News 07:00

BULLETIN 6 March 7 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Auditor-General will review the MK Party’s complaints about the budget postponement
# The EFF accuses minister Mchunu of protecting Ramaphosa
# And the US pauses intelligence sharing with Ukraine

# The Auditor-General has confirmed it will review a request from the MK Party for an investigation into the costs incurred by the postponement of last month’s national budget. It will assess the request according to its regulatory procedures and respond in writing. The Auditor-General’s Harold Maloka, says the Chapter Nine institution regularly audits Parliament and government departments, ensuring its audits are fair and unbiased:

# The EFF says Police minister Senzo Mchunu’s refusal to release the Independent Police Investigative Directorate’s report into the Phala Phala saga, is a deliberate cover-up to shield president Cyril Ramaphosa from accountability. Minister Mchunu has stated that the IPID’s report on the US dollars stolen at Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala farm in Limpopo in 2020 has been classified as top secret and won’t be made public. The EFF says the minister’s refusal to release the report is an insult to democracy and a direct assault on transparency and accountability.

# The South African Maritime Safety Authority has launched a nationwide fishing vessel safety audit at Gqeberha Harbour. The four-month campaign aims to enhance safety in the commercial fishing sector. It will assess compliance with maritime regulations, identify risks related to vessel age and maintenance, and evaluate emergency preparedness. Vessels involved in past incidents or registered before 1998 will also be audited. The Authority will also develop a safety improvement plan to minimise future risks.

# Metalworkers’ union Numsa will today march to the City of Tshwane’s offices to hand over a memorandum of demands to mayor Nasiphi Moya. The union urges the metro to honor its promises to retrenched workers at Tshwane Affected Operations Investments after terminating its contract with the bus operator last year. Numsa’s Phakamile Hlubi-Majola claims the metro failed to pay retrenchment packages or reassign 261 workers, leaving them without income and struggling to support their families:

# US National Security Adviser, Mike Waltz, has confirmed that president Donald Trump has suspended some intelligence sharing with Ukraine. This comes on the heels of America pausing military aid to Kyiv. The US has provided Ukraine with intelligence since the war began in 2022. This includes extensive information on Russian force movements and locations, as well as intercepted communications about their military plans and the movement of their spies. Waltz says they are reviewing all aspects of America’s relationship with Ukraine.

# Golf: Last week’s SA Open champion, Dylan Naidoo, leads a strong field for the Joburg Open, which tees off at the Houghton Golf Club today. Veteran Darren Fichardt is back as he seeks to become only the third player to win the tournament more than once, following his triumph in 2017. Other former champions in the field include Dan Bradbury, George Coetzee, Shubhankar Sharma, and Haydn Porteous. Naidoo says he has a strong desire to do well in this tournament:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-29-cents and the euro at 19-rand-75-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-59-cents and Bitcoin trades at 90-thousand-361-dollars-20-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-918-dollars-30-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 69-dollars-63-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….