News 15:00

BULLETIN 10 March 3 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Electoral Commission announces a voter registration weekend before the local government elections
# NERSA approves Eskom’s tariff increases for 2026/27
# And rugby: Scotland faces Ireland with six players on the injury list

# The Electoral Commission has announced a voter registration weekend for this year’s local government elections will take place on June 20 and 21. IEC chief electoral official Sy Mamabolo says preparations for the elections are progressing steadily. He urges eligible South Africans to register where they live, noting the registration weekend aims to improve access and increase voter participation ahead of the polls:

# Energy regulator NERSA approved Eskom’s retail tariffs and structural adjustment application for the 2026/27 financial year. Eskom’s direct customers will face an average increase of 8.76-percent from 1 April, while municipalities buying electricity from Eskom will see a 9.01-percent increase from 1 July. NERSA spokesperson Charles Hlebela says the decision followed stakeholder consultations and complies with regulatory frameworks, ensuring Eskom recovers its allowed revenue while promoting transparency in electricity pricing.

# Cape Town mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis calls on passenger rail agency Prasa to investigate and remove alleged gang links from its Central Line contracts. This follows an AmaBhungane report implicating gang boss Ralph Stanfield and his wife Nicole Johnson in multi-million-rand reconstruction projects. Hill-Lewis urges the auditing of contract flows to gang-linked companies. He calls on police to probe the alleged promotion of Stanfield-linked enterprises during official meetings:

# Gauteng Finance MEC Lebogang Maile says the province would continue prioritise infrastructure growth in the 2026/27 budget, presented today. He highlighted plans to ensure roads, schools, and health facilities receive adequate funding to meet growing demand. Maile emphasised all projects would be implemented with accountability, transparency, and compliance in mind, aiming to improve service delivery. He adds support for economic growth, and enhances the quality of life for residents across the province:

# Rugby: Scotland’s head coach, Gregor Townsend, has big decisions to make before Saturday’s last-round Six Nations match against Ireland in Dublin, with six players unavailable through injury. The Scots suddenly have a chance of clinching the championship after unexpectedly beating defending champion and log leader France last weekend. Among the injury casualties are the team’s most prolific try-scorer, South African-born winger Duhan van der Merwe, and locks Gregor Brown and Scott Cummings.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-29-cents and the euro at 18-rand-96-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-90-cents and Bitcoin trades at 70-thousand-733-dollars. Gold sells at five-thousand-187-dollars-59-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 88-dollars-94-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….