The village of uMhlwazi, which sits among the rolling mountains of uMhlumayo in KwaZulu-Natal’s uThukela district, feels forgotten. With barely any services and almost entirely cut off from the rest of the predominantly rural district, daily life in the impoverished village is marked by isolation and hardship. The Mail & Guardian witnessed first-hand the struggles faced by residents trying simply to move in and out of the community. After more than three hours on a heavily potholed tar road that ends halfway, the journey continued along a punishing gravel route leading to the village. uMhlwazi lies roughly three hours from the seat of the Alfred Duma local municipality, headquartered in the town of Ladysmith, known to locals as eMnambithi. Running through the middle of the village is the Indaka River, both a lifeline and a danger to residents. With no water infrastructure, villagers rely on the river as their only source of water, sharing it with livestock. But locals say the river has also claimed six lives over the years, earning it the grim nickname: “the river of death”. Community leader Khanyisani Sibisi initially appeared reluctant to speak to the M&G. “Nizohlekisa ngosizi lwethu,” he said angrily. “You’re here to make a mockery of our struggles. People are perishing here.” Village elder Mboniseni Mazibuko later explained the source of Sibisi’s frustration. “Please pardon him. He lost his younger brother in these waters,” Mazibuko said, pointing at the river. “Government officials have come here and made a lot of promises. People are angry.” Pupils not only walk kilometres to reach Mandlakhe High School, the only secondary school serving several surrounding villages but must also risk crossing the Indaka River, which residents say is infested with crocodiles. The community has never had a bridge connecting it to the other side. Local councillor Bongani Nicholas Madondo said the provincial department of transport must take responsibility for the community’s ongoing suffering. “Government officials and the department of transport have visited this area several times and made many promises,” Madondo said. “The first was former KwaZulu-Natal transport MEC Willies Mchunu, who presided over a sod-turning ceremony and promised a bridge would be built. Nothing came from that. The current education MEC, Sipho Hlomuka, also conducted a sod-turning ceremony in 2023.” Madondo said residents remained traumatised by repeated drownings, including the death of 36-year-old Lungeleni Shabalala. Shabalala had travelled to Ladysmith, the nearest town serving the surrounding villages, to buy household items when she drowned while attempting to cross the river, he said. Her body was recovered the following afternoon. “Two learners have also died in similar incidents,” said Madondo. “Parents sometimes keep their children at home during rainy days because they fear for their safety. The situation is catastrophic.” He said the lack of a bridge also stripped grieving families of dignity during funerals. “During burials, families are forced to carry coffins across the river,” he said. “It completely takes away their dignity.” Mncedisi Maphisa, chairperson of the transport portfolio committee in the KwaZulu-Natal legislature, described the situation as “a travesty of justice”. “We will seek answers about what happened to the funds meant for the construction of this much-needed bridge,” Maphisa said. “If there are people who must be held accountable, heads will roll.” In the nearby village of Mbondwane, about 15km away, residents described similar hardship. The only bridge serving the community was damaged during floods, forcing parents to carry children on their backs across dangerous sections so they can reach Mnyanda Primary School. Villagers also told the M&G that there are no nearby clinics and that poor cellphone reception leaves them isolated.  “We are shut off from the world because there’s no network in our village,” said resident Sphelele Gumede. “We have to climb the mountains just to make calls or receive important ones.” uMhlumayo falls under the traditional leadership of eMangweni. KwaZulu-Natal transport department spokesperson Ndabezinhle Sibiya said he was uncertain about the status of the bridge project. “I will have to check with the engineers regarding the status of the bridge,” he said.

