'Entering the relation of movement and rest': Considering the State apparatus, becoming-women and anarchism in socially just pedagogies

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The Interaction Between the Debt Relief Measures in the National Credit Act 34 of 2005 and Aspects of Insvolvency Law

The National Credit Act 34 of 2005 (the 'NCA') aims at promoting responsibility in the credit market by encouraging responsible borrowing, avoidance of over-indebtedness and the fulfilment of financial obligations by consumers, and at discouraging reckless credit granting by credit providers and contractual default by consumers. Although a further aim is to address over-indebtedness by debt review, for instance, this mechanism is based on the principle of satisfaction of the consumer's responsible financial obligations in full. In a recent judgment, Ex parte Ford 2009 (3) SA 376 (WCC), the court has thus refused to grant a sequestration order following an application for voluntary surrender since the bulk of the debt was credit agreements regulated by the NCA. The fact that the debtor-applicant did not apply for debt review in terms of the NCA of 2005 before applying for voluntary surrender played a significant role in the court's decision not to grant the order. This article thus considers the impact of the debt relief remedies in the NCA on insolvency law. In particular it is an attempt to provide some answers to the question if the Insolvency Act 24 of 1936 (hereafter the 'Insolvency Act') is in conflict with the previously stated principle of the NCA, namely full satisfaction of all responsible financial obligations by an over-indebted consumer. It also considers the concepts of over-indebtedness and reckless credit and their related debt relief remedies when considering applications for voluntary surrender or compulsory sequestration in terms of the Insolvency Act

Status of tailings dumps : let D5s go working in the past?

It was decided in the De Beers v Ataqua Mining (Pty) Ltd that \u27\u27tailings dumps\u27\u27 created by mining companies before the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act, 28 of 2002 (&quot;the MPRDA&quot;) came into operation are not governed by its provisions because such dumps are not &quot;residue stockpiles&quot; or &quot;residue deposits&quot; for purposes of the MPRDA. Ownership of tailings dumps is determined by the common law principles of accession. Ownership of a movable dump has to be transferred by one of the recognised forms of delivery of movables. Processing of these dumps will, however, still be subject to compliance with South African environmental, health and safety laws in general. It is submitted that mine dumps or tailings dumps created upon the exercise of &quot;old order mining rights&quot; before the commencement of the MPRDA and even after commencement of the MPRDA until eventual termination of the &quot;old order mining rights&quot; are not subject to the extensive, mining, environmental, empowerment provisions of the MPRDA. Termination of &quot;old order mining rights&quot; takes place upon: (i) refusal of an application for conversion of a mining right during (or even after) the period of transition, (ii) conversion into and registration of new order mining rights during (or even after) the period of transition or (iii) termination of unconverted &quot;old order mining rights&quot; on 30 April 2009. To the extent that this decision has made it possible to embark on a shorter and less cumbersome route in the reprocessing and eventual disappearance of most tailings dumps, it is to be welcomed from an economical, environmental, job creation and aesthetic perspective. Proposed amendments to the MPRDA to undo the impact of the De Beers decision should be carefully considered against these mentioned benefits and a possible finding that it may amount to an expropriation without compensation. <br /

Diagnosis and management of common non-viral oral ulcerations

Oral ulcerations are common lesions encountered in private practice. Oral ulcers can have a localised aetiology or be a manifestation of a variety of systemic conditions or disorders. Appropriate management depends on the correct diagnosis which can at times be difficult due to similar clinical features. The aetiology, diagnosis and management of the most common non-viral ulcerative disorders of the oral mucosa are discussed. These include traumatic ulcers, recurrent aphthous stomatitis, malignancy as well as oral ulceration associated with cutaneous pathology. South African Family Practice Vol. 49 (8) 2007: pp. 20-2

Knowledge sharing in a globally dispersed engineering service company

This qualitative and naturalistic approach to the study explores how interaction and trust can be promoted in virtual teams and the main drivers for these teams to behave in certain ways. This study focuses on a single multinational engineering service company. Multinational engineering companies are increasingly becoming more involved in international projects that are globally dispersed and complex. In order to achieve its objectives and service clients globally, flexible and dynamic organisational structures are required to meet the requirements of the competitive marketplace. The advances and development in ICT systems has allowed the establishment of virtual teams whose members make use of these systems to communicate and share information. The challenge to team building in a virtual environment is that of creating avenues and opportunities for team members to have the level and depth of dialogue necessary to create a shared future. Issues of cultural diversity, geographic distance and member isolation can increase the challenges to effective collaboration. This study investigates real organisational virtual teams in the engineering service industry. It enriches the knowledge management literature by introducing the practice perspective of interaction and collaboration in virtual teams, and explores knowledge transfer attributes and variables of virtual teams more fully. The study adds to the operational management literature by elaborating organisational structures to facilitate knowledge sharing, and presenting important knowledge management concern associated with collaboration by means of globally dispersed virtual teams. Data was collected through in-depth interviews and a web-based survey. The aim of the study was to determine how interaction and trust can be promoted in virtual teams and the main drivers for these teams to behave in certain ways. In particular the study focuses to what extent interaction, collaboration and trust in virtual teams can be promoted and ways communication tools measure, strengthen, recognize, and capture virtual domain development. The study’s second objective identifies in what way virtual teams contribute to organizational-level learning and knowledge management, and implications for competitive advantage and overall profitability. The third objective of the study identifies specific needs for unique and innovative tools to locate engineering and technical resources, and the importance of using as many tools as possible. This study confined itself to an exploratory interpretive approach aimed at expanding the understanding of some elements that may affect virtual teams. The study limitations include the time available to conduct the survey, the sincerity or truthfulness of the respondents during interviews and the survey, relative small sample size for the industry and the validity of the research questions asked. The author may also present some bias in the research findings and conclusions. It was further assumed that the respondents would openly and honestly answer the research questions. This study highlights the advantage of virtual teams over FTF team and the significance of trust in a virtual team compared to FTF teams. The effectiveness of communication tools as a trust mechanism in the virtual team setting is questioned and emphasises the significance of FTF interaction at the start of the project. Trust is preserved by open, clear and honest communication and not necessarily a functionality of the tools. Other aspects such as integrity, timely feedback, achievement of project objectives and securing of information were reported as a way to ensure trust in a team. The prompt sharing of information and regular communications was identified as mutually beneficial to team members. Virtual teams also have the ability to increase the overall profitability of the company by improved efficiency, shared resources and overall cost reduction. The results of the study revealed that culture diversity had little effect on knowledge sharing in a virtual team and was shown as an advantage. However language difference and communication issues were highlighted as issues affecting knowledge sharing. Several of the communication tools and such as e-mails, teleconference, telephone, video conferencing, and collaboration tools such databases (PWS/CWS and network drives) were discussed in general as being used in the company. The overwhelming response was that these were just communication tools and on their own cannot be used to ensure trust. This study recommends that virtual teams have a project kick-off meeting that is held FTF. The management of knowledge can be improved if team leaders understand the social context of the team, and provide the necessary support. The team leader further has to create a team culture that facilitates the development of project goals and group norms with respect to decision making, conflict resolution, and so on. This study suggests training in intercultural communications to focus on differences in verbal styles instead of nonverbal differences. Finally while e-mail with synchronous chat or screen sharing might be better for team teleconferences, collaborative group systems should incorporate multiple media channels.Graduate School of Business LeadershipM.B.A

