News 07:00

BULLETIN 24 August 7 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# President Ramaphosa appoints Ndabeni-Abrahams as acting Health minister
# An analyst says the ANC needs capable mayoral candidates to restore public trust
# And motorsport: Lando Norris wins the Dutch Grand Prix

# President Cyril Ramaphosa has appointed minister of Small Business Development, Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams, as acting minister of Health in place of Aaron Motsoaledi. This comes as minister Motsoaledi remains on sick leave. The Presidency says Ndabeni-Abrahams will undertake all functions of the minister of Health from today until the 30th of September. It adds that Rampahosa has made this appointment in terms of section 98 of the Constitution.

# Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure, Dean Macpherson, says municipal infrastructure is essential to service delivery and economic growth. He was speaking on the sidelines of the Sustainable Infrastructure Development Symposium South Africa, currently underway in Cape Town. The event brings together a broad spectrum of stakeholders, including investors, financial institutions, policymakers, thought leaders and other critical partners, to drive South Africa’s infrastructure investment mandate. Macpherson says they need to convert commitments into viable infrastructure projects and functioning assets:

# Political analyst professor Levy Ndou says the ANC needs capable mayoral and executive candidates who can deliver services, restore public trust and manage coalitions. This as the ANC will announce various mayoral candidates in September. Ndou says that the decision to delay announcing its mayoral candidates could point to unresolved internal processes and concerns about party unity. Ndou says the party faces a difficult contest in key metros amid service delivery failures, financial pressures and coalition instability.

# Johannesburg mayor Dada Morero says the metro is on a more sustainable financial trajectory after settling its 5.25-billion-rand overdue electricity debt to Eskom. The final payment has ended a long-running billing dispute and removed the immediate risk of electricity supply cuts. Speaking to the SABC in Diepsloot, Morero says the settlement demonstrates the metro’s commitment to responsible financial management, reducing electricity losses and investing in critical infrastructure:

# Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has defended the memorandum of understanding signed in mid-June with the US as the best way for the country to move beyond a situation of “neither war nor peace.” The MOU opened a 60-day window for talks aimed at ending the war and reaching an accord on Tehran’s nuclear programme. However, both countries have not been able to reach a compromise. Pezeshkian acknowledged that the country faces severe economic hardship amid mounting US sanctions, emphasising that Iran cannot continue with war forever.

# Motorsport: McLaren’s Lando Norris claimed his second straight race win by taking the Dutch Grand Prix. The Briton crossed the line ahead of the Mercedes pair of Kimi Antonelli and George Russell. Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc finished fourth and fifth, respectively, for Ferrari. Home favourite Red Bull’s Max Verstappen crashed after just one lap. The result leaves Antonelli with a 59-point championship lead over Russell. Norris says his car still needs a lot of improvement:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 15-rand-99-cents and the euro at 18-rand-67-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-82-cents and Bitcoin trades at 77-thousand-559-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-626-dollars-18-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 93-dollars-71-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….