News 18:00

BULLETIN 23 April 6 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Cyril Ramaphosa places Fannie Masemola on precautionary suspension
# The ACDP calls for the suspension of Lerutla amid bail application
# And, rugby: the Crusaders inaugurate their new permanent rugby stadium with a match against the Waratahs

# President Cyril Ramaphosa has placed national police commissioner Fannie Masemola on precautionary suspension following charges linked to alleged violations of the Public Finance Management Act. The police’s chief financial officer, Puleng Dimpane, has been appointed as acting national commissioner. Ramaphosa says the government remains focused on strengthening law enforcement, fighting organised crime and corruption, and restoring public trust in policing:

# The African Christian Democratic Party has called for suspension of Ekurhuleni City Manager Kagiso Lerutla as he applies for bail in the Boksburg Magistrate’s Court today, facing Schedule 5 offences. ACDP Ekurhuleni councillor, Tambo Mokoena, says it opposed Kagiso Lerutla’s appointment as City Manager in October last year, indicating that his previous appointment as Ekurhuleni chief financial officer was unlawful. He calls for city leaders to be ethical and accountable:

# The Pentagon announced the US Navy Secretary John Phelan is leaving the Trump administration with immediate effect. Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a social media post the Navy Undersecretary Hung Cao will serve on an acting basis in the role, which is largely administrative. Phelan is the latest high-ranking military leader to leave the administration in recent months. His departure comes amid the US-Israel war with Iran and the continued US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. The Navy has not provided a reason.

# Rugby: New Zealand team, the Crusaders, will inaugurate their new stadium in Christchurch with a Super Rugby Pacific match against the Waratahs tomorrow. The Te Kaha stadium was built at a cost of 6.6-billion-rand to replace Lancaster Park, which was severely damaged during an earthquake in 2011. The Crusaders were without a permanent home ground since then. The new stadium has a full-covered roof and can seat 25-thousand spectators. A sell-out crowd is expected.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-47-cents against the rand and the euro at 19-rand-29-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-26-cents and Bitcoin trades at 78-thousand-and-5-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-731-dollars-22-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 98-dollars-10-cents a barrel.

# And finally, the Western Cape MEC for Cultural Affairs and Sport Ricardo Mackenzie has urged communities to embrace reading as World Book Day is marked today. The province has launched the On-Wednesdays-We-Read campaign to promote a culture of reading beyond classrooms. Officials say regular reading improves language, cognitive skills and mental wellbeing. He has encouraged residents, schools and organisations to participate weekly, helping to build a stronger reading culture across communities and supporting long-term educational and economic development.

Stay tuned for more news………….