News 15:00

BULLETIN 26 March 3 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Information Regulator calls for strengthened data protection measures at the IEC
# Load-shedding will be suspended this afternoon
# And soccer: England will wear nameless shirts today to raise awareness of Alzheimer’s Disease 

# The Information Regulator says investigations are underway into security breaches at the Independent Electoral Commission. This follows an unauthorised release of ANC and MK Party candidate lists and personal information via WhatsApp, raising concerns ahead of the elections. The IEC’s handling of personal information has been criticised, with the regulator considering measures against the commission. The regulator’s executive, Tshepo Boikanyo, told the media inquiries have been made to the IEC, with a comprehensive security evaluation already underway:

# Cosatu has welcomed multinational company SAP’s agreement to repay Eskom 500-million-rand within seven days over corrupt contracts it was alleged to have been implicated in. Cosatu’s acting spokesperson, Matthew Parks, says the federation urges the Treasury to allocate a portion of these recovered public funds to the National Prosecuting Authority to enable it to ramp up the war against crime and corruption and bring those implicated to court:

Meanwhile, Eskom has announced load-shedding will be suspended at four this afternoon. Due to the return of six generating units, which improved the available generation capacity, load-shedding will be suspended until four tomorrow afternoon. Stage 2 load-shedding will no longer be implemented from four this afternoon, as announced previously. Eskom will provide a further update tomorrow afternoon or if any significant changes occur.

# Johannesburg mayor Kabelo Gwamanda predicts that investment in the city’s Climate Action Plan could create 340-thousand jobs in mitigation and 77-thousand in adaptation. Addressing the South African Dialogue on City Resilience, Gwamanda stresses the need for equitable climate policies. The mayor says the city aims to reduce emissions and vulnerability, aligning with global targets. The plan also seeks to attract international finance for green recovery post-pandemic. He emphasises the city’s commitment to emission reduction targets include 25-percent by 2030, 75-percent by 2040, and net-zero by 2050.

# Soccer: England will play without names on the backs of their shirts during the second half of their international friendly against Belgium in London today. This is to raise awareness of the symptoms of Alzheimer’s Disease. The players say they want to show how people suffering from dementia can lose precious memories. The plan is part of the governing body F-A’s partnership with the Alzheimer’s Society. England uses the match as preparation for Euro 2024 and it follows the disappointing nil-1 loss to Brazil this weekend.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-93-cents and the euro at 20-rand-55-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-97-cents and Bitcoin trades at 70-thousand-741-dollars-94-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-195-dollars-39-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 86-dollars-13-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….