News 08:00

BULLETIN 14 August 8 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# ActionSA won’t send a formal delegation to the National Dialogue convention
# The GOOD Party says the convention is crucial for the sustainability of democracy
# And Donald Trump warns of severe consequences if Putin does not agree to a ceasefire

# ActionSA says in light of growing concerns surrounding the National Dialogue, it will not send a formal delegation from its national leadership to the national convention this weekend. However, the party will deploy two senior members of Parliament on an observation brief to monitor and exercise oversight over the convention. ActionSA’s spokesperson, Matthew George, says they remain unconvinced that any of the concerns raised by key stakeholders, organisers, and the broader public have been addressed:

Meanwhile, the GOOD Party says it has agreed to participate in the National Dialogue convention because it views it as critical to the sustainability of the non-racial Constitutional democracy. This weekend’s convention is set to lay the groundwork for discussions on South Africa’s economic, social, and governance ills. GOOD’s secretary general, Brett Herron, says what is required is an introspective conversation about the nation’s soul, which does not lend itself to the populist or divisive rhetoric of election campaigns:

# City of Johannesburg council speaker, Margaret Arnolds, has revoked the disbandment of the Special Independent Investigation Committee. The committee was authorised in June 2023 to investigate allegations of corruption by officials of the Group Forensic and Investigation Services. Former speaker Nobuhle Mthembu froze the investigations in April this year over budgetary concerns. Arnolds says the integrity of governance processes depends on independent committees being able to work without interference. She adds that her office is committed to ensuring that the committee completes its work in full.

# US president Donald Trump says there will be very severe consequences if his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, does not agree to stop the war in Ukraine. The two are set to meet in Alaska tomorrow in what the White House has characterised as a listening exercise. European leaders have urged Trump not to strike a unilateral peace deal. Trump says if tomorrow’s meeting goes well, he will try to organise a second one involving both Putin and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky:

# Soccer: European champions Paris St-Germain rallied from two goals down before winning a penalty shootout against Tottenham Hotspur to clinch the UEFA Super Cup in Italy. Spurs were 2-0 up through goals from Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero, but PSG pulled one back five minutes from time through substitute Lee Kang-in. Another substitute, Gonçalo Ramos, scored a 94th-minute equaliser to force a penalty shootout. PSG won the shootout 4-3 to snatch their first European trophy of the season.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-50-cents and the euro at 20-rand-48-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-76-cents and Bitcoin trades at 123-thousand-659-dollars. Gold sells at three-thousand-358-dollars-98-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 65-dollars-59-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….