News 15:00

BULLETIN 4 February 3 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The DA thanks John Steenhuisen for his leadership
# The High Court dismisses Jacob Zuma and Thales’ appeal
# And rugby: Eddie Jones says the 2027 World Cup schedule is pretty equitable for all teams

# The DA has honored John Steenhuisen for six-years of service as federal leader, praising his role in leading the party into national government for the first time. He announced his resignation in April today. DA spokesperson Jan de Villiers says Steenhuisen strengthened the party’s stability, grew electoral support, and helped shape the government of national unity. He says as Steenhuisen now focuses on his role as Agriculture minister, farmers and food security will benefit from his full-time attention.

# The High Court in Pietermaritzburg, Kwa-Zulu-Natal, has dismissed former president Jacob Zuma and co-accused Thales’ bid to reverse a ruling against their application for acquittal. Judge Nkosinathi Chili presided over the case, upholding the original decision and confirming the legal process will continue. Zuma and the French aerospace corporation had sought to overturn the previous judgment. Chili says their arguments are insufficient to set aside the earlier ruling:

# Health authorities warn recent heavy rains and flooding in Limpopo have increased the risk of malaria, creating ideal conditions for mosquito breeding and disrupting indoor residual spraying, which currently covers 48-percent of households. Spokesperson Neil Shikwambana says since April last year, 838 malaria cases and 12 deaths have been reported. He urges communities to allow spraying teams access, recognise early symptoms, and seek immediate treatment to prevent illness or death:

# The Department of Justice and Constitutional Development has published draft regulations in terms of the Cannabis for Private Purposes Act of 2024 for public comment. In 2018, the Constitutional Court found that the criminalisation of the use or possession of cannabis by an adult for private purposes was not reasonable and justifiable in an open and democratic society. The department’s spokesperson, Terrence Manase, says the use of cannabis by children remains prohibited:

# Rugby: Japan’s head coach, Eddie Jones, has welcomed the 2027 World Cup schedule, saying it gives the smaller teams a fair chance of upsetting the bigger teams. The Brave Blossoms will start their campaign against Samoa before facing France and then the USA in the pool stage of the global showpiece in Australia. Jones says they have got six days between every game, which is a fair preparation period. He adds there are no limits to where they want to finish, especially having reached the quarterfinals in 2019.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 15-rand-99-cents and the euro at 18-rand-88-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-92-cents and Bitcoin trades at 75-thousand-920-dollars. Gold sells at five-thousand-and-23-dollars-38-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 67-dollars-22-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….