Unrelated as they are, the conviction in the International Criminal Court of a Congolese warlord who utilised child soldiers and the military coup in Mali led by a junior officer both drew attention to the same issue: the role of the soldier in Africa. Long gone are the heady days of the 1960s and 1970s when military coups and dictators seemed to be the norm in Africa. Now these are rather the exception to the rule, and overwhelmingly rejected by Africans everywhere.

The country's sociopolitical situation is presently tense and uncertain, with unrest in various areas precipitated by the deep-seated climate of general discontent. At the same time, political stability is under pressure due to leadership battles in the run-up to the national conference of the governing African National Congress (ANC) to be held in December at Mangaung in the Free State.

It was a remarkable weekend for the Stormers, the Cheetahs and the Sharks in the Vodacom Super Rugby competition. The Stormers against the Bulls won 20-17 in arguably the greatest South African derby of the season. The Cheetahs had one of the finest rugby comebacks of the season against the Hurricanes and the Sharks secured a narrow win against the Brumbies in Canberra.

A recent experience of my wife and mine during a joint project with a third party often brought the term 'cheapskate' into use. A search of the origin of this term left me in no doubt as to its full meaning being synonymous with miserly and stingy.  Its origin, however, remained somewhat obscure and the subject of mostly speculation at best.

South Africa might still edge past England to the top-spot in the International Cricket Council’s global test rankings without taking a five-wicket haul or scoring a single century. If England’s current slump continues and they slip to another demoralising test-series defeat, the Proteas will take over at the summit of the world rankings with things looking good for the upcoming T20 World Cup

It’s never a mere drizzle when things happen in South African soccer, in fact, it always pours. There are always issues and drama. This time it is the Serbian coach of Kaizer Chiefs, Vladimir Vermezovic, who complained that the life of Chiefs captain Itumeleng Khune was put at risk because there were no oxygen masks after he clashed heads with Thamsanqa Gabuza of Golden Arrows during a Wednesday league match at the Moses Mabhida Stadium.

The position of the African Union that raised concern for the future territorial integrity of Libya prior to NATO's intervention, has been vindicated. Except for the few who believe military intervention is the preferred way to solve geopolitical problems, it came as no surprise that the tyranny of the Gaddafi dictatorship, a year after its demise, has been replaced by something equally undesirable. Libya now has an interim government that is weak, indecisive, squabbling and in danger of disintegrating the state.

South Africa presently has the opportunity to cash in on the positive global investment sentiment towards developing economies amongst international investors. The one thing that can squander the opportunity for the country, however, is the threat that the present wave of protests in the country poses to its social and political stability.