Times of Eswatini

Trucks backed up on N2 in northern KZN

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JOHANNESBU­RG - South Africa (SA) has been added to the Financial Action Task Force ’s (FATF) ‘greylist’, which means the country will be under increased monitoring regarding actions against money laundering, terrorist financing and proliferat­ion financing.

FATF made its decision earlier Friday at its plenary meeting in Paris, France.

According to FATF, SA was found to be partially compliant or non-compliant with 20 of FATF’s 40 recommenda­tions.

The watchdog identified 12 key findings and recommenda­tions required to strengthen the SA financial system. It cited State capture, money laundering risks,

EMPANGENI - The local business forum in the uMhlathuze Municipali­ty in northern KwaZulu-Natal stepped in on Thursday evening to assist in diverting large volumes of truck traffic on the N2 to an open airfield in Empangeni.

uMhlathuze Municipali­ty City Manager Nkosenye Zulu told TimesLIVE traffic had been alleviated on the N2 after the forum’s interventi­on. “I received a call from the business forum chairperso­n who wanted to assist in diverting the trucks to a site outside Empangeni. There were concerns about them receiving the proper signoff from authoritie­s to go ahead and do what needed to be done. But they spoke to SAPS and went ahead to ease the traffic flow.”

By Friday, the congestion had been alleviated but locals fear this could be a common occurrence. One resident said he feared the John Ross Highway would begin to show signs of cracking and caving in after the influx of side tippers. On Thursday, Transnet National Ports Terminals (TNPT) put out a call to truck owners to refrain from deploying trucks to the port for 48 hours due to the huge volume of traffic.

Sources said the backlog of coal-ferrying trucks on the N2 was a direct result of the recent SANDF Armed Forces day held at the Richards Bay harbour. law enforcemen­t and judicial capacity as some of the key areas needing attention.

South Africa was given a year to report on the demonstrat­ed progress that it has made to achieve the recommenda­tions

set out in the 2021 report.

Difficult

Greylistin­g will make doing business with SA more difficult as new compliance steps need to be met. And the fear is that it could hurt the investment.

The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) said it had taken note of the FATF’s decision and had reaffirmed its strong commitment to disrupt money laundering and financing of terrorism among others.

“The decision is notwithsta­nding

Dozens of trucks were diverted to the Empangeni airfield where they parked overnight to ease the traffic flow. Zulu said the port and city had a working arrangemen­t in terms of clearing congestion on the John Ross Highway towards Richards Bay. the substantia­l efforts by all stakeholde­rs, under the National Treasury’s leadership, to address the recommende­d actions contained in the FATF Mutual Evaluation Report (MER) of South Africa, within the 12-month observatio­n period.”

SARB said it had a zero-tolerance approach to addressing the abuse of the financial system by money launderers or terrorist financiers. “Going forward, the SARB will further strengthen its supervisio­n and further enhance the dissuasive­ness and proportion­ality of administra­tive sanctions issued.”

South Africa’s 2021 MER highlighte­d a number of recommende­d actions linked to supervisio­n and preventive measures applicable to financial institutio­ns and designated non-financial businesses and profession­s.

Heavy-duty traffic on the N2 has surged as local coal producers ramp up output to meet additional demand from Europe, where Russia’s war with Ukraine has drasticall­y cut gas supplies that would normally be used to generate power.

KYIV – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy marked the first anniversar­y of Russia’s fullscale invasion yesterday with a sombre message of defiance to his people and tears for the thousands of soldiers who have died.

On a cold, cloudy morning in Kyiv, the 45-year-old addressed members of Ukraine’s armed forces and a small gathering of dignitarie­s in St Sophia Square, next to the green and gold domed cathedral that is a symbol of the city’s resilience. Zelenskiy said “I want to say to all of you who are fighting for Ukraine, I am proud of you. We all, each and every one, are proud of you.

“A year ago on this day, from this same place, around seven in the morning, I addressed you with a brief statement, lasting only 67 seconds,” he added, recalling the first day of what has become Europe’s worst conflict since World War 2.

As he has done throughout the war, Zelenskiy showed his emotions in the 30 minute ceremony, holding back tears as he gave out Hero of Ukraine awards to troops, one of whom was on crutches and to the mother of a soldier who had been killed. He cried as a band played the national anthem. Those present bowed their heads during a minute’s silence.

DURBAN - The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) in KwaZulu-Natal have disrupted the State of the Province Address by Premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube in the legislatur­e in Pietermari­tzburg.

The party is accusing Dube-Ncube of lying before the National Assembly in her address as premier of the province. According to provincial EFF Secretary Mongezi Twala, Dube-Ncube said in her speech in Parliament that President Cyril Ramaphosa had committed R1 billion to be utilised for the April 2022 flood victims.

The party says this is not true, as many flood victims are still without shelter. “Speaker, here in this house, we are about to be addressed by a liar. She went to the national assembly unprovoked and lied as a delegate of this house. She took to the podium and said the president had committed R1 billion to flood victims. Speaker, she lied under oath.”

 ?? (Pic: Timeslive) ?? Trucks on the N2 highway occupy all lanes in both directions to and fro Richards Bay.
(Pic: Timeslive) Trucks on the N2 highway occupy all lanes in both directions to and fro Richards Bay.

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