A court case that most South Africans probably scrolled past this month deserves a lot more attention than it got. On 30 April 2026, the Western Cape High Court ruled that Cape Town’s fixed charges for citywide cleaning, water and sanitation were unlawful and unconstitutional.  The South African Property Owners Association (Sapoa) brought the case and won. The city has since decided not to appeal, which tells you everything you need to know about the strength of its legal position. The issue was that Cape Town had structured the fixed service charges so that the amount you paid was calculated based on your property’s value. The more expensive your property, the more you paid for cleaning and basic water, regardless of how much water you used or how much rubbish you generated.  The court found that linking a service charge to property value converts it into a property tax in disguise. Municipalities don’t have the legal authority to introduce new property taxes. That power sits with the national government. What looked like a service charge was, legally speaking, an unlawful levy. The city is scrambling to rework a budget that depended on roughly R2 billion in revenue from those charges. A new draft budget goes out for public comment on 27 May 2026. Sapoa has said citywide cleaning should be funded through property rates, the mechanism that exists for broad-based municipal expenditure. The city appears to agree. Why does this matter beyond the Western Cape? The ruling is a mirror being held up to every municipality in the country. Municipalities have a problem and it is one that few are willing to talk about honestly. They are over-reliant on a small group of people to fund their budgets — property owners. Property taxes and rates make up a disproportionate share of municipal income in most of our major cities.  When you add surcharges and service fees that get stacked on top of rate bills, a significant portion of what municipalities collect comes from the same pool of ratepayers. That is not a sustainable funding model and it creates a political temptation that is almost impossible to resist. To put it another way, if you need more money, you look at property owners because they’re paying, their properties are registered and they’re relatively easy to bill. Cape Town’s value-linked charges were a version of that temptation. Instead of going through the proper legislative process to increase rates, which requires alignment with the national framework and public consultation, the city found a creative workaround.  Link the service charge to property value, collect more from higher-value properties and achieve the revenue outcome without technically calling it a rate increase. The court said no. Here is what the data tells us about the broader problem. According to research compiled from the National Treasury’s local government data, property rates as a share of municipal operating revenue have climbed steadily over the past decade. In the metros, rates income has in many cases grown faster than inflation — and significantly faster than the property values being taxed.  The City of Cape Town’s budget shows rates income growing at compound rates that have consistently outpaced CPI. The same pattern holds in Johannesburg, Tshwane and eThekwini, where property rate increases have run between 8% and 12% annually, even during periods when inflation was at 4% or 5%. For property owners, this is not an abstract policy conversation. It lands on your doorstep in the form of a municipal account that seems to grow faster than almost anything else in your cost of living. Being a property owner in South Africa in 2025 is sometimes not as glamorous as it looks. The romanticised version of buying a property, building wealth, collecting rent and retiring comfortably has become something different. The costs of owning, maintaining and managing property have escalated dramatically while the income from that property has often not kept pace. Think about what goes into owning a property. You start with transfer duty on acquisition, which applies at a graduated rate to purchases above R1.1 million, plus conveyancing fees, bond registration costs and potentially an estate agent commission.  That’s before you’ve switched on a light. Then come the monthly costs of the bond, levies if you’re in a complex, property rates, building insurance, maintenance and repairs.  If you’re a landlord, add vacancy periods, property management fees if you use an agent, the cost of tenant disputes and the risk of a non-paying tenant you cannot remove quickly because the Rental Housing Tribunal moves at its own pace. As for the effectiveness of the Prevention of Illegal Eviction from and Unlawful Occupation of Land Act 19 of 1998, let me save the rant for another article. Rates alone have become a material line item. A property valued at R3m in Cape Town can attract a monthly rates bill of R2 500 to R3 500 or more, depending on the category and the valuation cycle. The number was lower five years ago.  In Johannesburg, where property values in many areas have gone flat or backwards in real terms, rates bills have kept climbing. You are paying more for a municipal service in a city where the roads are worse, the water infrastructure is under pressure and load shedding, while recently improved, has cost property owners significantly in generator investments and electricity surcharges. The cumulative effect on affordability is real and underestimated. When first-time buyers do the maths on whether they can afford a property, they typically look at the bond repayment and maybe the levy. Rates often get underestimated. The cost of maintenance, which, for an average freestanding house, is roughly 1% of the property value a year almost never features in the calculation.  The true cost of owning property is considerably higher than the headline price suggests. Municipalities raising their rates above inflation year after year are making that calculation worse. None of this is an argument against municipalities collecting revenue. They need it. Roads, water reticulation, waste removal and electricity infrastructure cost money and property owners benefit from them. A well-run city with reliable services and maintained infrastructure is the most important driver of property value. I have made this argument in this column before: the reason Cape Town properties appreciate the way they do is not just the mountain and the ocean. It is the fact that the city’s lights stay on, the sewage system mostly works and the streets get cleaned. That is worth paying for. But paying for it and being exploited are two different things. When a municipality creates a charge that is linked to the value of your asset and not to your usage, not to the cost of the service but to how much your property is worth, it has crossed from taxation into something that looks more like a wealth levy applied to an illiquid asset.  You cannot sell 10% of your house to pay your rates and you cannot easily liquidate equity. You are being asked to fund the municipality based on a notional value, while the municipality often fails to justify how the number translates into service delivery. Sapoa is engaging Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality on the same issue. Other municipalities had better take note because the precedent is set. The lesson is not complicated. Property rates and proper service levies are legitimate. They are the clean, constitutionally sound way to fund shared municipal services. Sapoa has said it supports the mechanism.  What is not legitimate is using property values as a proxy for ability to pay, packaging it as a service charge to avoid legislative scrutiny and then running a R2bn hole in your budget when a court calls it out. Municipalities need to do the hard work of broadening their revenue bases rather than returning to the same well. They need to improve billing and collection rates and be transparent to ratepayers about how their money is being spent.  Property owners are carrying more than their fair share of an increasingly heavy load. They are not an inexhaustible revenue source.  As this court case has reminded us all, they are not without legal recourse either.

