SowetanLive reports that the much awaited legal showdown between the Democratic Alliance (DA) and co-operative governance & traditional affairs minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma over the closure of hair and beauty salons got off to a false start on Friday.  

Lawyers for the parties thrashed out the logistics for the better part of the morning.  The DA’s Dean Macpherson then reported that the matter had been postponed to 22 June before a full bench of the High Court in Cape Town.  He blamed Dlamini-Zuma for the delay by refusing to try and find an agreement on timelines going forward with regards to the reopening of the industry.  “What also complicated matters is that the minister refused to file any opposing papers in our application and missed the original deadline and she has now been granted an extension to June 18 to file opposing papers,” said Macpherson.  The DA said it went to court to protect the livelihoods of “hundreds of thousands of people” in the personal care industry.  “Minister Dlamini-Zuma ... has been cavalier with the livelihoods of those people across the country,” he claimed.  “The minister has (shown) disdain for people’s rights to earn an income and keep a roof over their heads and put food on their table. That is why the DA brought this application in the first instance,” Macpherson commented.

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Philani Nombembe at SowetanLive

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