News 12:00

BULLETIN 19 August 12 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Minister Manamela deploys a team to resolve the dispute at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology
# The GOOD Party calls for the DA’s Mark Burke to be removed from Parliament’s finance committees
# And rugby: The All Blacks’ defence coach says they cannot get absorbed by the Boks’ giant pack

# Minister of Higher Education and Training, Buti Manamela, has called for an urgent engagement between Cape Peninsula University of Technology’s management and council, and student leaders. Yesterday’s arson attack at the Bellville campus sparked a total shutdown and the evacuation of residences following protests against proposed changes to the financial clearance model and registration requirements. Spokesperson Matshepo Seedat says Manamela condemns the destruction of university property, violence and intimidation:

# The GOOD Party says DA’s member of Parliament Mark Burke is unfit to serve on Parliament’s financial oversight committees while his company faces a regulatory investigation. This follows allegations his company, Kastelo, is linked to moving billions of rand offshore. GOOD secretary-general Brett Herron is calling for Burke to be removed from committees overseeing the National Treasury, the South African Reserve Bank and public finances:

Meanwhile, Parliament’s portfolio committee on Correctional Services raised the alarm over prison death reporting failures after learning that only 54.5-percent of unnatural deaths and 51.59-percent of natural deaths in custody could be confirmed during the first quarter of the current financial year. Chairperson Kgomotso Ramolobeng says the figures point to serious oversight and administrative gaps. She says the concerns follow criticism in February when an investigation revealed half of all unnatural inmate deaths were found to be suicides, highlighting failures in both record-keeping and inmate mental healthcare.

Moving abroad:

# US president Donald Trump’s administration has imposed sanctions on International Criminal Court president Tomoko Akane and senior trial lawyer Abdoulaye Seye. This brings to eleven the ICC officials sanctioned by the administration. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has accused the two of directly engaging in efforts to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute officials whose government ⁠has not consented to the ICC’s jurisdiction. The sanctions freeze any assets they may have in America and limit US-based entities from conducting transactions with them.

# Rugby: All Blacks defence coach Tana Umaga says they cannot afford to get absorbed by the Springboks’ giant pack and lose sight of their backline threats. The first Test takes place at Ellis Park in Johannesburg on Saturday. Umaga, who has overseen the All Blacks’ defence portfolio for six games now, conceding an average of 23 points per game, says they know what to expect from the Boks:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-18-cents and the euro at 18-rand-77-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-94-cents and Bitcoin trades at 64-thousand-224-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-360-dollars-31-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 92-dollars-83-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….