News 06:00

BULLETIN 11 October 6 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The National Prosecuting Authority is not going to prosecute Ramaphosa in the Phala Phala case
# A survey finds South Africans are optimistic about the government of national unity
# And the death toll in Hurricane Milton stands at 16

# The Director of Public Prosecutions in Limpopo, Mukhali Ivy Thenga, has decided not to prosecute anyone in the Phala Phala case, citing insufficient evidence for a successful prosecution. This follows an investigation into a complaint laid by former spy boss Arthur Fraser against president Cyril Ramaphosa and former presidential protection unit head Wally Rhoode. They were implicated in an alleged cover-up of theft of foreign currency at Ramaphosa’s Limpopo farm in 2020. NPA’s spokesperson, Mthunzi Mhaga, says a careful assessment of all available evidence presented was done:

# An Ipsos survey has revealed that as the Government of National Unity celebrates its 100th day in office today, optimism rises among citizens. According to the surveys, 40-percent believe the country is moving in the right direction, the highest since May 2020. In addition, the survey stated that after 150 days without power blackouts and a recent interest rate cut, the public sentiment is shifting positively. However, concerns about unemployment, crime, and corruption remain pressing issues.

# The perjury case against former Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane has been postponed to 25 April next year. Mkhwebane appeared briefly in the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court, facing charges of lying under oath about meetings with former president Jacob Zuma. The charges stem from a 2019 Constitutional Court ruling, which found Mkhwebane acted in bad faith and presented falsehoods in the Absa-Bankorp review case.

# The DA says Johannesburg’s water crisis is worsening, with over 100-thousand residents in areas like Crosby going without water for up to a week. The party has criticised mayoral committee member for Environmental and Infrastructure Services, Jack Sekwaila, for rejecting a motion aimed at addressing the issue. The DA’s Nicole van Dyk says despite protests, the city’s response remains insufficient, and vows to keep fighting for residents’ access to water: 

# At least 16 people are confirmed dead after Hurricane Milton passed through Florida, including five in St. Lucie County. The hurricane made landfall near Siesta Key on Wednesday night as a category 3 storm but has since weakened to a category 1. About three-million people are without power. Heavy rainfall across the state continues to bring the risk of flooding. Florida governor Ron DeSantis says the storm surge has not been as significant as what was observed for Hurricane Helen:

# Tennis: World number one Jannik Sinner of Italy describes 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal’s retirement as tough news for the tennis world. The 38-year-old Spaniard announced yesterday that this season would be the final one of his illustrious career. Sinner says Nadal taught the young players how to behave on court and to stay humble and not change with success. Sinner’s rivalry with another Spaniard, Carlos Alcaraz, is seen as the new version of the Big Three consisting of Nadal, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-51-cents and the euro at 19-rand-16-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-88-cents and Bitcoin trades at 60-thousand-196-dollar-78-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-633-dollars-8-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 79-dollars-23-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….