News 09:00

BULLETIN 22 July 9 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Directorate Against Corruption is investigating formal complaints against Andrea Johnson
# SAFTU wants the World Bank loan agreement published
# And, Zelensky has sacked Ukraine’s commander-in-chief

# The office of the Independent Directorate Against Corruption Oversight Judge says it has received formal complaints against the anti-corruption directorate boss Andrea Johnson. She is facing serious accusations, including that she leaked the contents of a criminal complaint directly to senior Crime Intelligence officer Feroz Khan, the very individual named in the complaint. The IDAC’s Oversight Office says the complaints against Johnson are receiving attention through established processes. It emphasised that the receipt of a complaint does not constitute a finding of wrongdoing, nor should it be interpreted as evidence of misconduct.

# The South African Federation of Trade Unions says it rejects the government’s decision to accept a 24.78-billion-rand Development Policy loan from the World Bank. The loan is aimed at easing infrastructure bottlenecks that have contributed to a decade of meagre economic growth. Saftu’s General-Secretary, Zwelinzima Vavi, says this loan forms part of a broader programme that seeks to deepen neoliberal restructuring through market liberalisation, commercialisation of public services and increased private-sector participation in strategic public infrastructure:

# The Gauteng Health Department has condemned what it calls a reckless and misleading media statement issued by the DA. In the statement, the party alleges that patients at Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital were being denied essential medicines due to shortages. The department’s spokesperson, Steve Mabona, says hospital management engaged the DA’s Madeleine Hicklin and established that her claims contained factual inaccuracies, including that the medication shortage was being experienced in ward five. He says the hospital does not have a ward five:

# Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has fired the country’s commander-in-chief, General Oleksandr Syrskyi. This comes days after he removed popular Defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov, which sparked six days of nationwide protests. Zelensky thanked Syrskyi and credited him with leading the defence of Kyiv and launching a counter-invasion of Russia’s Kursk province in 2024. Syrskyi’s replacement is Mykhailo Drapatyi, who is a popular, battle-hardened general. Zelensky says Drapatyi will oversee a reorganisation of Ukraine’s army’s command structure, including reforming the military corps system, weapons supply and drones.

# Tennis: Two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka and Wimbledon champion Jannik Sinner lead the US Open women’s and men’s singles main-draw entry list, respectively. Joining Sabalenka are Australian Open champion Elena Rybakina, 2023 US Open winner Coco Gauff and Roland Garros victor Mirra Andreeva. Meanwhile, defending men’s singles champion Carlos Alcaraz, who has missed the last two majors because of a wrist injury, is on the entry list, which also includes four-time champion Novak Djokovic and French Open champion Alexandra Zverev. The initial field includes 17 former Grand Slam singles champions.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-45-cents and the euro at 18-rand-76-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-1-cent, and Bitcoin trades at 66-thousand-313-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-127-dollars-76-cents a fine ounce, and Brent crude oil is quoted at 89-dollars-41-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….