Bafana Bafana's World Cup preparations hit a snag as a visa blunder delays their departure for the tournament, prompting Minister Gayton McKenzie to demand accountability from SAFA.

Cederberg Municipality is on the brink of eliminating a staggering R47 million Eskom debt, thanks to a significant second R14.9 million write-off from National Treasury, paving the way for financial recovery.

Get the Daily Lotto and Daily Lotto Plus results as soon as they are drawn on The Citizen, so you can rest easy and check your tickets with confidence. Estimated Daily Lotto and Daily Lotto Plus jackpots for Sunday, 31 May 2026: Daily Lotto: R300 000 DailyLotto Plus: R100 000 Daily Lotto and Daily Lotto Plus results for 31 May 2026: The winning Daily Lotto numbers will appear below after the draw. Usually, within 10 minutes of the draw. You might need to refresh the page to see the updated results. Daily Lotto: 01, 07, 10, 17, 29. Daily Lotto Plus: 07, 15, 24, 26, 36. For more details and to verify the Daily Lotto results, visit the National Lottery website. How to play Daily Lotto in SA? If you are buying a ticket in-store: Pick up a betslip in any lottery store. Choose five numbers between 1 and 36 or ask for a Quick Pick. Entries cost R3 each. You can play a max of R150, but you are allowed to play multiple boards. Select how many consecutive draws you wish to enter, up to a maximum of 10. Leave blank for a single draw. Take your betslip to the teller to pay for your ticket. Write your details on the back of your ticket in case you need to claim a prize. If you do not sign your ticket and you lose it, anyone can use it to claim the prize. If you are playing online: Set up a lottery account here and make a deposit to pay for tickets. Choose five numbers from 1 to 36 or select ‘Quick Pick’ to generate a random set. Repeat this on as many boards as you want to play. Decide whether to enter a single draw or multiple draws. Confirm and pay for your entry. What time is the Daily Lotto draw? The Daily Lotto draws take place shortly after 8:30pm every evening, and tickets can be bought until 8:30pm.

