News 11:00

BULLETIN 25 July 11 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# President Ramaphosa will today reply to questions in the National Council of Provinces
# AfriForum asks for transparency regarding the Water and Sanitation corruption cases
# And US president Donald Trump rejects a report that Iran’s nuclear programme was not destroyed in American attacks

# President Cyril Ramaphosa is set to respond to oral questions in the National Council of Provinces today. He will be dealing with a range of questions, including the social compact to rebuild the economy, youth unemployment, shortcomings in budgetary management, service delivery in municipalities, and black economic empowerment. The Presidency says Ramaphosa’s engagement with the NCOP gives effect to accountability by the executive arm of the state to the legislature.

# AfriForum is calling on the Special Investigation Unit, the Hawks and the National Prosecuting Authority to disclose information regarding corruption, procurement fraud and other financial offences at the Department of Water and Sanitation. The Hawks recently revealed to Parliament’s standing committee on Public Accounts that the department is currently involved in eight active cases involving corruption, procurement fraud and breaches of financial laws. AfriForum’s Lambert de Klerk says six of these cases amount to more than 737-million-rand in alleged losses:

# The GOOD Party has welcomed reports that the Hawks are now investigating allegations contained in the preliminary Vermaak report into procurement irregularities in the Swellendam Municipality in the Western Cape. The report details systemic corruption and conflicts of interest involving multiple senior officials, including the municipal manager, chief financial official, and supply chain manager. GOOD’s secretary general, Brett Herron, says this development is a significant moment for accountability and justice:

# US president Donald Trump has rejected reports that a leaked intelligence assessment suggests America’s military strikes on Iran didn’t destroy the core components of its nuclear programme. The assessment by the Pentagon’s Defence Intelligence Agency says Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium was not destroyed in Saturday’s strikes. On Truth Social, Trump lashed out at news outlets for allegedly trying to demean one of the most successful military strikes in history. He reiterated that three nuclear sites in Iran were hit perfectly, and destroyed.

# Rugby: Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus has praised tighthead prop Asenathi Ntlabakanye’s dedication which has led to him getting his first national call-up. The 26-year-old is one of four uncapped players included in the Bok squad to face the Barbarians in Cape Town on Saturday. Ntlabakanye’s transformation included intensive sessions at scrum coach Daan Human’s Bloemfontein farm, where conditioning took precedence alongside technical scrum work. Erasmus says Ntlabakanye’s commitment has yielded dramatic physical changes:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-73-cents and the euro at 20-rand-57-cents. One British pound costs 24-rand-14-cents and Bitcoin trades at 106-thousand-42-dollars. Gold sells at three-thousand-329-dollars-79-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 67-dollars-28-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….