News 14:00

BULLETIN 30 June 2 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# ActionSA won’t be pressured into supporting a motion of no confidence against president Cyril Ramaphosa
# Police commissioner Masemola welcomes the arrest of two alleged hitmen in the Fort Hare bodyguard murder case
# And the Dalai Lama will reveal his succession plan while China vows to elect his successor

# ActionSA says it will not be influenced by other parties in deciding whether to support a motion of no confidence in president Cyril Ramaphosa. The party has long-standing concerns about Ramaphosa’s leadership, but will make its own decision if such a motion is brought. ActionSA’s Athol Trollip says the party remains a constructive opposition in Parliament and committed to good governance, especially in Tshwane:

# National police commissioner Fannie Masemola has welcomed the arrest of two hitmen linked to the murder of Mboneli Vesele, bodyguard to Fort Hare Vice Chancellor Sakhele Buhlungu. Police spokesperson Athlenda Mathe says Bafana Chiliza and Nkosiyazi Maphumulo were arrested in Johannesburg. Vesele was gunned down outside Buhlungu’s home in Alice in the Eastern Cape in January 2023 in an alleged contract killing. Mathe confirmed this brings the number of arrests to twelve:

# The Dalai Lama is expected to reveal succession details during a major religious gathering in Dharamshala this week, ahead of his 90th birthday. Over 100 Buddhist leaders are attending the event where prayers for his longevity and succession plans will take center stage. China, which views him as a separatist, insists it will name his successor. The exiled Tibetan leader has urged followers to reject any Beijing-appointed reincarnation, saying his successor will be born outside China.

# Cricket: Pakistan has named former all-rounder Azhar Mahmood interim head coach of the Test side, the fourth man to take the post in the last 18 months. The 50-year-old will remain in the position until January. As a pace bowling all-rounder, Mahmood played 143 one-day internationals and 21 Tests for Pakistan, and has been serving as assistant coach since last year. He replaces Aaqib Javed, who was interim head coach for the Test series in South Africa in December to January and at home against the West Indies.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-76-cents and the euro at 20-rand-82-cents. One British pound costs 24-rand-33-cents and Bitcoin trades at 107-thousand-556-dollars. Gold sells at three-thousand-286-dollars-17-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 66-dollars-50-cents a barrel.

# And finally: The latest household affordability index has revealed that prices of basic tax-free food items are rising, with zero-rated foods up by 4.1-percent over the past year. According to the report the cost of a household food basket rose from two-thousand-775- to two-thousand-889-rand. Staple items like maize meal, rice, and cooking oil are among those affected. The Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity Group warns that food and fuel price hikes are squeezing household budgets nationwide.

Stay tuned for more news………….