This aerial picture shows a damaged bridge in Raqa province following recent flooding as water levels rise along the Euphrates River on May 30, 2026. Syria’s energy ministry warned on April 28 of rising water levels on the Euphrates River after flooding in the north and east following increased flows from neighbouring Turkey and recent rains. A statement said government water authorities in Deir Ezzor, Raqa and Aleppo provinces had announced a “state of emergency” and were taking precautionary measures. (Photo by Bakr ALKASEM / AFP) Jaan Roose walks a highline between the Palace of Culture and Science and Varso Tower during the Red Bull Time Line in Warsaw, Poland, May 31, 2026. During the event Estonian slackliner crossed a 500-meter-long line suspended about 180 meters above the city streets between two tallest buildings in Poland. (Photo by Jakub Porzycki/Anadolu via Getty Images) Orania residents hoist the South African Republic flag at the cemetery built on the site of the Anglo – Boer war concentration camp of Doornbult near Orania, on May 30, 2026. Bittereinderdag, celebrated in Orania on may 31st, commemorates the signing of the Treaty of Vereeniging on May 31, 1902, which ended the Second Boer War, and coincide with the 35th anniversary of the foundation of Orania. Established in 1991 after the abolition of the racial laws, Orania is protected under South Africa’s constitution, which ensures the right to self-determination. (Photo by MARCO LONGARI / AFP) A group of people, many carrying sticks and clubs, walk past a South African Police Service vehicle as they take part in a protest against illegal immigrants organised by March and March in Goodwood, a Cape Town suburb, on May 30, 2026. (Photo by RODGER BOSCH / AFP) Malta Labour Party (PL) supporters celebrate after winning the elections in Hamrun Malta on May 31, 2026. Malta’s Labour party has won an unprecedented fourth term in a victory for outgoing Prime Minister Robert Abela, a sample count of ballots showed on May 31. Preliminary results gave the election to Labour, officials in the Counting House in Naxxar said, as fireworks were set off across the tiny Mediterranean island. (Photo by Alberto PIZZOLI / AFP) People take part in the Saltibarsciai Slip and Slide competition on an inflatable foam-covered slide during the Pink Soup Fest 2026, an annual event celebrating the “Saltibarsciai” beetroot soup in Vilnius, Lithuania, on May 30, 2026. A centuries-old staple in Lithuanian households, the Saltibarsciai soup has become synonymous with Lithuanian identity, and is now celebrated with its very own festival in Vilnius: Vilnius Pink Soup Fest. (Photo by Petras Malukas / AFP) A woman walks past the iconic blue-colored houses in Jodhpur on May 31, 2026. (Photo by MANAN VATSYAYANA / AFP) A person with a mask depicting France’s President Emmanuel Macron poses with TotalEnergies’s headquarters tower in the background as takes part in a protest organised by associations Attac, Avaaz, 350 and Action Justice Climat Paris on the sidelines of the company’s annual general meeting, to denounce “the financial and political support the group continues to receive, despite its ongoing fossil fuel projects and their human, climate and environmental impacts”, in the forecourt of La Defense business district in Puteaux on May 29, 2026. The action depicts French President Emmanuel Macron feeding a TotalEnergies pipeline with French taxpayers’ money with group’s CEO Patrick Pouyanne surrounded by overflowing profits on the other end, to protest against the impacts associated with projects such as EACOP, Mozambique LNG and TotalEnergies’ expansion into fossil fuels. (Photo by SIMON WOHLFAHRT / AFP) Health workers stand in a new Ebola treatment center during a visit of Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), in Bunia, in the northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, on May 31, 2026. The World Health Organization’s director general had earlier announced he was coming to Bunia, capital of Ituri province, to “help” and “listen to” the people facing the worst of the outbreak.The highly contagious haemorrhagic fever is already present in three eastern DRC provinces and in neighbouring Uganda, where nine confirmed infections, including one death, have been recorded.There have been at least 1,077 suspected cases of Ebola in the DRC since the outbreak was declared on May 15, including 246 deaths, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said on May 28. (Photo by GLODY MURHABAZI / AFP) The peloton rides past the Colosseum during the 21th stage of the Giro d’Italia 2026 – Tour of Italy cycling race of 131km from Rome to Rome, Italy, on May 31, 2026. (Photo by Luca Bettini / AFP) An aerial photograph shows the Cerne Abbas Giant, in Dorchester, southern England on May 29, 2026. (Photo by Ben STANSALL / AFP) Canada’s experimental rock band “Angine de Poitrine” guitarist Khn de Poitrine performs during a concert part of the Nuits Botanique music festival in Brussels on May 28, 2026. (Photo by JOHN THYS / AFP) MORE: 24 hours in pictures, 28 May 2026

