The headlines of the leading newspapers on 28 September 2026:
NATIONAL:
# Business Day:
Reports Communications and Digital Technologies minister, Solly Malatsi, has withdrawn his plan for a national wholesale mobile network operator. Instead, mobile operators will have access to a wider radio frequency spectrum.
# And the Netwerk24 website:
Reports firstly, a renowned ostrich farmer, 85-year-old Saag Jonker from Oudtshoorn, is missing after floodwaters swept his vehicle away about three-kilometres outside the town. The Olifants River is currently in flood, and Jonker reportedly attempted to cross it via a low-level bridge.
Secondly, the website reports on the mass shooting at a tavern in Wedela, near Carletonville, where 17 people were shot dead on Saturday night. According to reports, the police already have photographs and details of the men who committed the murders.
GAUTENG:
# The Star:
Firstly writes, like many other newspapers, on the 27 people who died over the weekend in separate shooting incidents at a tavern and a braai restaurant in Gauteng and the Western Cape. The paper reports that no suspects have been arrested yet.
Secondly, it reports controversial EFF MP Carl Niehaus has submitted a series of questions to ministers in Parliament. The questions cover a wide range of topics, from white genocide, immigration, and unemployment to the November election. Niehaus is requesting written responses.
# Sowetan:
Leads with: “BLOODY WEEKEND”. The paper reports the shooting incidents are prompting communities to ask whether enough is being done to prevent such massacres. More than 30 people were killed in shooting incidents nationwide over the past weekend.
# And The Citizen:
Portrays the weekend’s mass shootings in even starker terms, leading with the headline “RIVERS OF BLOOD”. The paper notes that the death toll is mounting and identifies poor police intelligence and uncontrolled firearms smuggling as the root causes.
WESTERN CAPE:
# Die Burger:
Firstly also reports on the disappearance of Saag Jonker.
Then, the paper writes the minister of Sport, Arts and Culture, Gayton McKenzie, has informed the Graaff-Reinet forum that he disregards their deadline and refuses to be rushed regarding the decision on a name change for the town.
And finally, there is news about a “robot device” that assisted a woman in walking down from Table Mountain.
EASTERN CAPE:
# The Herald in Gqeberha:
Reports tensions have flared within the local swimming community and an environmental activist intends to lay an assault charge after being injured in a brawl at the beach.
And secondly, the paper reports a rhino and her calf were killed in a poaching incident at a Kariega reserve.
KWAZULU-NATAL:
# The Witness in Pietermaritzburg:
Reports eleven people have died and another eight were seriously injured when a minibus taxi collided head-on with a truck on the N2 near St Lucia in KwaZulu-Natal during the early hours of yesterday. The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport says the taxi caught fire.
And secondly, it is reported the body of an eleventh woman has been discovered in Ekurhuleni on the East Rand.
And finally, from NAMIBIA:
# Republikein in Windhoek:
Reports the ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Land Reform—through its Directorate of Veterinary Services—has lifted, with immediate effect, the initial restrictions on the movement of cloven-hoofed animals and their products in areas north of the veterinary cordon fence, or so-called Red Line.
And secondly, the paper reports on the passing of Namibia’s former Chief Justice, Johan Strydom.