News 13:00

BULLETIN 1 August 1 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Minister Mchunu praises SAPS for successful kidnapping rescue and drug bust
# Western Cape beaches and rivers are polluted following recent heavy rains
# And, Olympic Games: Only two of top-ten men’s golfers will not be in Paris

# Police minister Senzo Mchunu has praised the SAPS for rescuing a kidnapped businessman and arresting eight suspects, including three Tanzanian nationals, in Johannesburg. The operation also led to the seizure of 300-million-rand worth of suspected crystal meth. The ministry’s spokesperson, Kamogelo Mogotsi, says Mchunu applauds the professionalism and coordination of the SAPS, and stresses the need for ongoing efforts against organised crime and drug trafficking:

Meanwhile, Eastern Cape police have rescued a Chinese national who was kidnapped in King William’s Town on Saturday, and arrested three suspects in the early hours of today. Police spokesperson Siphokazi Mawisa says police followed information that led them to the house of a taxi owner in Mooiplaas outside East London. Mawisa says the man was found unharmed:

# The DA in Gauteng says it won’t support any budgets tabled in the legislature by the ANC-led coalition. Several MECs are presenting budgets from their respective departments. The DA’s provincial leader, Solly Msimanga, says the current government continues to present budgets that are not aimed at improving people’s lives. The DA, which holds 22 of the 80 seats in the legislature, resolved to sit on the opposition benches after talks with the ANC to secure a majority government through a coalition collapsed.

# The recent heavy rains in the Western Cape have resulted in pollution along rivers and beaches. Plastic bags, baby food packaging, microplastics, medical waste, shoes and other items of clothing have been found lining some of the beaches and rivers. South Africa contributes 35-percent of plastic pollution leaking into waterways and the marine environment in Southern and Eastern Africa. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, pollution is not only an environmental problem but a human problem as well.

# Olympic Games: Only two of the world’s top ten men will miss the golf competition in Paris, in comparison to when the sport returned to the Games in Rio in 2016. Many of the best players decided not to travel to Brazil because of fears of the Zika virus, and because they reportedly didn’t embrace golf as an Olympic sport. The only two top-ten players missing in Paris are Patrick Cantlay and Bryson DeChambeau, and only because four other US players above them in the ranking will compete.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-21-cents and the euro at 19-rand-64-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-26-cents and Bitcoin trades at 64-thousand-590-dollars-21-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-433-dollars-9-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 81-dollars-60-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….