Rachel Kolisi’s fans are commenting on her divorce “glow-up”, claiming she looks happier and healthier than she’s ever been. The former Springbok WAG – who split from spouse Siya Kolisi – has spoken extensively about navigating life as a single mother. RACHEL KOLISI PRAISED OVER DIVORCE ‘GLOW-UP’ In her latest social media post, Rachel Kolisi shared a look at her life over the past few weeks. This included bonding with her children, her recent shoulder surgery and snaps from a recent photoshoot. The mother-of-two appeared happier and healthier than she has in a long time, which was not lost on her followers. “You look like you’re ageing backwards”, commented one follower, while another added: “It’s the glow up for me” A third referenced a popular 90s romcom with the comment: “Stella has her groove back”. ‘I’M GOOD BY MYSELF’ Meanwhile, Rachel Kolisi revealed that she is happily single following her divorce from Siya Kolisi. While her ex has a new romantic partner, the mother-of-two shared that “moving on” for her did not equate to finding a romantic partner. She said: “I’m good by myself. I don’t think I’ve ever been better by myself”. She added, “That needs to be a conversation on its own. Just the fact that, why is it considered moving on only when you’re with somebody else? And why is your value only attached when you’re with someone else?”

Cheslin Kolbe and his wife, Layla, have shared a look at his last days in Japan with his Suntory Sungoliath team, where he played his last game this weekend, before his return to South Africa. The Springbok star will make a comeback at his home club of the Stormers, in a major deal announced this week. CHESLIN KOLBE’S LAST DAYS IN JAPAN On his Instagram account, Cheslin Kolbe has shared a look at his last few days in Japan. Accompanied by his wife, this includes his last game, played at Suntory Sungoliath, where they were defeated by Kobelco Kobe Steelers over the weekend. In other pics, the couple, who have three children, enjoy traditional Japanese meals and the sights of Tokyo. “Taking it all in. Grateful”, he captioned the post. Layla added on her own Instagram post: “Japan gave our family some of the happiest, most beautiful memories we could have asked for…leaving Japan is incredibly emotional for us”. REUNITING WITH FAMILY…AND THE STORMERS Cheslin Kolbe will mark his return to the Stormers on 1 July 2026. The 32-year-old chose to return to South Africa to be closer to his family. He shared in a statement: “Over time, I’ve had to weigh up the sacrifices that come with living abroad – especially the time spent away from my loved ones, the moments you can’t get back, and the stage of life our family is in right now. As grateful as we are for this incredible journey, we feel the time is right to return to South Africa after the season and begin the next chapter of our lives”. In a statement posted by Sungoaliath, Cheslin added that “Family circumstances have made me choose to be there for my family, and that is a sacrifice I cannot ignore” He added: “If circumstances had allowed, we would have loved to continue our journey here”.

Telkom has guided to a 45-55% earnings jump when it reports this week, but base effects complicate the picture.

Microsoft and Dell are expected to lead the launch as Nvidia muscles into a space dominated by Intel and AMD.