRORISM

Zandile Mafe, the man accused of igniting the fire which gutted parts of the Parliamentary precinct, will face an additional charge of terrorism.

The State has charged the 49-year-old with housebreaking, two counts of arson, possession of an explosive device, and destruction of essential infrastructure.

Earlier on Tuesday, a medical report stating Mafe has been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia was submitted to the court.

Mafe made his first court appearance a week ago. Magistrate Zamekile Mbalo granted the State a seven-day postponement to obtain and verify more information about the accused ahead of his bail application.

Click here to read more about this.

Matric Results 2022: No more publishing matric results in newspapers or online

The matric results will no longer be published in newspapers or online due to the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA).

This comes after the Department of Education said that they recognised the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA), which came into effect last year in July, and they will therefore no longer be publishing matric results on digital platforms.

The department has said that it respected the right to privacy to protect against unlawful collection, retention, dissemination, and use of personal information.

Click here to read more about this announcement.

Watch: Johannesburg businessman KIDNAPPED outside his home

Grim scenes, these: A local businessman in Johannesburg has allegedly been kidnapped on Tuesday, and he was snatched outside of his own property after returning home from Mosque earlier this morning.

A group of four men were caught taking the citizen by nearby CCTV cameras. The stop-start footage shows the dramatic moment Yaseen Bhiku was bundled into the back of a white SUV.

While speaking with a friend, two men spring from the vehicle in front. They push Bhiku against a wall, before criminal reinforcements arrive. The whole gang then stuffs the Indian national into the back of the car, before quickly pulling off out of shot.

Click here to read more about the kidnapping and watch video.

South Africa is getting a new digital ID system – here’s what to expect

South Africa will be using an entirely new ID system that is digital – here’s what to expect going forward…

The current National Population Register is set to be replaced by the new NIS system. According to BusinessTech, the system will effectively act as a single source of information for all South Africans.

“The department is in the process of implementing a single integrated source of biographic and biometric information – to make digital service deliver a seamless reality,”

The current disparate civic and immigration systems will produce secure dta that will feed into the NIS according to an identity management policy and an updated identification Act,” stated a relevant source.

Click here to read more about this system.