News 16:00

BULLETIN 8 October 4 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Judicial Service Commission recommends five candidates for Constitutional Court vacancies
# The South African Abalone Export Council targets the European market
# And rugby: Lukhanyo Am is determined to play his way back into the Springbok squad

# The Judicial Service Commission has concluded interviews for two vacancies on the Constitutional Court, recommending five candidates. The shortlisted individuals exclude seasoned academic Madumetja Malepe from the list after allegations of stolen church funds, debt concerns, and doubt over academic credibility were thrust into the spotlight. JSC commissioner Sesi Baloyi confirmed the list will be submitted to president Cyril Ramaphosa for final consideration:

# The South African Abalone Export Council is targeting the European market to diversify exports. CEO Rhomona Gounden is representing the sector at the Anuga Food and Beverage Trade Fair in Cologne, Germany, alongside 30 South African companies. The fair concluding today provides a platform to educate European consumers about abalone, a premium seafood largely unknown in the region. The initiative is supported by the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition to expand South Africa’s export markets.

# German federal police will be allowed to shoot down drones following a recent string of sightings which Berlin has blamed on Russia. Unveiling a draft law, Interior minister Alexander Dobrindt said police would be able to use jamming devices or take physical measures, meaning intercepting and shooting down drones. Germany was learning about modern drone defences from its allies Israel and Ukraine. Dobrindt says the federal police would also receive an additional unit for development and research into drone defence.

# Rugby: Sharks centre Lukhanyo Am says he is determined to play his way back into the Springbok squad. The 2019 World Cup winner last played for the Boks against England in November last year, due to injuries. The Sharks are preparing to face Leinster in the third round of the United Rugby Championship in Dublin on Saturday. Am says he is focused on doing the work that will get him back into the national team:

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-17-cents and the euro at 19-rand-98-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-3-cents and Bitcoin trades at 122-thousand-756-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-and-37-dollars-95-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 66-dollars-17-cents a barrel.

# And finally: 2025’s Nobel Prize in Chemistry has been awarded to Susumu Kitagawa of Japan, Richard Robson of Australia, and Omar Yaghi of the US for their development of metal organic frameworks. These porous molecular structures can capture gases, harvest water from the air, store toxic chemicals, and catalyse chemical reactions. The Nobel Committee’s Hiener Linke says their groundbreaking work could help tackle global challenges such as water scarcity and pollution, offering new solutions for environmental and technological problems:

Stay tuned for more news………….