News 11:00

BULLETIN 5 December 11 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Deputy president Paul Mashatile says countries support South Africa’s participation in the G20
# Home Affairs stretches its hours to keep South Africans travel-ready this festive season
# And rugby: The debutant Nabo Sokoyi is included in the Blitzboks squad for the Cape Town Sevens

# Deputy president Paul Mashatile says South Africa enjoys the support of other member countries to attend and participate in all G20 activities under the US presidency. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has confirmed that Washington will bar South Africa from attending the leaders’ summit in Miami next year. Mashatile says president Donald Trump continues to falsely accuse the government of perpetrating a genocide against Afrikaners. He says Trump’s attempts to delegitimise South Africa’s G20 presidency will not deter nations from acting on commitments in the leaders’ declaration adopted last month.

# The EFF has rejected the Basic Education Department’s budgetary review and recommendation report for the 2024/25 financial year. The report focuses on key priorities, including expanding access to quality Early Childhood Development, strengthening foundational literacy and numeracy and improving school infrastructure, learner safety, and well-being. The EFF’s Hlengiwe Mkhaliphi says the report sanitises failure, including irregular expenditure and instability in the National School Nutrition Programme, and hides deep structural weaknesses in the department:

# The Department of Home Affairs is extending office hours ahead of the festive season to help South Africans get essential documents. From Monday to 19 December and again from 5 to 16 January, offices will close at 6 pm instead of 4 pm for smart identity cards and passport applications and collections. Minister Leon Schreiber urged citizens to take advantage of the extended hours to ensure travel documents are ready for the holidays:

Moving abroad:

# The leader of a criminal group allegedly backed by Israel, Yasser Abu Shabab, has been killed in southern Gaza. He headed the so-called Popular Forces group, which carried out raids in Hamas-controlled territory before allegedly retreating quickly back to Israel’s protection. Abu Shabab was killed while trying to de-escalate a conflict between members of a family. Hamas has not claimed responsibility for his death, but says the fate that befell Abu Shabab was the inevitable fate of all who betray their people and homeland.

# Rugby: Uncapped utility backline player Nabo Sokoyi has been included in the Springbok Sevens squad for this weekend’s World Sevens series tournament in Cape Town. The 23-year-old takes the place of Mfundo Ndhlovu in the only change to the squad that finished in fifth position in Dubai last weekend. Blitzboks coach Philip Snyman says Sokoyi has the talent and ability to become a permanent fixture in the squad. South Africa will face New Zealand, Fiji and Great Britain on the opening day tomorrow.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-94-cents and the euro at 19-rand-77-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-62-cents and Bitcoin trades at 92-thousand-366-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-227-dollars-46-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 63-dollars-7-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….