News 07:00

BULLETIN 12 Month 7 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The ANC releases Obed Bapela from his duties as its deputy chairperson
# Zuma alleges widespread corruption in party elective conferences
# And, tennis: Sabalenka and Gauff take on each other in the semifinals in Wuhan

# The ANC says it has released Obed Bapela from his duties as its Deputy Chairperson, and as a member of the party’s National Executive Committee Sub-committee on International Relations. This after Bapela met with the Moroccan Minister of Foreign Affairs on Monday on strengthening economic and trade relations between South Africa and Morocco. ANC spokesperson, Mahlengi Bhengu-Motsiri says this contradicts the party’s longstanding policies and principles regarding Morocco’s occupation of Western Sahara:

# Former president and MK Party leader, Jacob Zuma says there is widespread corruption in party elective conferences, claiming money plays a key role in determining leadership. He argues conferences have become more about business than true leadership selection. In a media briefing, Zuma criticised the use of money in securing leadership positions, saying it undermines the integrity of elections and genuine democratic processes: 

# Eskom says its generation operational recovery plan continues to deliver on-going structural improvements and efficiencies to the coal fleet. The power utility has successfully kept load-shedding suspended for 198 consecutive days, providing an uninterrupted power supply since March this year. Eskom spokesperson, Daphne Mokwena says the utility will reach 200 days of load-shedding suspension on Sunday, a period that includes its delivering a load-shedding free winter between April and August this year:

# Ukraine said yesterday it was investigating the death in Russian captivity of a Ukrainian journalist, whose first-hand reports provided a glimpse into life under Russian occupation early in Moscow’s invasion. The 27-year-old Viktoria Roshchyna disappeared in August 2023 after embarking on a reporting trip to occupied eastern Ukraine. Russia acknowledged last April that she was being held. Her death was confirmed on social media late on Thursday. Reporters Without Borders said Roshchyna died on 19 September, citing a letter her family received from Russia’s Defence Ministry.

# And, tennis: This year’s US Open champion, Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, will meet the previous year’s winner, American Coco Gauff, in the semifinal of the Wuhan Open in China today. Top-seeded Sabalenka easily dispatched of Magadalena Fręch of Poland in the quarterfinals, winning 6-2, 6-2. Gauff earlier defeated another Polish player, Magda Linette, also in straight sets. Winning the tournament will hugely improve Sabalenka’s chances of taking over from Iga Swiatek of Poland on top of the world rankings before the end of the year.

Stay tuned for more news………….