News 11:00

BULLETIN 9th October 11 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The DA criticises the selection panel for the new National Director of Public Prosecutions
# The Huguenot Tunnel in the Boland has been reopened following emergency repair work
# And Trump calls for Chicago’s mayor and Illinois’ governor to be jailed

# The DA has expressed concern at the composition of the selection panel tasked with making nominations for the new National Director of Public Prosecutions. President Cyril Ramaphosa appointed the panel, which will be led by Justice and Constitutional Development minister Mmamoloko Kubayi. Current director Shamila Batohi’s term of office ends in January. The DA’s Glynnis Breytenbach says the panel is completely devoid of criminal justice legal experts. She says most of the members’ focus is on human rights and governance.

# Deputy minister of Electricity and Energy Samantha Graham-Maré says the renewable energy industry presents a defining opportunity for African countries to leverage their vast resources to re-industrialise and create dignified employment opportunities. The continent holds 60-percent of the world’s best solar resources, vast wind potential, and many of the critical minerals that underpin the global clean energy economy. Graham-Maré says co-development of technology, de-risking investment capital and public-private partnerships are also key to Africa’s renewable energy re-industrialisation:

# The South African National Roads Agency has confirmed that the N1 Huguenot Tunnel in the Western Cape has reopened. This follows critical repairs and extensive safety assessments after a bus caught fire inside the tunnel on Friday night. The provincial Mobility Department’s Antoinette Fennie says while the tunnel is now operational, further permanent repair work will continue in the coming months. She says most of the work will be done at night to ensure minimal disruption to motorists:

Moving abroad:

# US president Donald Trump has called for Chicago mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois governor JB Pritzker to be jailed, accusing them of failing to protect federal immigration officials. The country’s third-largest city has become the latest flashpoint in the Trump administration’s intensifying deportation campaign and crackdown on crime in Democratic-led cities. A lawsuit was filed on Monday to block the deployment, and a hearing is scheduled for today. Pritzker says military personnel should not be used against communities:

# Cricket: Joe Root insists England can end their 10-year long Ashes drought as they bid to finally bring the urn home from their tour to Australia later this year. England have not won the Ashes since 2015 and their last Test series triumph in Australia was in the 2010/11 season. England were held to a 2-all draw by Australia on home turf in the most recent series in 2023, while their last three trips Down Under have ended in 4-0, 4-0 and 5-0 thrashings.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-17-cents and the euro at 19-rand-95-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-95-cents and Bitcoin trades at 121-thousand-914-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-and-30-dollars-50-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 66-dollars-16-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….