News 17:00

BULLETIN 15 May 5 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Brown Mogotsi’s lawyer retracts claims of protection at the Madlanga Commission
# Cape Town allocates billions for the MyCiTi bus service transport upgrades
# And soccer: Desiree Ellis targets a 2027 FIFA World Cup qualification

# North West businessman Brown Mogotsi’s legal counsel, Nthabiseng Mohomane, has withdrawn allegations that evidence leader Matthew Chaskalson promised Mogotsi protection and indemnity at the Madlanga Commission. Mohomane argued that Mogotsi believed he would avoid adverse findings if he implicated businessman Suleiman Carrim. However, under questioning by commissioner Sesi Baloyi, she conceded that WhatsApp messages and phone records presented contained no evidence of such promises and formally retracted her earlier statement:

# The City of Cape Town has proposed a 4.7-billion-rand operational budget for urban mobility in the new financial year starting July first. More than 1.7-billion-rand will fund the MyCiTi bus service, while 1.9-billion-rand is allocated to road maintenance. Urban Mobility mayoral committee member Rob Quintas says the city also plans major investments in public transport, road upgrades, and accessible walking and cycling infrastructure. Over six-billion-rand has been earmarked for transport infrastructure projects over the next three years.

# Gauteng Environment MEC Ewan Botha has reaffirmed the province’s commitment to tackling illegal dumping and waste burning in Kya Sands. Botha says coordinated enforcement operations launched in October last year led to arrests, fines, impoundments and facility closures. The operations involved SAPS, JMPD, Home Affairs and the City of Johannesburg. Following criticism from some residents, Botha says the department adjusted its methods to focus on long-term impact. He emphasised that renewed illegal dumping has highlighted the need for sustained visible enforcement, with further operations planned.

# Two global food monitors say areas of southern Somalia are at risk of ‌famine, with one district reaching a level of hunger not seen in the country since 2022. One of the world’s most food-insecure nations because of frequent drought, conflict and poverty, Somalia last experienced famine in 2011, when around 250-thousand people died, ​and came close in 2017 and 2022. According to a report by the UN-backed Integrated Food Security ​Phase Classification, more than 37-percent of young children in the Burhakaba District of southern Somalia’s Bay Region suffer from acute malnutrition.

# Soccer: Banyana Banyana coach Desiree Ellis says the team remains focused on qualifying for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil. Preparing for the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations tournament in Morocco from July 25 to August 16, they face Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso and Tanzania in Group B. She told SABC that injuries open opportunities for other players, while the return of Jermaine Seoposenwe boosts the squad:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-67-cents against the rand and the euro at 19-rand-39-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-27-cents and Bitcoin trades at 80-thousand-64-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-543-dollars-88-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 105-dollars-4-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….