News 17:00

BULLETIN 20 April 5 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Cosatu welcomes the increase in the Basic Conditions of Employment annual income threshold
# The suspended Tshwane CFO admits sharing tender information with Fanni Nkosi
# And rugby: World Rugby’s chairperson says the US is a challenging market

# Union federation Cosatu has welcomed this year’s increase in the Basic Conditions of Employment annual income threshold. From next month, the new annual earnings threshold will be 269-thousand-601-rand, excluding certain deductions and employer contributions. Cosatu’s Matthew Parks says key labour rights, protections and benefits linked to the threshold include the right to overtime pay and automatic access to the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration:

# Suspended Tshwane chief financial officer Gareth Mnisi has revealed to the Madlanga Commission that he shared information on tender processes with suspended SAPS sergeant Fannie Nkosi, however, insists it was not confidential. Commissioner Sandile Khumalo challenged his claim, arguing the messages contained sensitive municipal information, raising questions about procurement integrity and oversight. Mnisi admitted sending updates on purchase orders and payments linked to multimillion-rand invoices:

# Ekurhuleni mayor Nkosindiphile Xhakaza has appointed the head of the Metro’s Department of Strategy and Corporate Planning, Tsholofelo Koopedi, as acting city manager, following the arrest of Kagiso Lerutla at OR Tambo International Airport. He is expected in court alongside suspended Ekurhuleni Metro Police deputy chief Julius Mkhwanazi who was also arrested over the weekend. They face fraud, corruption, and justice-related charges linked to testimonies at the Madlanga Commission. The mayor says Koopedi will assume full administrative powers in the interim.

# Israel told residents of south Lebanon to stay out of a belt of territory running the length of the border and not to approach the area of the Litani River. The warning entrenches Israel’s grip ‌over southern Lebanon despite a ceasefire in the war with Hezbollah. The US-mediated, 10-day ceasefire took effect on Thursday and largely halted the war between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah but remains fragile. Residents of the Hezbollah-controlled southern suburbs of Beirut were warned not to return to their homes yet because of the risk of Israeli attacks.

# Rugby: World Rugby chairperson Brett Robinson has acknowledged the US is a challenging market ahead of the 2031 men’s World Cup and the women’s event in 2033. There are reportedly questions over how the US would deliver the tournaments on a commercial level, given the state of the sport in the country. As part of efforts to spark excitement towards 2031, South Africa and New Zealand will clash in Baltimore in September this year. Robinson says it’s all about building momentum and connection with the fans.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-35-cents against the rand and the euro at 19-rand-23-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-10-cents and Bitcoin trades at 75-thousand-241-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-806-dollars-84-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 91-dollars-15-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….