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Vavi left out in the cold, for how long? No one knows

Kgothatso Madisa

@kgmadisa

Suspended Zwelinzima Vavi. Picture: Twitter

Cosatu’s General Secretary Zwelinzima Vavi has been officially placed on “special leave” pending a disciplinary hearing after admitting to having sex at the Cosatu House.

Vavi was suspended yesterday at a Central Executive Committee (CEC) meeting yesterday which was attended by most of Cosatu’s affiliates.

Responding to a question about the meeting being null and void due to pronouncing the outcome before hand, federation’s president Sdumo Dlamini reiterated that the meeting was legal and recognised as well as the decision to suspend Vavi.

“Special CEC was convened following Cosatu’s constitution, did the matter discuss the complains of other affiliates on whether this was convened properly or not? The answer is yes and the meeting agreed that it was properly constituted”

Cosatu said that they have decided to suspend both Vavi and the staff member in question since they believe the two should be treated equally and has urged also urged the media to be fair and not only defend Vavi.

This comes after Vavi, who was clearly overwhelmed by the pressure, admitted publicly to having “consensual” sex with a subordinate at Cosatu’s headquarters during office hours.

Vavi felt the need to make conversations between him and the said ‘subordinate’ public after the woman laid charges of rape, which she later withdrew but the damage was already done.

Zwelinzima Vavi and Sdumo Dlamini. Picture: Twitter

This was enough ammunition for Vavi’s cronies who have been on a pursuit to remove him from the SG seat for a while. i.e.: Having sex in the workplace is unethical and one could be fired for such conduct.

Dlamini who has been known to be one of the people who want Vavi out, said that his actions have brought Cosatu into disrepute.

He has however maintained that there is no witch-hunt against the SG.

“In this federation there is basically no animosity between two leaders, Cosatu engages in its own processes.  There is no political conspiracy, there is no way it can be.”

Deputy General Secretary Bheki NtshaliNtshali who will be taking over Vavi’s duties said that arrangements will be made in due time to ensure that Vavi still has access into the building.

Although Cosatu did not want to disclose sanctions posed on Vavi, he remains powerless from this day onwards and no one knows how long the hearings will take, could be one month or two years. That should give him enough time to apologise to his wife and mend his family relations.

SPECIAL REPORT: Malema says land grabs will not be harmful to farmers

Kgothatso Madisa

@kgmadisa

EFF's Julius Malema and Kenny Kunene. Picture: Sportsburg

Economic Freedom Fighter’s leader Julius Malema has reassured the public that the organisation does not intent to forcefully reclaim land from its current owners.

The former ANCYL president said that although the party’s policies are in-line with that of Zimbabwe’s Zanu-PF when it comes to expropriation of land without compensation, they will not be using the same mechanism the party used.

 “We don’t Want South Africa to be like Zimbabwe, we are not going to beat up white people in the farm and cut their heads. We are going to engage in a radical programme which will make them understand that they must surrender the land.

“And they don’t have to leave, we’ve got too much land to share. We can share this land with them. Anyone who is going to resist that will meet the determination of our people.”

Malema said that they will not be changing their tune of acquiring the land without compensation for vote gains.

“If our people are not going to vote for us because we demand the land, so be it, let it be. We are not going to compromise principle for political exigency; we are not going to do that. We mean what we are saying.”

EFF's Kenny Kunene. Picture: Sportsburg

Responding to a question about EFF being taken as a joke because of the company it keeps, Malema said that people should not judge the organisation based on individuals. He said that Kenny Kunene has done the country wrong in the past but he has apologised.

“He did not start the organisation but joined as a member. We have forgiven the apartheid, we can surely forgive our own child. He has apologised, judge him from the day he joined this organisation.”

He continued to say that Kunene can change from loving 15 girlfriends to loving just one because the organisation also believes that one man should have a single partner.

Survival of the fittest as top teams fight for UEFA

Kgothatso Madisa

@kgmadisa

Picture: Real Madrid

This year's UEFA Champions League has been one of the most interesting ever with a lot of unexpected occurrences, from the defending champions being knocked out early to four of the most dangerous teams going through to the semi-finals.

The competition captured a lot of people’s attention in the group stages when the defending champions Chelsea were knocked out, right there and then it was open for anyone’s taking.

This is when Real Madrid made it absolutely clear that it aims to eliminate every opponent that might stand in its way of taking the title back to Madrid with them by thrashing the daring Manchester United in the last-16 round.

Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo scored a much needed goal that ensured his former club was completely buried, then apologised to his United fans before later seen having a talk with his former mentor Sir Alex Ferguson, probably discussing the goal.

Picture: Real Madrid

The match that made sure the Red Devils are send into the wilderness saw Madrid progressing to the quarterfinals where they battled it out with the strong Galatasaray who were looking for their first Champions League trophy, well, their hopes were suspended for yet another season when Madrid won the two leg matches by 5 – 3 on aggregate and made it to the semi-finals with four other top rated teams.

FC Barcelona, who almost missed a semi-final opportunity after being held by the French log leader Paris Saint-Germain to two draws but got an upper hand for scoring an away goal in their first 2-all draw(;)also made it through in the second leg of the quarterfinals with a much needed help of Lionel Messi.

The two Bundesliga log leaders Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund have also progressed to the semi-finals. Dortmund’s progression came as a surprise to a lot of people because Malaga proved to be quite a stronger opponent and a bit more title-eagered than them.

However, in their case it was always going to be Bayern and it did not matter who was the opponent, it was unfortunately Juventus who were to face the sharp double-edged sword. Bayern made sure it denies them even a single goal in the quarterfinals therefore suffering a 4 – 0 loss on aggregate.

At the moment the four teams through to the semis are Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich. Considering their history, it is safe to say that title is open to anyone. It is going to be a dog-eat-dog competition from this point onwards and the fittest bunch will come on top, probably Bayern or not, who knows?