News 16:00

BULLETIN 27 August 4 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Godfrey Lebeya reveals Paul O’Sullivan sought an update on the Phala Phala farm probe
# A Sasol outage disrupts jet fuel supply at the OR Tambo International Airport
# And rugby: Australia’s Gardner will now referee the second Test between the Boks and the All Blacks in Cape Town

# Retired Hawks head Godfrey Lebeya has told the Madlanga commission private investigator Paul O’Sullivan sought an update on the Hawks’ investigation into the Phala Phala matter. Lebeya says he declined to provide any information, maintaining investigation progress could not be discussed with private individuals. He also testified O’Sullivan was with president Cyril Ramaphosa’s former political adviser, Bejani Chauke, when he made the request:

# Airlines are making contingency plans after an outage at Sasol’s Natref refinery disrupted jet fuel supplies to OR Tambo International Airport in Kempton Park, Gauteng. Airlines are considering tankering fuel from other airports, which would increase operating costs because aircraft carrying extra fuel burn more fuel. News24 reports FlySafair and Airlink said their operations have not been affected so far. The Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources held an emergency meeting with Airports Company South Africa and the fuel industry to address the disruption.

# South African Freight and Logistics Association and the Road Freight Association are calling for a unified recovery plan to restore predictable cargo flows through the Durban Gateway Terminal. The industry bodies say weekly system processes fell 26-percent following the mid-August NAVIS N4 system change, while vessel and truck delays increased. The organisations want a public 30-day recovery plan, improved equipment and system reliability. The also seek coordinated truck access and fair relief from storage and demurrage costs caused by delays beyond cargo owners’ control

# The Government Employees Medical Scheme is hosting its annual symposium in Cape Town, focusing on improved communication on healthcare information. Chairperson Nomzamo Tutu says medical scheme jargon often prevents members from understanding their benefits and navigating the healthcare system. She says GEMS must listen to members, simplify communication and provide better education. She also acknowledged to the SABC affordability remains a challenge, despite being comparatively affordable to other medical schemes:

# Rugby: Australian referee Angus Gardner will now handle Saturday’s second Test between the Springboks and the All Blacks in Cape Town. He replaces Nika Amashukeli from Georgia, who became ill. Amashakuli will now be in charge of next weekend’s third Test at Johannesburg’s FNB Stadium. Gardner refereed New Zealand’s match against the Lions at Ellis Park on Tuesday. He is an experienced Test referee who had handled 50 encounters since 2011, and officiated in three World Cups.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 15-rand-98-cents and the euro at 18-rand-61-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-71-cents and Bitcoin trades at 79-thousand-535-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-595-dollars-81-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 89-dollars-50-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….