So #SONA2019 is currently trending worldwide on Twitter, and it's pretty obvious why. But if you gaze further down the social network's top trends on Thursday night, you'll see "Afrikaans". Yes. "Afrikaans" is now trending worldwide on Twitter. Not just in South Africa. Worldwide. As for why, well, it might be because of this little incident at SONA 2019 earlier... https://twitter.com/Zaahidah_M/status/1093554820726865920 During the national anthem, the EFF took a seat in Parliament when the Afrikaans section began. The third stanza of South Africa's current anthem is taken from the country's former anthem called Die Stem, used by the country during the apartheid...
When Julius Malema becomes President of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa will sing Thuma Mina live in Parliament, this according to the current President during Thursday evening's SONA. In a smart bit of politics, current President Ramaphosa began proceedings -- threatened by the prospect of disruption from the EFF -- with a "disclaimer". It was more a funny, playful way to disarm the party. The President noted that when he ran into Malema earlier on Thursday, the two agreed that if the EFF wins the 2019 Presidential election, Ramaphosa will honour him by singing the famous Hugh Masekela song -- first used by...
After last year's SONA delay, courtesy of the change in the Presidency, 2019's State of the Nation Address will start on time, and on the initially proposed date. That date is today! President Cyril Ramaphosa is set to deliver his second address at the helm of the country, which will begin at 7pm tonight (that is, if the EFF doesn't disrupt proceedings as suggested). But, if you can't quite get out of the Cape Town CBD before then, find yourself stuck without a television, or want to covertly watch the address from abroad, you can do that from the Parliament YouTube channel's...
Grammy Award winner and Oscar nominee James Ingram has died at the age of 66 after a battle with brain cancer. The R&B singer was well known for songs such as "One Hundred Ways" and "Yah Mo Be There" which won Grammys in 1982 and 1985 respectively. Ingram was also widely known for his friendship with the likes of Michael Jackson and music producer Quincy Jones. "There are no words to convey how much my ❤️ aches with the news of the passing of my baby brother, James Ingram," Jones said in a tweet. https://twitter.com/QuincyDJones/status/1090373668105007106 Other celebrities also paid their respects in tweets. https://twitter.com/joshgroban/status/1090397734035644416 https://twitter.com/MsGladysKnight/status/1090456089542311936 https://twitter.com/sinbadbad/status/1090493065075220481 https://twitter.com/MsLeaSalonga/status/1090419842971246592 https://twitter.com/msdebbieallen/status/1090329599244783616 In...
The United States Justice Department has laid criminal charges against Chinese smartphone and networking technology vendor Huawei. Filed in New York on Monday, there are 13 counts in the indictment relating to bank and wire fraud, violating US sanctions previously placed on Iran and the obstruction of justice in relation to the prior. This comes after Canada arrested the company's CFO Meng Wanzhou late last year. Huawei and Wanzhou deny the allegations. In a statement, the Chinese company said that it was "disappointed to learn of the charges". https://twitter.com/AkikoFujita/status/1090106475110780928 The indictment come at a tense time for US and Chinese trade relations, and especially for...
The grand reopening of Lion's Head's popular hiking trail frequented by selfie-seekers has been postponed following the wildfire which ravaged the peak on Sunday. The blaze, which burned for much of the day and through into Monday, is now largely under control. However, South African National Parks board (SANParks) today tweeted that it caused damaged to the peak's infrastructure. https://twitter.com/SANParks/status/1089832593376329729 "Infrastructure on Lion's Head has been damaged and this will delay the reopening of Lion's Head," the national parks board tweeted on Monday. "The reopening was originally scheduled for the 15th of February 2019. As yet the park is unable to determine a...
Political parties swapped megaphones for Twitter this week in the wake of the final IEC South Africa voter registration weekend. Between 26-27 January 2019, you can register to vote for the political party of your choice in the upcoming national elections, which still doesn't have a confirmed date. If you didn't yet know this, you probably haven't logged in to Twitter this week. Parties are, in their unique ways, are reminding South African citizens that voting is a right, and that they should totally exercise that right to vote for them. The EFF kicked off Friday morning with a lengthy Q&A thread, which...
Zimbabwean jazz musician Oliver Mtukudzi has passed away at the age of 66 after battling with diabetes. Mtukudzi rose to fame in the 1970s and was considered an icon in the Southern African music industry. Some of his most loved songs included "Neria", "Wasakara"and "Todii". He was also well known for his political activism and was a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador in Africa. In the wake of his death, musicians, celebrities and fans took to Twitter to post their favourite memories with Mtukudzi. https://twitter.com/DJFreshSA/status/1088090858379988992 https://twitter.com/Blaklez/status/1088086928736616450 https://twitter.com/M_Letsholonyane/status/1088115339584512000 https://twitter.com/jsomethingmusic/status/1088162966439165953 https://twitter.com/Bfacemwape/status/1088129500272037892 Mtukudzi died exactly a year after his friend, South African jazz musician Hugh Masekela. https://twitter.com/thembandala/status/1088082905367265280 The president of Zimbabwe, Emmerson Mnangagwa...