The Interaction between the Debt Relief Measures in the National Credit Act 24 of 2005 and Aspects of Insolvency Law

The National Credit Act 34 of 2005 (the 'NCA') aims at promoting responsibility in the credit market by encouraging responsible borrowing, avoidance of over-indebtedness and the fulfilment of financial obligations by consumers, and at discouraging reckless credit granting by credit providers and contractual default by consumers. Although a further aim is to address over-indebtedness by debt review, for instance, this mechanism is based on the principle of satisfaction of the consumer's responsible financial obligations in full. In a recent judgment, Ex parte Ford 2009 (3) SA 376 (WCC), the court has thus refused to grant a sequestration order following an application for voluntary surrender since the bulk of the debt was credit agreements regulated by the NCA. The fact that the debtor-applicant did not apply for debt review in terms of the NCA of 2005 before applying for voluntary surrender played a significant role in the court's decision not to grant the order. This article thus considers the impact of the debt relief remedies in the NCA on insolvency law. In particular it is an attempt to provide some answers to the question if the Insolvency Act 24 of 1936 (hereafter the 'Insolvency Act') is in conflict with the previously stated principle of the NCA, namely full satisfaction of all responsible financial obligations by an over-indebted consumer. It also considers the concepts of over-indebtedness and reckless credit and their related debt relief remedies when considering applications for voluntary surrender or compulsory sequestration in terms of the Insolvency Act.   

The elaboration and empirical evaluation of the De Goede learning potential structural model

As a direct result of having segregated amenities and public services during the Apartheid era where Black individuals were provided with services inferior to those of White individuals, the country is currently challenged by serious and a debilitating skills shortage across most industry sectors, high unemployment and poverty rates, and inequality in terms of income distribution as well as in terms of racial representation in the workforce. These challenges are the consequence of a larger problem that knowledge, skills and abilities are not uniformly distributed across all races. In the past, and still now, White South Africans had greater access to skills development and educational opportunities. It is this fundamental inequality that has to be addressed. It is argued that skills development – specifically affirmative action skills development should form part of the solution. A need therefore exists to identify the individuals who would gain maximum benefit from such affirmative action skills development opportunities and to create the conditions that would optimise learning performance. To achieve this, an understanding is required of the complex nomological network of latent variables that determine learning performance. De Goede (2007) proposed and tested a learning potential structural model based on the work of Taylor (1994). The primary objective of this study was to expand on De Goede’s (2007) learning potential structural model in order to gain a deeper understanding of the complexity underlying learning performance. A subset of the hypothesised expanded learning potential structural model was empirically evaluated. The first analysis of the structural model failed to produce a good fit to the data. The model was subsequently modified by both adding additional paths and by removing insignificant paths. The final revised structural model was found to fit the data well. All paths contained in the final model were empirically corroborated. The practical implications of the learning potential structural model on HR and organisations are discussed. Suggestions for future research are made by indicating how the model can be further elaborated. The limitations of the study are also discussed

Perspectives on the Termination of Debt Review in Terms of Section 86(10) of the National Credit Act 34 of 2005

In assessing delictual damages the plaintiff is burdened with the duty to prove loss with a preponderance of probability, including uncertain future loss. In quantifying such a claim an actuary is often used to make actuarial calculations based on proven facts and realistic assumptions regarding the future. The role of the actuary is to guide the court in the calculations to be made. Relying on its wide judicial discretion the court will have the final say regarding the correctness of the assumptions on which these calculations are based. The court should give detailed reasons if any assumptions or parts of the calculations made by the actuary are rejected. It should preferably refrain from making its own calculations if an actuary is involved and should rather instruct the actuary to do recalculations if necessary. It does, however, fall within the wide discretion of the court to make a general contingency adjustment after the basic calculations have been accepted. In assessing delictual damages it is the duty of the court to ensure that both objective and subjective factors are considered in such a manner that the assessment may be regarded as an application of "fair" mathematics.