News 14:00

BULLETIN 14 April 2 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The former Hawks boss in KwaZulu-Natal withdraws from testifying before the Nkabinde Inquiry
# Cosatu demands justice after an Emfuleni whistleblower’s brutal murder
# And rugby: The Crusaders are forced to ditch a decades-old tradition before home games

# Former KwaZulu-Natal Hawks boss Johan Booysen has withdrawn from testifying at the Nkabinde inquiry. He had been expected to give key evidence relating to the Cato Manor unit and prosecutorial decisions under scrutiny. The inquiry is examining the National Prosecuting Authority’s racketeering charges against Booysen and the unit, as well as South Gauteng Director of Public Prosecutions Andrew Chauke’s handling of the case and his decision not to prosecute former Crime Intelligence head, Richard Mdluli.

# Union federation Cosatu has expressed outrage over the murder of an Emfuleni municipal worker in Gauteng, believed to have been killed after exposing alleged corruption. Martha Rantsofu had reported irregularities involving municipal accounts and had opened a case with the Hawks. Cosatu’s Zanele Sabela calls on law enforcement to swiftly arrest and prosecute those responsible, and to seize assets linked to the alleged corruption:

# The Freedom Front Plus has asked minister of Basic Education, Siviwe Gwarube, for an extension of 14-days to the deadline for public participation on proposed changes to the History curriculum. The department is considering a shift from a Eurocentric towards a more Afrocentric approach, with greater focus on African empires, oral histories and liberation movements. Spokesperson Wynand Boshoff says the voluminous documents on which comment is invited, require thorough examination:

Moving abroad:

# Germany’s Development Ministry says the country will provide a further 385-million-rand to Sudan this year. This comes ahead of today’s international ​aid conference in Berlin, aimed at gathering over 16.5-billion-rand ​in funding commitments. The three-year-long war between the Sudanese army and the ⁠paramilitary Rapid Support Forces has caused widespread ​hunger and displaced millions of people amid one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises. The conference ​aims at keeping attention on Sudan amid wars in Ukraine and Iran, whose effects are felt more acutely by European governments.

# Rugby: New Zealand outfit the Crusaders were forced to scrap their decades-old horse parade before home games in Christchurch because of safety concerns. Horses draped in the team’s red-and-black gear trotted around Rugby League Park and Lancaster Park before games for the past 30-years. But the infrastructure at the Crusaders’ new home, the Te Kaha Stadium, isn’t compatible with the animals, leading to the very difficult decision to ditch the parade. The riding group’s spokesperson, Mark Donald, say they are incredible disappointed, but understands the rationale.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-41-cents and the euro at 19-rand-33-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-23-cents and Bitcoin trades at 73-thousand-922-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-795-dollars-14-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 93-dollars-87-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….