WeeklySA_AdminLOGISTICS: The Electoral Commission of SA has intensified preparations after Cyril Ramaphosa confirmed November 4 2026 as the date for local government elections, urging citizens to verify and update their voter registration details ahead of the elections…
By Own Correspondent
The Electoral Commission of South Africa has welcomed the announcement of the date for the country’s upcoming Local Government Elections, describing it as a key milestone in preparations for the polls.
President Cyril Ramaphosa yesterday confirmed 4 November 2026 as the day for South Africans to head to the polls.
Chief Electoral Officer Sy Mamabolo said the confirmation provides much-needed clarity for stakeholders and enables the Commission to intensify its operational planning.
“The announcement of the election date provides clarity for all role players and certainty of planning for the Electoral Commission as we continue our work to deliver free and fair municipal elections,” Mamabolo said.
The Commission has urged all eligible South Africans to verify their voter registration status ahead of the elections.
Citizens who are not yet registered, or who have recently moved, are encouraged to ensure they are registered in the voting district where they ordinarily reside. The IEC emphasised that voters may only cast their ballots at the voting station where they are registered.
The President’s announcement does not yet constitute the formal legal proclamation of the election date.
In terms of the law, the official proclamation will be made by the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Velenkosini Hlabisa, at which point the national voters’ roll will be closed.
The Commission has made its online registration platform https://registertovote.elections.org.za/ available via its official website, allowing users to register or update their details using a desktop computer or mobile phone.
In addition, a national voter registration weekend is scheduled for 20 and 21 June 2026, when citizens can register in person at the voting stations where they intend to vote.
The Commission has called on all eligible citizens to take advantage of these opportunities, verify their registration details early, and participate fully in shaping the future of their local communities. – SAnews.gov.za
MIRROR Briefs
EMBATTLED MINISTER BLAMES SMEAR CAMPAIGN
The embattled Minister of Social Development Sisisi Tolashe has claimed that a series of scandals and allegations against her are part of a coordinated “smear campaign” aimed at damaging her reputation.
Tolashe has come under fire for numerous scandals in her department, including hiring practices and, the two cars that were donated to the ANC Women’s League.
Presenting an overview of the annual performance plan for her department and the Social Security Agency (SASSA), Tolashe said media reports have not been based on verified facts and were being sourced from those with an axe to grind.
She noted what appears to be a “deliberate and sustained attempt to mislead the public” and undermine her leadership through the circulation of “false and distorted narratives”.
The Minister placed it on record that these claims were being driven by a disgruntled former official of the Department whose precautionary suspension and subsequent dismissal followed serious allegations relating to the mismanagement of public resources and gross administrative misconduct.”
Tolashe accused her of making unsubstantiated and misleading claims against the department, rather than following the proper institutional channels to address her dismissal.
“This conduct is clearly aimed at diverting attention from the real reasons for her dismissal and sowing confusion in the public domain.” – Lehlohonolo Lehana.
HUNT FOR POLICE KILLERS
Acting National Commissioner Lieutenant General Puleng Dimpane says maximum resources have been mobilised to hunt down a group of criminals who attacked two Crime Intelligence officers in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal this week resulting in one officer being killed.
The attack on the Crime Intelligence officers happened in the Mount Edgecombe area.
A member who was the driver of a State vehicle succumbed to the gunshot wounds sustained at the scene.
Another member, who was also shot and wounded during the attack, was airlifted to hospital and was currently receiving urgent medical care. A manhunt has been launched for the suspects.
South African Police Service specialised units, including Crime Intelligence operatives, detectives, the organised crime unit and highly trained police officers are working around the clock to track down and apprehend those involved.
Dimpane condemned the attack, describing it as an assault on the authority of the State and those who risked their lives in the fight against crime. “No stone will be left unturned in ensuring that the perpetrators are brought to justice.”
SAPS has deployed its Employee Health and Wellness experts, including psychologists and chaplains, to the family of the deceased and the SAPS Crime Intelligence unit to offer psychosocial services. – SAnews
LUNGU’S BURIAL SAGA CONTINUES.
The family of the late Zambian President Edgar Lungu and the Zambian government have reached an agreement in the high court where a reconsideration application was meant to be heard.
Lungu passed away on June 5, 2025 at a hospital in Pretoria, South Africa.
It is the latest twist in a 10-month saga over what should happen to his remains following a long-standing feud between Lungu and his successor, President Hakainde Hichilema.
The government was challenging an order that was handed down last week that the former president’s remains be taken back to the family’s mortuary.
The parties agreed to have the body at Avbob Pretoria East pending the finalization of the appeal in the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA).
The appeal has been brought by the family after the high court ordered that Lungu’s remains be buried in Zambia. They want him buried in South Africa.
Leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Appeal was granted.
The matter was supposed to have been settled in June last year when the family initially agreed that there could be a State funeral in Zambia. But the plans were scuppered over a dispute about what role Hichilema was going to play.
Lungu’s family said one of his dying wishes was that Hichilema should not go anywhere near his body. – Lehlohonolo Lehana.
LIMPOPO MUSICIAN DENIED BAIL
The Polokwane Magistrates Court has denied bail to Lekompo musician Lehlogonolo Chauke, popularly known as Shebe “Shebeshxt” Maburna.
His case has been transferred to the regional court of Polokwane on May 15, 2026.
He faces serious charges, including three counts of attempted murder, assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm (GBH), and possession of an unlicensed firearm and ammunition.
Arrested in November 2025, he remains in custody as of April 30, 2026, after his third bail application was denied.
Delivering his judgment, Magistrate Godfrey Netshiozwi said : “The court found that the material placed before it amounted to a repetition and embellishment of facts previously considered during earlier bail proceedings, rather than a legally recognisable change in circumstances.
“The so-called new facts relied upon are, in substance, an embroidery of circumstances that were already known and considered at the time of the initial bail application.”
Netshiozwi noted that while the current application was refused, the accused retained the right to approach a court of competent jurisdiction should genuinely new facts arise in the future, as contemplated in bail jurisprudence.
Chauke came into the limelight in 2021 and has since made significant waves in the few years that he has been in the music industry.
