News 16:00

BULLETIN 22 July 4 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Mashaba outlines his conditions for partnering with the ANC in Johannesburg
# Closing arguments in Judge Makhubele’s tribunal are being heard until Wednesday
# And, tennis: Nadal is not happy about his level after losing the final in Bastad

# ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba has outlined his conditions for partnering with the ANC in Johannesburg. Mashaba demands the removal of mayor Kabelo Gwamanda, the cancellation of the 200-rand electricity surcharge, the reclamation of hijacked buildings for affordable housing, and support for electing an ActionSA speaker in Tshwane. Despite previous vows to never work with the ruling party, Mashaba insists that the partnership is key to the rooting out of corruption in Johannesburg:

# The final arguments in the case against suspended Gauteng High Court judge Tintswalo Makhubele before the Judicial Conduct Tribunal has began. For the next three days, evidence leaders and civil organisation Unite Behind will present their arguments. Makhubele is accused of undermining judicial independence by holding dual roles as a judge and interim PRASA board chairperson. If found guilty, she could face impeachment by the National Assembly.

# The DA says the country’s never-ending plague of gender-based violence and domestic abuse is concerning. In recent weeks, a 19-year-old was caught on video assaulting his 82-year-old grandmother in Kraaifontein, Cape Town. In Mpumalanga, an 83-year-old woman in Dikweteng village was raped and stabbed. The DA’s Angel Khanyile says one of the biggest obstacles to addressing this scourge is the underfunded budget allocated to combatting gender-based and family violence, severely hampering the prioritisation of these cases:

# Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu is on his way to Washington to deliver a landmark speech to the US Congress. Netanyahu calls the visit a very important trip that comes at a time of great political uncertainty, referring to US president Joe Biden’s decision not to seek re-election and as Washington pushes Israel to seek a ceasefire deal with Hamas. Israel’s longest-serving premier will on Wednesday become the first foreign leader to address a joint meeting of the two chambers four times, pulling ahead of Britain’s Winston Churchill.

# Tennis: Former world number one Rafael Nadal says although he isn’t satisfied with his level in Bastad, he’s happy to have avoided any injuries. The Spaniard lost to Nuno Borges of Portugal in the final of the Swedish Open which he used to prepare for the Olympics. The 38-year-old says his level and energy were far from what they should be, but he isn’t used to playing long matches for four days in a row. He and young compatriot Carlos Alcaraz plan to play doubles in Paris.

# And, the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-26-cents and the euro at 19-rand-88-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-61-cents and Bitcoin trades at 67-thousand-417-dollars-34-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-394-dollars-71-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 82-dollars-6-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….