News 15:00

BULLETIN 26 February 3 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Minister Macpherson orders the suspension of a senior director implicated in a 113-million-rand Mpumalanga Education tender
# The City of Cape Town says it’s in an early drought caution
# And rugby: A former schoolboy star is among 49 players attending the Bok alignment camp next week

# Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure, Dean Macpherson, has ordered the precautionary suspension of the department’s director of Construction and Project Management, Velamina Matsi-Seregile, following her court appearance on fraud charges. She and 31-co-accused appeared in the Mbombela Magistrate’s Court in Mpumalanga relating to a 113-million-rand tender linked to the provincial Education Department. Macpherson says disciplinary steps will run alongside criminal proceedings, reaffirming a zero-tolerance stance on corruption within the department.

# Finance minister Enoch Godongwana says government remains focused on macro-economic stability and structural reforms to drive growth. Speaking at a post-budget breakfast in Cape Town, Godongwana highlighted efforts to stabilise debt and outlined reforms aimed at fixing the power grid and restructuring Eskom. He says the 254-billion-rand allocation supports both restoring electricity supply and implementing long-term institutional reforms:

# President Cyril Ramaphosa says all 14 million cattle in South Africa will be vaccinated against foot-and-mouth disease, prioritising communal areas, dairy farms, and feedlots. He addressed the opening of the National House of Traditional and Khoi-San Leaders in Parliament. Ramaphosa urges traditional leaders to facilitate a smooth vaccination process. He highlights the measures aim to protect livestock, restore beef trade, and support economic growth for rural communities:

# The City of Cape Town says it is not experiencing a drought, but the window to avoid water restrictions later this year is narrowing. Dam levels are currently at just over 55-percent, around 19-percent lower than a year ago. Mayoral committee member for Water and Sanitation, Zahid Badroodien, says based on the current usage trend, dam storage could drop as low as 40-percent by May if this year’s rainfall is average:

# Rugby: Last year’s captain of Paarl Gimnasium’s first team and SA Schools, Markus Muller, is one of 11 uncapped players invited to Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus’s first national alignment camp of the year. The centre is currently contracted to the Stormers, where he received high praise from Bok flyhalf Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu. Another member of last year’s national under-18 team, Kai Pratt of the Sharks, is also among the 49 players attending next week’s camp in Cape Town, along with last year’s captain of the Junior Boks, Riley Norton.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 15-rand-88-cents and the euro at 18-rand-74-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-50-cents and Bitcoin trades at 68-thousand-253-dollars. Gold sells at five-thousand-172-dollars-13-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 69-dollars-83-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….