News 14:00

BULLETIN 15 January 2 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Festive season drunk driving arrests surge by 144-percent
# Forty-eight boys died nationally during the summer initiation season
# And rugby: The chairperson of New Zealand Rugby says the All Blacks weren’t progressing under Scott Robertson

# Transport minister Barbara Creecy has raised alarm over a sharp rise in festive season drunk driving arrests, which increased by 144-percent compared to the previous year. She presented the road safety report and said law enforcement conducted one-thousand-632 roadblocks, stopping and checking 1.8-million vehicles. Creecy confirms more than 450-thousand fines were issued, with 525 arrests for excessive speeding, and 89 motorists arrested for attempting to bribe traffic officials:

# The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs has confirmed that 48 boys died nationally during the 2025 summer initiation season. The Eastern Cape and the Free State recorded the highest number of fatalities. The department’s spokesperson, Pearl Maseko-Binqose, says minister Velenkosini Hlabisa and the Congress of Traditional Leaders’ president, Kgoshi Mokoena, have agreed that cultural preservation and the protection of life must remain central priorities:

# The Gauteng Education Department has given the assurance all learners will be placed in schools, even if it takes some time. Almost five-housand Grade 1 and Grade 8’s had yet to be placed when the new adacemic year started yesterday. The province’s capacity problems are ascribed to rapid population growth, internal migration and intense demand for quality schools in urban districts. The department had asked parents and caregivers of unplaced children to allow up to ten-days for the department to identify suitable schools.

# Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Ronald Lamola, is leading a high-level African Union ad hoc committee of Five visit to Juba, South Sudan. This year, South Sudan is earmarked to hold its first-ever elections since gaining independence from Sudan in July 2011. The C5 was established by the AU Peace and Security Council in December 2014. DIRCO says Lamola is leading the delegation in his capacity as chairperson, with the visit aimed at assessing the Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan.

# Rugby: New Zealand Rugby board chairperson, David Kirk, says the decision to part ways with head coach Scott Robertson was based on concerns about the All Blacks’ direction and progression. His winning percentage of 20 victories from 27 matches is well below that of his predecessor, Steve Hansen. Kirk says the mid-point in the World Cup cycle is the right time to look at the team’s progress:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-36-cents and the euro at 19-rand-4-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-97-cents and Bitcoin trades at 96-thousand-815-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-612-dollars-80-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 63-dollars-16-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….