News 12:00

BULLETIN 12 August 12 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The SABC seeks 120-million-rand to cover the local government elections
# City Power faces more than six-thousand outage reports as cold weather drives up Johannesburg’s electricity demand
# And rugby: The Sharks’ coach admits they were off the pace against the All Blacks

# The SABC needs 120-million-rand to provide fair and comprehensive coverage of November’s local government elections. The chairperson of Parliament’s portfolio committee on Communications and Digital Technologies, Khusela Sangoni-Diko, says the funding is needed for editorial operations, technology, results data and digital services. She warns the public broadcaster is on the brink of collapse and could cease operations by December if a funding model is not finalised. SABC chairperson Nomsa Chabeli says they will ensure equitable coverage of political parties and independent candidates.

# Union federation SAFTU says mass unemployment destroys human potential, deepens poverty, and drives social crises. The unemployment rate rose to 33.6-percent in the second quarter, from 32.7-percent in the first. According to the latest quarterly labour force survey, there was an increase of 345-thousand unemployed persons to 8.5-million. SAFTU’s Asive Dyani says the country’s economic policies have once again failed the working class:

COPE meanwhile calls on government to declare unemployment a national disaster and introduce an urgent jobs and youth employment programme. The party wants government to prioritise industrialisation, manufacturing, infrastructure, agriculture, construction and small businesses, with measurable employment targets and quarterly public reporting.

# City Power is dealing with more than six-thousand outstanding outage reports in Johannesburg as freezing temperatures drive up electricity demand. The utility says adverse weather conditions are delaying response times, while increased power use is placing additional pressure on the electricity network. Spokesperson Isaac Mangena says teams are working to restore supply and attend to faults. He urges residents to report outages through the utility’s official channels as repair crews continue responding to calls.

# Rugby: Sharks head coach JP Pietersen says he is proud of the effort shown by his players, despite being thrashed 54-0 by a formidable All Blacks side in Durban last night. The hosts, with some young players in the squad, approached the match with an attacking mindset despite being in the early stages of their pre-season. Pietersen admits his side were unable to match the visitors’ skills:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-17-cents and the euro at 18-rand-65-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-85-cents and Bitcoin trades at 63-thousand-744-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-408-dollars-77-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 92-dollars-8-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….