News 15:00

BULLETIN 27 May 3 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# President Cyril Ramaphosa emphasises infrastructure’s role in boosting trade and reducing business cost
# The Forum for South Africa says laws must never be relaxed for the sake of one individual
# And the actor from “Tsotsi” dies at 40

# Government says quality infrastructure in water, electricity, education, and health uplifts living standards and promotes national unity. Addressing delegates at the infrastructure symposium in Cape Town, president Cyril Ramaphosa said well-developed infrastructure connects the nation and the continent, while supporting trade and reducing business costs. It also strengthens key sectors like transport, telecommunications, and entertainment. Ramaphosa emphasised that improved infrastructure will enable seamless trade across the continent:

# Forum for South Africa has condemned government’s intention to relax the broad-based black economic empowerment laws for billionaire Elon Musk. Last week, minister of Communications and Digital Technologies, Solly Malatsi, issued a gazette to review B-BBEE licensing requirements for satellite service companies. If approved, this could see Musk’s Starlink internet service operate in South Africa. The forum’s Tebogo Mashilompane says this major policy shift should not be allowed:

# The DA says policing powers must be given to local and provincial governments to help tackle gang violence in the Western Cape. This follows a bloody weekend in Cape Town, where 26 murders, 58 attempted murders, and 84 gang-related incidents were reported. The DA’s Thomas Walters says local efforts like the Law Enforcement Advancement Plan have proven effective but are hamstrung by limited powers:

# Soccer: Spanish coach Luis de la Fuente has called up the midfielder Isco for the Nations League final four, six years after his last appearance for La Roja. The 33-year-old has enjoyed a superb season with Real Betis, helping them reach the Conference League final where they face Chelsea tomorrow. Spain, the Euro 2024 winner, faces France in the semi-final in Stuttgart on 5 June before a potential final against Germany or Portugal.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-88-cents and the euro at 20-rand-28-cents. One British pound costs 24-rand-22-cents and Bitcoin trades at 109-thousand-600-dollars. Gold sells at three-thousand-289-dollars-88-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 64-dollars-7-cents a barrel.

# And finally: Award-winning actor Presley Chweneyagae has passed away at the age of 40. The news was confirmed this morning, but details remain unknown. Chweneyagae rose to global fame for his role in the Oscar-winning film Tsotsi. Born in Mahikeng, North West, in 1984, he also starred in The River, iNumber Number, and State of Violence. He also played the main character in the brand-new series Cobrizi.

Stay tuned for more news………….