News 07:00

BULLETIN 5 March 7 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The DA is ready to oppose the NHI Bill if it is signed into law
# The EFF is calling for the removal of the National Assembly speaker amid corruption allegations
# And, the US imposes sanctions on the Zimbabwean president and other senior leaders and entities 

# The DA says it has sought legal counsel and stands ready to oppose the National Health Insurance Bill, which awaits president Cyril Ramaphosa’s signature. The party criticises the National Treasury’s plan to fund the NHI through tax hikes, calling it unconstitutional and regressive. They argue the NHI Bill will not improve the public health sector and will burden lower-income households. The DA’s Dion George proposes an alternative model focused on governance reform and public-private partnerships:

# The EFF is calling for the immediate removal of National Assembly speaker, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula. She is accused of taking bribes totalling 2.3-million-rand from a South African National Defence Force contractor when she was still the minister of Defence and Military Veterans. Mapisa-Nqakula denies that she committed any wrongdoing. The EFF will report the speaker to Parliament’s Ethics Committee, saying such blatant disregard for ethical conduct and the rule of law cannot be tolerated.

# The Minister of Home Affairs, Aaron Motsoaledi, has issued a directive guiding immigration officers to comply with a Constitutional Court order. The directive, effective until 3 October, requires immigration officers to use designated forms for the arrest, detention, and release of illegal foreigners. Concurrently, the minister has applied for leave to appeal to the ConCourt regarding the Supreme Court of Appeal’s dismissal of the Zimbabwe Exemption Permit matter. Motsoaledi has vowed to exhaust all legal avenues available to him.

# The municipal union Samwu in the Free State calls for the immediate arrest of Matjhabeng Local Municipality mayor Thanduxolo Khalipha, following an alleged assault case involving one of its members. The member was alleged assaulted in front of colleagues last week Wednesday. According to the union, despite a case being opened, Khalipha has not been charged or arrested. Samwu’s Papikie Mohale demands swift action from the police and the National Prosecuting Authority, warning of potential unrest if no action is taken:

# The United States government has imposed sanctions on Zimbabwe’s president Emmerson Mnangagwa, along with other senior officials, over their alleged involvement in corruption and human rights abuses. The sanctions cover eleven individuals and three entities. Besides Mnangagwa, vice-president Constantino Chiwenga and businessperson Kudakwashe Tagwirei have also been sanctioned. The US government said the behaviour of some of the most powerful people and companies in Zimbabwe matched the actions of the worst human rights abusers and corrupt actors in the world.

# Motorsport: FIA president, Mohammed Ben Sulayem, is reportedly under investigation for allegedly attempting to intervene in the results of last year’s Formula One Saudi Arabia Grand Prix. He allegedly intervened to overturn a penalty given to Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso at the race. Alonso had provisionally finished third at the Jeddah circuit, only for him to be given a ten-second time penalty post-race, as work was conducted on his car before the completion of a previous five-second time penalty. The FIA ethics committee is investigating this matter.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 19-rand-5-cents and the euro at 20-rand-67-cents. One British pound costs 24-rand-17-cents and Bitcoin trades at 68-thousand-306-dollars-95-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-112-dollars-70-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 82-dollars-66-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….