The nuclear option is back

What’s in the M&G this week [View this email in your browser]( August 20, 2021 [Mail & Guardian]( [Mail & Guardian]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [YouTube]( Hi there, From Mbeki to Zuma and now Ramaphosa … here’s a guide to how three presidents have dealt with South Africa’s never-ending energy problem. Plus, find out how the Eastern Cape government bought land that cost less than R1-million in 2007 at the price of R23-million, knowing it was part of a land claim. When the option of nuclear energy was first detonated in South Africa, a mushroom cloud of debate consumed our airways. Years later we emerged, coughing and wheezing, hamstrung by a poor power supply. It’s time to talk about nuclear again. Sarah Smit writes that more than two decades since Thyspunt in the Eastern Cape was identified as a possible site for a new nuclear plant, [Eskom is still forging ahead with its long-held ambitions](. Next week, the National Nuclear Regulator will hold public hearings at Thyspunt, 22km from Jeffreys Bay, after Eskom applied for a nuclear site licence in 2019. If approved, the Thyspunt plant may form part of government’s new nuclear power proposal, which could see it procure 2 500 megawatts of additional energy by 2030. Nuclear power, though no longer mired in politics, is still polarising, with some arguing it will get South Africa to its clean energy goals faster and others saying it is unsafe, unaffordable and unnecessary. In our other big story of the week, a very different kind of “deal” is causing consternation at the Commission for Gender Equality. Lizeka Tandwa reports on [a secret meeting between the commission chairperson, Tamara Mathebula, and Deputy Finance Minister David Masondo]( while he was the subject of a complaint to the body. The meeting resulted in a “confidential” agreement between the commission and Masondo — one which the complainant, Palesa Lebitse, cannot see. One commissioner told the Mail & Guardian that it was “highly irregular” for the commission to reach undisclosed agreements with a respondent in the absence of the complainant, alleging that the case had a whiff of political influence. David Makhura is another on the end of pointed questions. The legality of a March 2020 circular issued by the Gauteng premier, which “caused chaos in the province” regarding Covid-19 procurement, [is at the centre of a R42.8-million claim against him]( writes Khaya Koko. Nor is our former president ever far from the news. Tandwa writes that Jacob Zuma has implicated South Africa’s founding democratic president, Nelson Mandela, and his foundation [in having benefited from the 1990s arms deal, according to a letter seen by the M&G](. Much of the world’s headlines have been captured by a different kind of conflict. Erika Gibson reports that [a few dozen South Africans were caught in the drama]( when thousands of Afghans stormed the airport in Kabul, Afghanistan’s capital, on Sunday when the Taliban announced it had taken control of the country again. None of the South Africans were in danger and most were evacuated by Wednesday. The department of international relations and cooperation said seven South Africans were in contact with the department to arrange for a safe passage out of the country. Eunice Stoltz has shed some light on [adoption in South Africa](. For the couple in question it was a lengthy process but one which was richly rewarding. And some news from yesterday in case you missed it. The government says the national Covid-19 vaccination programme will [expand to those aged 18 to 35 from today]( earlier than the September target that had previously been set. Chris Gilili has more. Finally, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, the former minister of defence and military veterans, has [been elected as speaker of South Africa’s sixth parliament]( reports Paddy Harper. Mapisa-Nqakula, who was nominated as speaker by ANC chief whip Pemmy Majodina, received 199 votes; 82 MPS voted for the Democratic Alliance candidate, Annelie Lotriet. Ahem … As always, thank you for joining us on our M&G misadventures. We’ll be back, same time, same place, next week. Have a good one. Until Tuesday, Kiri Rupiah & Luke Feltham [Subscribe now]( Enjoy The Ampersand? Share it with your friends [Share]( [Share]( [Tweet]( [Tweet]( [Forward]( [Forward]( [Share]( [Share]( Copyright © 2021 Mail & Guardian Media LTD, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you opted in to receive communications from the Mail & Guardian either at our website or by taking out a print subscription. Our mailing address is: Mail & Guardian Media LTD 25 Owl St BraamfonteinJohannesburg, Gauteng 2001 South Africa [Add us to your address book]( Want to change how you receive these emails? You can [update your preferences]( or [unsubscribe]( here.