News 15:00

BULLETIN 17 February 3 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# South Africa’s unemployment rate falls to 31.4-percent
# The FF Plus slams the Agriculture Department over the foot-and-mouth crisis
# And US civil rights icon Jesse Jackson dies at 84

# Statistics South Africa announced the unemployment rate fell slightly to 31.4 percent in the last quarter of last year. The quarterly labour force survey shows 44-thousand more people found jobs, while 172-thousand fewer people were unemployed. But the number of discouraged job seekers increased by 233-thousand. Stats SA’s Dihlolelo Phoshoko says the Western Cape recorded the biggest job gains, and Gauteng saw the biggest losses:

# The FF Plus says a recent Saai poll shows farmers have lost confidence in the Department of Agriculture’s leadership amid the foot-and-mouth disease crisis. Over 95-percent says the response was too slow, vaccines poorly managed, and experts silenced. The FF Plus’ Wynand Boshoff urges minister John Steenhuisen to take responsibility for nearly two years of mismanagement, and calls for senior officials to justify their continued service or step aside:

Moving abroad:

#  New Mexico lawmakers passed legislation to launch what they say is the first full investigation into what happened at Zorro Ranch, where the late US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein allegedly trafficked and sexually assaulted girls and women. A bipartisan committee will seek testimony from survivors of alleged sexual abuse at the ranch near the state capital of Santa Fe. Legislators are also urging local residents to testify. Epstein committed suicide in a New York jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.

# Rugby: English winger Henry Arundell is facing a disciplinary hearing today following his red card in their 31-20 Six Nations defeat to Scotland at Murrayfield. The 23-year-old received an automatic 20-minute red card in the 37th minute when he earned his second yellow card for taking out Kyle Steyn in the air. Coach Steve Borthwick’s wing options are already depleted, with Immanuel Feyi-Waboso nursing a hamstring injury, and Arundell’s looming suspension, as they look to get their campaign back on track against Ireland on Saturday.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-4-cents and the euro at 18-rand-99-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-79-cents and Bitcoin trades at 67-thousand-826-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-926-dollars-36-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 68-dollars-20-cents a barrel.

# And finally: Civil rights activist and two-time US presidential candidate, Jesse Jackson, has died. The 84-year-old protégé of Martin Luther King Junior reshaped the Democratic Party with his Rainbow PUSH Coalition and tireless advocacy for justice, equality, and voting rights. Jackson’s Keep hope alive legacy inspired generations, advancing civil rights, LGBTQ inclusion, and multiracial political progress in America. His Rainbow PUSH Coalition confirmed Jackson was hospitalised for progressive supra-nuclear palsy, and passed away surrounded by family.

Stay tuned for more news………….