News 06:00

BULLETIN 31 July 6 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Minister Tau says South Africa is not at risk of being excluded from AGOA
# The DA wants to limit motions of no confidence with its new proposed bills
# And Olympic Games: Al Jama-ah applauds the deputy minister’s condemnation of Israel’s athletes at the Games

# Trade, Industry and Competition minister Parks Tau says South Africa and the US have agreed to the revival of the bilateral Trade and Investment Framework Agreement. This will be in addition to the African Growth and Opportunity Act, which is due to expire next year. Tau says he is confident that South Africa does not stand the risk of being excluded from AGOA, which exempts certain African countries from taxes on their exports to the US:

# The Centre for Development and Enterprise reports that South Africa’s severe fiscal crisis is hampering economic growth, citing high interest rates, unsustainable debt, and reduced investment. Their latest report criticises government measures, such as directing pension funds into public infrastructure, as financially repressive. Rapidly rising debt service costs, high real interest rates, and resource misallocation are undermining growth. The centre warns that these factors, driven by long-term structural weaknesses, pose a serious threat to the country’s economic future.

# The South African Municipal Workers Union has expressed outrage at what it says is the disrespectful nature of the current wage negotiations for the country’s 257 municipalities. The South African Local Government Association and unions engaged in the second round of negotiations last week. Salga has revised its wage offer from 3.5-percent to 3.75-percent, while Samwu’s primary demands include a one-year 15-percent wage increase. The union says Salga’s offer blatantly disregards the invaluable contributions and sacrifices of municipal workers.

# The DA is pushing for the re-introduction of coalition stability bills to prevent misuse of motions of no confidence. This move follows the recent attempt by the ANC to remove Tshwane mayor Cilliers Brink, which the party views as a disruption of effective governance. The DA’s Baxolile Nodada says the proposed bills aim to restrict the frequency of these motions, allowing only one per office holder per year with exceptions for serious violations: 

# The South African Democratic Teachers’ Union says the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education has done little for teacher safety despite numerous attempts to engage with it. This comes after two gunmen shot a primary school teacher dead on Monday, in full view of pupils and her colleagues at Phikiswayo Primary School in Ntuzuma, north of Durban. Sadtu has described the killing of the teacher as brutal and inhumane. It has reiterated its call for the department to hold a school safety and security indaba.

# Al Jama-ah strongly supports Sports, Arts, and Culture deputy minister, Peace Mabe, for condemning the International Olympic Committee’s decision to allow Israeli athletes to participate in the Olympics. The party criticises minister Gayton McKenzie’s opposition to this stance, drawing parallels to the boycott of apartheid South Africa in the 1970s. Al Jama-ah’s Shameema Salie calls for a ban on Israeli athletes, citing ongoing violence against Palestinians:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-29-cents and the euro at 19-rand-81-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-52-cents and Bitcoin trades at 66-thousand-202-dollars-64-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-409-dollars-64-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 78-dollars-54-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….