It may be freezing cold across North America right now, strangely temperate in Cape Town for January, but Australia this week is burning up. Since the end of December, temperatures across the country have been well above normal, but the weather intensified this week. And on Thursday, the heatwave had seemingly reached its peak. In Adelaide, temperatures hit 46.6°C cracking a 130 year record. It wasn't even the hottest place in South Australia either. Port Augusta, 320km north of Adelaide, hit 49.1°C when Australia's Bureau of Meteorology peeked the thermometer. https://twitter.com/BOM_SA/status/1088307728072802308 For comparison, the highest temperature ever recorded in the country was 50.7°C...
Husband of Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Philip, was on Thursday evening involved in a car accident, according to reports by the BBC. The prince 97-year-old prince, who was driving himself, came out of the accident unhurt despite his Land Rover turning over onto its side. As a break from Brexit, the people of the internet could not let such an opportunity slide for some healthy online debate. https://twitter.com/chrisrwright/status/1086169960450347008 Some wonder if the Prince is too old to be driving. https://twitter.com/KrisRapley94/status/1086165576559546368 https://twitter.com/Nick_BLM/status/1085979131144269824 https://twitter.com/gorbalsgoebbels/status/1085966285215858688 https://twitter.com/BimSooz/status/1086175122770276352 Others are just marveling at the fact that he survived. https://twitter.com/RossMcCaff/status/1086011848326107136 https://twitter.com/Shazza14648643/status/1086167000131555328 https://twitter.com/africasnas/status/1086167675510894597 https://twitter.com/hangbitch/status/1086026989071405057 From a political point of view, many British citizens are angered. "With all that's going on in...
Zimbabwe's largest internet services provider Econet on Wednesday confirmed that it had halted users' internet access on government orders. This comes after protests erupted across the country this week after a record fuel price increase was announced on Saturday. Read more: #ShutdownZimbabwe: internet access disrupted amid protests "We are obliged to act when directed to do so," the company told its customers. Additionally, a screenshot of a now-deleted Facebook post made by Econet founder Strive Masiyiwa, spotted by Zimbabwean publication Techweez, confirmed that "failure to comply would result in three years imprisonment of local management". Media watchdog MISA Zimbabwe also confirmed that Econet was...
For many youngsters, their sporting icons are super heroes in their impressionable eyes. But it seems that the 2019 South African Super Rugby roster has taken that statement quite literally. On Tuesday, SuperSport, Vodacom, Disney and SA Rugby unveiled Marvel-inspired super hero jerseys that will clad the Bulls, Lions, Sharks, and Stormers in this year's tournament. https://twitter.com/VodacomRugga/status/1085121917781200896 Each team is backed by a different hero. The Bulls will wear a Captain America style shirt (which looks pretty dope). The Lions will be supported by Spider-Man (which is a strange combination). The Sharks don a Black Panther suit complete with necklace. And finally, the...
According to multiple reports, internet access across Zimbabwe has been disrupted amid ongoing protests that erupted after Saturday's record fuel price hike. Last weekend, Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa more than doubled the price of petroleum and diesel, making it the most expensive place in the world to purchase fuel. This was in a bid to address fuel shortages and illegal trading, reported the BBC. However, the move has since fueled heated protests within the country's largest cities. On Tuesday, a swathe of Zimbabweans reported disruptions to their internet access, with Facebook and WhatsApp inaccessible. Twitter was also affected. https://twitter.com/misazimbabwe/status/1085018519241216000 https://twitter.com/tawmug/status/1085096994312519680 https://twitter.com/theBlackZw/status/1085086040015204353 According to a report by...
South Africa is the world's fifth most Instagrammable country according to travel publication Big Seven Travel. Ranking 192 countries based on hashtags, geolocations, reader input, and votes by "a panel of experts", South Africa was bested only by Australia, Hong Kong, Canada and Indonesia. But unlike losing in the quarter final of a sporting competition, South Africa can draw encouragement from the notable travel destinations it has outranked. This includes the Maldives (6th), Thailand (14th), Japan (15th) and Spain (18th). While Big Seven only lists Cape Town's most Instagrammable landmarks (I mean, for good reason), what about South Africa's other large cities and...
The US government shutdown continues into its 25th day, but that seemingly hasn't impacted the White House's dinner plans too badly. On Monday, President Donald Trump welcomed the NCAA football champions Clemson Tigers to his lodging, where a banquet of sorts was held. https://twitter.com/Reuters/status/1085028803762622466 "Great American food," as Trump calls it, was fed to the players to celebrate the team's triumph against Atlanta last week. But the athletes didn't seem too keen on the idea. "I thought this was a joke," mouths one of the players as others heaped Big Macs, pizzas, French fries, and McNuggets onto plates that were far too small. "The...
Brexit takes a break on UK Twitter after Prince Philip survives car crash
WhatsApp’s working on a fingerprint security feature for iOS, Android
US rapper 21 Savage is actually British and the internet is loving it
South Africa just crowned its best dressed politician at #SONA2019
Here’s what will happen to your Google+ profile before April 2019
Memeburn focuses on everything digital in the emerging markets sphere. More about us here
