News 07:00

BULLETIN 28 November 7 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Minister Tolashe commits to strengthening SASSA’s systems to prevent fraud
# Israel will appeal the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrants
# And rugby: The Boks will play Italy, Georgia, Argentina and Australia in South Africa next year

# The South African Social Security Agency is strengthening its systems to combat identity theft and improve service delivery. This follows allegations by two Stellenbosch University students that SASSA’s Social Relief of Distress grant system is vulnerable. Social Development Minister Sisisi Tolashe says the agency has added new security features like facial recognition and is working with law enforcement to stop ongoing fraud in the system:

Meanwhile, the DA has called on president Cyril Ramaphosa to authorise a Special Investigation Unit probe into fraud within SASSA’s Social Relief of Distress grant system. DA spokesperson for Social Development, Alexander Abrahams stresses urgent reforms to restore public confidence and ensure accountability in South Africa’s social assistance framework:

# A drug laboratory with an estimated value of 100-million-rand was uncovered in Rietfontein, Gauteng, leading to the arrest of a 39-year-old Mexican national. Police spokesperson, Amanda van Wyk, says a search and seizure warrant was obtained following extensive surveillance conducted on the premises. She says the suspect has been charged with dealing in and manufacturing of drugs, as well as for the contravention of the Immigration Act:

# Twenty more illegal miners were arrested after they resurfaced from shaft ten in Stilfontein, North West, yesterday. The group is believed to have been operating at the abandoned old Buffelsfontein gold mine. Police spokesperson Sabata Mokgwabone says the 20 consist of ten Lesotho, six Zimbabwean, and four Mozambique nationals. The number of illegal miners arrested has risen to more than one-thousand-300. Scores of other illegal miners are expected to appear in court today.

# Israel has informed the International Criminal Court that it will appeal the arrest warrants issued for prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence minister Yoav Gallant. Last week, the ICC issued the warrants to the two and Hamas commander Mohammed Deif for war crimes and crimes against humanity. Israel says it denies the authority of the ICC and the legitimacy of the arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant.

# Rugby: Italy, Georgia, Australia and Argentina will play the Springboks in South Africa next year. The matches on the fifth and twelfth of July will be the Azzurri’s first in South Africa in 12 years. The Boks will play Georgia a week later, whereafter the defending champion will face the Wallabies twice in the Rugby Championship in August. The Boks will then play two Tests against the All Blacks in New Zealand, as well as home and away matches against the Pumas.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-20-cents and the euro at 19-rand-22-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-7-cents and Bitcoin trades at 96-thousand-394-dollar-26-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-626-dollars-29-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 72-dollars-81-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….