Free State Death Traps
The Free State’s roads are disintegrating, becoming death traps rather than important arteries keeping our economy functioning. The situation is so bad that communities are now banding together to try and fix the provincial roads themselves just to avoid further carnage. But it’s not just motorists that have been affected: as roads fall apart, farmers increasingly battle to get their grain to silos, hampering a key component of the Free State economy. The roads department has wasted millions on a contractor programme that has delivered little, but the new MEC for Police, Roads and Transport says he has a plan. Carte Blanche investigates.
Producer: Joy Summers | Presenter: Macfarlane Moleli
Gqeberha’s Reckoning
They were lambasted for spending millions of rands on changing the name Port Elizabeth to Gqeberha. Residents argued the municipality had bigger priorities, none more so than the metro’s looming water crisis. But they were ignored. Now, the dams supplying urban areas in Nelson Mandela Bay in the Eastern Cape have less than 12 percent of usable water left. Taps are running dry, and it’s projected the municipality will face Day Zero before the end of June. With no significant rainfall expected before September, the city is scrambling to keep the water flowing. But infrastructure is crumbling, and continuous electricity blackouts are not helping. Carte Blanche investigates why Gqeberha is once again facing a water shortage.
Producer: Stenette Grosskopf | Presenter: Masa Kekana
Desperately Seeking Sperm
He’s a middle-aged man with a taste for take-away coffee, often to be found strutting the streets of New York City. To those who know him, maths professor Ari Nagel is somewhat of a superhero: a DIY donor who, thanks to a liberal distribution of his sperm – often in highly unusual circumstances – has helped bring more than 90 children into this world. In the United States, he’s among a growing number of private sperm donors found through word of mouth or via online forums. He gives his sperm away for free and has built an entire persona around his super-donor status.
Producer: SBS Australia | Presenter: Elise Potaka
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