News 07:00

BULLETIN 24 April 7 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The DA is sceptical over Eskom’s energy availability
# The UN Human Rights Office is concerned about the discovery of mass graves in Gaza
# And rugby: A new brain-cooling treatment is trialed for concussion

# The DA warns of a potential election scandal as Electricity minister, Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, and Eskom board chairperson Mteto Nyati, fail to address concerns over load-shedding transparency. They allege Eskom is still using open-cycle gas turbines and lack of clarity on diesel procurement raises suspicions of budget mismanagement. The party stands by its position that if load-shedding returns after the elections, it would be a scandal. The DA’s Samantha Graham-Maré calls for a change in government to address the electricity sector’s challenges:

# RISE Mzansi’s Western Cape premier candidate, Axolile Notywala, says they have a plan to bridge the seen and unseen divides in the province if they are voted into power. He outlined his party’s plan for a safe, equal, prosperous, and united province at a community meeting in Khayelitsha yesterday. He says the people of the province deserve new leaders, who will ensure everyone has access to the same rights and opportunities. Notywala says the mission is to dismantle what the DA and the ANC continue to sustain.

# Trade union Solidarity welcomes president Cyril Ramaphosa and Minister of Trade and Industry Ebrahim Patel’s stance on inclusive employee share ownership programmes. They emphasised the need for the programme to benefit all employees, including whites, to promote equality and cohesion. Solidarity praised companies like Coca-Cola for their colourblind programmes. They believe the government could have avoided disputes like the 2018 Sasol disagreement if implemented earlier. Employers are urged to implement the programmes in line with the proposed code of good practice.

# The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse initiative, JoburgCAN, rejects the city of Johannesburg’s draft budget for 2024/2025, saying it is unaffordable, unacceptable, and unlawful. It says the budget is not in line with the law and does not adequately address the needs of a city where services are collapsing. JoburgCAN’s manager, Julia Fish, says it is concerning that the city has recorded water losses worth 2.9-billion-rand against sales of 8.5-billion-rand:

# United Nations Human Rights Office says reports of mass graves containing hundreds of bodies at two of Gaza’s largest hospitals, prompting renewed concerns about possible war crimes. Palestinian officials say a total of 310 bodies have been found in the last week, including 35 in the past day. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights spokesperson, Ravina Shamdasani, says the intentional killing of civilians and detainees is a war crime:

# Rugby: The game is currently trialing a new brain-cooling treatment for concussions relating to sport. This is the first acute treatment that can be delivered along the field. Six clubs in the United Rugby Championship, including Edinburgh, are currently using the so-called PolarCap. It delivers targeted cooling to the head and neck between 45 minutes and an hour after a player suffers a concussion. BBC Sport reports Edinburgh’s team doctor, Michael Dunlop, says the metabolic dysfunction happening in a concussion is worse at higher body temperature.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 19-rand-8-cents and the euro at 20-rand-44-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-78-cents and Bitcoin trades at 66-thousand-591-dollars-72-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-320-dollars-64-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 88-dollars-35-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….