Still waiting

What’s in the M&G this week [View this email in your browser]( October 22, 2021 [Mail & Guardian]( [Mail & Guardian]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [YouTube]( Hi there, Wasting time: South Africa's had a shit time of it and now comes the reckoning of the "toilet election". Ten years on and the delivery of the most basic of services is still dominating municipal polls. Get this story and more in this week's M&G, available in print and online. Why are political parties still stuck [on old, tired marketing campaigns]( Lizeka Tandwa reports that voters’ sentiments are gradually declining online when it comes to the ANC and the Democratic Alliance, while that towards the Economic Freedom Fighters has become more positive. The DA has further troubles as the sexual harassment case against senior leader Shadow Shabangu, who seems to have been [protected by the party after being implicated in corruption]( worth R1.2-million, has finally made it to court. Khaya Koko is following the case. All three major parties seem to be [“oblivious” to the effects of the climate crisis]( as reflected by their “shallow” manifestos, according to a critique of their local government election manifestos by the Climate Justice Charter. The country faces multiple crises that threaten its young democracy, including hunger, poverty, unemployment, inequality, corruption and failure to deliver basic services. These are among the reasons that have dissuaded 13 million eligible voters from registering to vote in the elections on 1 November, the Climate Justice Charter says. All these problems are being worsened by the climate crisis, reports Sheree Bega. Keeping with our environment coverage, Tunicia Phillips writes that a new report based on [leaked documents obtained by Greenpeace]( in the UK has exposed countries putting pressure on renowned scientists preparing to release a crucial report on climate change. After three months of lobbying by the South African Transplant Society, the Organ Donor Foundation and the South African Transplant Sports Association, the department of health will soon [have Covid-19 booster shots]( for organ transplant recipients. Chris Bateman has the full report. A year after her death, the real threat of more violence has caused the organisation of slain environmental activist Fikile Ntshangase[“great difficulty” in opposing mining expansion]( where they live in northern KwaZulu-Natal. Koko has more on the anniversary of Ntshangase’s murder. The high court on Wednesday heard how Nathaniel “Lokkies” Julies was [killed by banned birdshot ammunition]( that launches 280 metal pellets into a target. Phillips reports that forensics expert and state witness Lieutenant Colonel Willem Visser testified that 65% of the pellets in the cartridge hit the 16-year-old when he was gunned down in Eldorado Park, Johannesburg, allegedly by the junior, in-training constable, Caylene Whiteboy. Should a rape suspect be allowed the legal defence that he genuinely, if mistakenly, believed his alleged victim had consented to sex? Coko vs S has occupied the legal commentariat for a fortnight after the acquittal on appeal by the Eastern Cape high court of a young paramedic convicted of raping his girlfriend and sentenced to seven years in prison by the Grahamstown magistrate’s court. The high court ruling by acting judge Tembeka Ngcukaitobi has outraged others less schooled in criminal law, who have understood it to say the court found that consent to foreplay or oral sex equals consent to penetrative sex. Emsie Ferreira explains [why the fault rests with legislators and not the court](. And finally, in this week’s cartoon, Carlos Amato pays tribute to Egyptian gods and their monuments. We have some interesting news, friends. The Ampersand is going on a break next week. Except we’re not actually going anywhere. We will be delivering a newsletter — Poll Position — to your inbox looking at all things elections at 7am every day. If you’re reading this it means you’re already good to go. See you then, 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 which mails you receive from Mail & Guardian? [Update your preferences]( to tell us what you do and don't want to receive, or [unsubscribe](. *If you are a paying subscriber, we recommend updating your preferences rather than unsubscribing, as you may miss important information relating to your subscription.