News 17:00

BULLETIN 23 May 5 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Moeletsi Mbeki slams Team South Africa’s handling of white genocide claims in the US
# Cricket: Former Sri Lankan captain Angelo Mathews is to retire from Tests
# And 52 volunteers perform 40 life-changing surgeries for the Nelson Mandela Children’s Hospital

# The chairperson of the South African Institute of International Affairs, Moeletsi Mbeki, has criticised Team South Africa’s handling of a controversial white genocide question at the White House in the US. Mbeki says they should have rehearsed who would respond. Speaking to SABC News, he further accused US president Donald Trump of attempting to build a colony in South Africa through divisive rhetoric and political manipulation:

# Union Giwusa has denounced with contempt what it calls, Cosatu’s outrageous proposal that South Africa should set aside its laws and regulations to accommodate Elon Musk’s Starlink internet. Giwusa president Mametlwe Sebei says this is not merely a policy concession, it is a class betrayal. He says the union federation is now compelled to act as a lobbying arm for billionaire predators and imperialist interests:

# Gauteng premier Panyaza Lesufi says the province requires 350-million-rand to fix the backlog of faulty traffic signals. He says delays have been caused by infrastructure failures and theft, affecting road safety and traffic flow. Lesufi confirmed that local municipalities will now handle the maintenance of provincial streetlights under new agreements aimed at speeding up repairs:

# Cricket: Sri Lanka’s former skipper, Angelo Mathews, announced he will retire from Tests after playing in the first match against Bangladesh next month, but will continue playing white-ball cricket. The 37-year-old veteran will leave the longest format after a Test career of 16 years, which began against Pakistan at the Galle stadium in July 2009. His 119th and final Test appearance will also be at the same venue from 17 June. He will not play in the second Test against Bangladesh.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-94-cents and the euro at 20-rand-32-cents. One British pound costs 24-rand-22-cents and Bitcoin trades at 108-thousand-765-dollars. Gold sells at three-thousand-353-dollars-80-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 63-dollars-22-cents a barrel.

# And finally: Fifty-two medical volunteers joined forces with the Nelson Mandela Children’s Hospital in Johannesburg and Operation Smile South Africa to perform 40 life-changing surgeries. The procedures included cleft lip and palate surgeries. The initiative, supported by Life Healthcare, aimed to reduce the surgical backlog affecting children nationwide. The programme offered screenings, surgeries, and post-operative care, highlighting the need for ongoing treatment and equal access. The hospital’s CEO, Nkuli Boikhutso, praised the collaborative effort as a tribute to Mandela’s legacy.

Stay tuned for more news………….