WARNING: This is Version 1 of my old archive, so Photos will NOT work and many links will NOT work. But you can find articles by searching on the Titles. There is a lot of information in this archive. Use the SEARCH BAR at the top right. Prior to December 2012; I was a pro-Christian type of Conservative. I was unaware of the mass of Jewish lies in history, especially the lies regarding WW2 and Hitler. So in here you will find pro-Jewish and pro-Israel material. I was definitely WRONG about the Boeremag and Janusz Walus. They were for real.
Original Post Date: 2008-04-21 Time: 00:00:00 Posted By: Jan
Cabinet won’t introduce new legislation to curb price fixing within the food industry despite admitting that the collusive behaviour among certain retailers was still a matter of concern.
“At this stage there is no talk of legislation until such time that government gets information that would suggest that we need to change our laws,” according to government spokesperson Themba Maseko
He said cabinet felt that competition authorities were effectively managing to wage its war on “these negative practises that have also contributed to higher food prices”.
Last year, Tiger Brands felt the wrath of the Competition Tribunal when the retail giant was fined R99-million for anti-competitive practices in a bread price-fixing scandal.
| ‘Food prices have gone too high, our people are starving’ |
Cabinet this week discussed the rising food and fuel prices and the global economic situation, which has left consumers around the world tightening their belts, while food protests have broken out in several countries.
Sunday saw thousands of Cosatu members take to the streets of Johannesburg in protest against increased food prices.
In a memorandum, Cosatu complained that food manufacturers and retailers had increased the prices of basic foodstuffs – in some cases in collusion with one another – beyond the reach of the majority in the country.
“These food prices have seriously worsened the living standards of workers and the poor,” stated the memorandum, which included a list of demands that was handed over to Pick n Pay senior general manager Kevin Krom.
“Food prices have gone too high, our people are starving,” said SA Communist Party general secretary Blade Nzimande whose members had also joined the march.
But cabinet noted that while South Africa was being affected by the rising prices, it had not suffered as badly as some countries.
“The budget contributes to supporting the income of poor households through the social grant system and the school feeding scheme,” Maseko said. The economic and social cluster of minsters was, however, asked to develop and present a strategy to cabinet on how to best deal with the challenges soon.
Cabinet also reported that the government had decided to cancel a R926,8-million debt that Cuba owed the country. It argued that the debt’s existence had the potential to undermine bilateral economic ties between South Africa and Cuba.
“Given the assessment of Cuba’s debt position, the government is of the view that Cuba was not in a position to meet its obligations in the foreseeable future,” Maseko said.
The move, however, angered the Freedom Front Plus who accused the government of giving away taxpayer’s money.
“This while the majority of taxpayers are suffering and the money could have been used for so many other deserving projects such as housing and the treatment of Aids,” FF(43)+ MP Pieter Mulder said.
This week’s meeting also saw cabinet dispatching a task team to assist the Eastern Cape’s beleaguered housing department to improve service delivery.
Delivery of houses in the province has dropped from 37 000 units a year in 2004/05 to just 11 750 in the previous financial year.
Maseko would not comment on whether this move by the national government would mean the axing of the Eastern Cape’s MEC for local government, housing and traditional affairs Thokozile Xasa.
He said, however, that cabinet had warned the province that housing minister Lindiwe Sisulu would take over the administration of the provincial department if the situation did not improve within a year.