News 18:00

BULLETIN 2 September 6 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Special Investigating Unit is to probe billions in Eskom contracts
# Consumers are warned against a spending spree after two-pot withdrawals
# And, rugby: SA Rugby apologises to New Zealand over the drowning out of the Haka at Ellis Park

# The Special Investigating Unit has received the green light from president Cyril Ramaphosa to investigate nine controversial Eskom contracts worth billions, including those with Gupta-linked firms. The probe covers coal procurement, pre-payments, and IT service contracts. The unit will extend its inquiry into issues flagged by the state capture inquiry and ongoing criminal investigations, including a 659-million-rand coal prepayment to Tegeta.

# South African Reserve Bank governor Lesetja Kganyago has warned consumers against spending sprees after two-pot withdrawals. The system, now effective, allows access to a third of retirement funds before retirement. Kganyago stresses that using these funds for consumption rather than debt reduction, could fuel inflation. Meanwhile, labour union federations such as Saftu have continued to criticise the system, calling it a scam that will not provide the needed financial relief for workers.

# The DA has expressed concerns over the ongoing smuggling of contraband into South African prisons with 13 officials under investigation. The DA’s spokesperson for Correctional Services, Janho Engelbrecht, says despite increasing raids, illegal items like drugs continue to enter facilities. He calls for consequence management and accountability for those involved:

# Rugby: SA Rugby has apologised to New Zealand because the conclusion of the Haka was obscured during Saturday’s Rugby Championship clash between the Springboks and the All Blacks at Ellis Park. The war cry was almost drowned out by fireworks, music, and the fly-over of a plane from the stadium’s main sponsor. SA Rugby CEO Rian Oberholzer says he expressed regret and apologies to New Zealand Rugby. He says it was never the intention to schedule anything that would coincide with such an iconic moment.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-84-cents and the euro at 19-rand-74-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-44-cents and Bitcoin trades at 58-thousand-135-dollars-50-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-497-dollars-92-cent a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 76-dollars-83-cents a barrel.

# And finally, the Table Mountain cableway has reopened after a seven-week maintenance shutdown. Western Cape premier Alan Winde confirmed that over seven-thousand tickets were sold today, coinciding with the start of Tourism Month. The premier has also urged South Africans to vote for Table Mountain as Africa’s leading tourist attraction in the 2024 World Travel Awards:

Stay tuned for more news………….