News 14:00

BULLETIN 8 April 2 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The MK party approaches the High Court to have Zuma on the ballot
# The Enyobeni Tavern tragedy inquest begins
# And, soccer: Banyana wants to turn around the deficit against the Super Falcons

# The uMkhonto we Sizwe party believes upholding the Electoral Commission’s objection against former president Jacob Zuma’s candidature ahead of the election is fundamentally about denying individuals’ rights to participate in politics. The party has approached the Electoral Court to challenge the IEC’s decision to bar Zuma from contesting the elections. Delivering his arguments, the party’s legal counsel Dali Mpofu criticised the handling of Zuma’s imprisonment, stating he was deprived of his constitutional right to a fair trial:

# The Enyobeni Tavern inquest has officially commenced today at the Mdantsane Regional Court in the Eastern Cape. The inquest is expected to be a fact-finding mission of who should be held responsible for the incident that claimed the lives of 21 teenagers during a pens down party in June 2022.  In February, tavern owners Siyakhangela and Vuyokazi Ndevu were found guilty of selling liquior to minors by the East London Regional Court and sentenced to pay a fine of five-thousand-rand each or face 100 days in prison.

# The Cape Town Traffic Department has alerted motorists to ongoing road closures resulting from strong winds over the weekend. Spokesperson Maxine Bezuidenhout says closures include sections of Baden Powell Road due to sand, Hout Bay Main Road due to burst pipe repairs, Kloof Road due to construction debris, and Chapman’s Peak and Clarence Drive due to potential rockfalls amid inclement weather:

# French media conglomerate Canal+ (Canal Ploes) has initiated a mandatory takeover bid for MultiChoice, offering 125-rand per share, which is a significant increase from its previous offer. Africa’s largest pay-TV operator has engaged Standard Bank as an independent expert to assess the offer. Canal+ aims to strengthen its presence in Africa, emphasizing the importance of scale to compete with global players like Disney and Netflix. Canal+’s parent company, Vivendi, is exploring a split into separate entities, potentially offering South African investors an opportunity to participate.

# Soccer: Banyana Banyana coach Desiree Ellis is optimistic as they prepare for the second leg encounter against Nigeria’s Super Falcons at Loftus Versveld tomorrow. Despite a 1-0 loss in the first leg, Ellis believes the team can turn the tables, citing home advantage. She is sure Banyana can still qualify for the Olympics, joining Spain, Brazil and Japan in Group C:

# And, the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-59-cents and the euro at 20-rand-14-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-48-cents and Bitcoin trades at 71-thousand-745-dollars-58-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-and-335-dollars-82-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 90-dollars-51-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….