News 18:00

BULLETIN 2 September 6 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# More than 142-thousand candidates are seeking local government seats
# The Taxi Alliance is cautious on fare increases after the fuel hike
# And, soccer: The Afrika Mayibuye Movement welcomes the appointment of Pitso Mosimane as the Bafana Bafana coach

# The Electoral Commission says more than 142-thousand candidates have been nominated to contest ten-thousand-526 seats in this year’s local government elections. This is a 43-percent increase from the 2021 elections, when about 99-thousand nominations were received. Men make up nearly two-thirds of the candidates, while women account for about 38-percent. IEC Chairperson Mosotho Moepya told the media the final list of candidates is expected to be released on 16 September:

# The National Taxi Alliance says speculation about taxi fare increases is premature following the latest fuel price hike. Petrol prices have increased by one-rand-34-cents a litre, while diesel is up by between two-rand-93-cents and three-rand-14 cents, depending on the grade. NTA spokesperson Theo Malele says the increases have dealt a major blow to the taxi industry. He says fare adjustments must be carefully considered, warning that higher fares could drive passengers away. Industry leaders will meet to assess the impact.

# Madlanga commission commissioner Sandile Khumalo has challenged former Hawks head Godfrey Lebeya over his response to reports of a raid at businessman Katiso “KT” Molefe’s home. Khumalo questioned whether there was any real danger once it was established the people at the scene could be genuine police members. He says businessman and Lebeya’s informat Malcolm X had not reported suspicious or dangerous behaviour. Lebeya maintained his discretion differed:

# Estonia’s Parliament has elected constitutional lawyer and human rights ombud Ülle Madise as the country’s next president. The 51-year-old ran unopposed after no other candidate secured enough parliamentary support to stand. Madise has been Estonia’s human rights ombud since 2015 and will serve a five-year term, succeeding Alar Karis, who did not seek a second term. She becomes only the second woman to hold Estonia’s largely ceremonial presidency. Estonia borders Russia and is among the strongest supporters of Ukraine within the European Union and NATO.

# Soccer: The Afrika Mayibuye Movement has welcomed the appointment of Pitso Mosimane as the new Bafana Bafana head coach. The 62-year-old, who replaces Hugo Broos, previously served as the national coach between July 2010 and June 2012. The movement says Mosimane is one of Africa’s most accomplished coaches, and his return to Bafana Bafana represents an opportunity to consolidate the progress of the national team. It adds that Mosimane’s appointment should inspire a national soccer development revolution that produces generations of technically gifted and internationally competitive players.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-4-cents against the rand and the euro at 18-rand-59-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-66-cents and Bitcoin trades at 77-thousand-291-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-338-dollars-24-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 96-dollars-88-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….