Johannesburg – The family of the late Miriam Makeba and her business manager are expected to square off in court on Monday over the control of the music icon’s legacy.
Makeba’s family have vowed to expose the “fraudulent” activities of Graeme Gilfillan, whom they accuse of using deceitful means to claim Makeba’s intellectual property rights – and the royalties that go with them from her more than 30 albums.

The matter, which is due to be heard in the high court in Pretoria on Monday, is expected to shine the spotlight on the contentious issue of ownership royalties that often pits artists against their managing companies.

In October last year, Gilfillan through his company, Siyandisa Music, filed an application to interdict Makeba’s grandchildren Lumumba and Zenzile Lee from acting as the proprietors of the intellectual property rights of Makeba without approval.

The news that the South African Hall of Fame planned to induct Makeba in November set in motion an acrimonious legal battle that has been raging since 2004. Makeba’s family had earlier learnt that the Grammy award-winning artist had signed “a fictitious” licence contract, called ZM Makeba Trust, with Siyandisa. The alleged contract was signed by Makeba and one of her grandchildren, Dumisani, according to Zenzile.

DURBAN – Screams of “help, help me, help me in room 101”, still linger in the mind of a student who lived next door to Mangosuthu University of Technology student Zolile Khumalo who was shot dead, allegedly by her ex-boyfriend, Thabani Mzolo, this month.
The female student, who did not want to be named, spoke to The Independent on Saturday this week when the Deputy Minister of Police Bongani Mkongi was on a walkabout at the Lonsdale residency after Mzolo’s appearance at the Durban Magistrate’s Court on Thursday.

The student said she had difficulty being alone and could not sleep in her room by herself.

“I can only fall asleep if someone is with me. When I am not asleep, I get a fright and jump if there’s a knock at the door,” she said.

Mzolo, who was rumoured to have been a bodyguard to an Estcourt councillor in the past, is charged with murder and possession of a prohibited firearm. He is expected to apply for bail on June 19.

Three people were arrested within an hour after they allegedly robbed a fast food outlet in Port Elizabeth on Friday night.

At about 6.30pm on Friday‚ a fast food outlet in Circular Drive in Walmer was robbed by two men at gunpoint‚ police said.

One suspect had requested a bottle of water and as the attendant went to fetch the water‚ he pulled out a firearm and demanded cash.

Cash was taken from the till.

Police said the shop attendant had activated a panic button and the suspects had run out.

Video footage showed that they had got into a silver VW Polo.

Police said that after viewing the footage‚ members of the Flying Squad and the K9 unit had searched for the vehicle and cornered it.

Three suspects were arrested. Some of the stolen cash and a toy gun were found in the vehicle.

The suspects aged 20‚ 26 and 26 were arrested and detained on a charge of armed robbery. They will appear in court on Monday.

Seven children found passed out on the pavement and inside taxis during an “unruly” school food fair had to be taken to hospital in Cape Town.

Cape Town Law Enforcement spokesperson Wayne Dyason said officers were called to attend a complaint about children behaving in an unruly manner at the school in Wynberg on Saturday.

“The school had been host to a food fair and pupils from various schools attended the function. On arrival the officers found a number of children passed out on the pavement and lying passed out in taxis‚” he said.

“The allegation was that alcohol had been given to the pupils from the taxis. Alcohol could be seen in one of the taxis and a female lying in the taxi passed out. Some of them were vomiting.”

Ambulances were called and medics attended to the children. Dyason said the school had to be cleared of children and the food fair was stopped‚ at the request of the school.

Seven of the children were taken to hospital.