News 14:00

BULLETIN 28 May 2 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Nkabinde inquiry concludes public hearings into Andrew Chauke’s fitness to hold office
# The NPA confirms Sibanyoni and his co-accused challenged their arrest warrants
# And rugby: The URC warns players not to try to intimidate referees

# The Nkabinde inquiry has confirmed all public hearings have been completed into the fitness of South Gauteng Director of Public Prosecutions Andrew Chauke to hold office. Final written submissions from evidence leaders and Chauke’s legal team have now been received. The inquiry was launched by president Cyril Ramaphosa in September last year following allegations of misconduct and poor prosecutorial oversight linked to corruption and organised crime cases, including the controversial Cato Manor investigations. The panel is expected to submit its final recommendations before June 30.

# Mpumalanga taxi boss Joe Sibanyoni and Bafana Sindane have filed an urgent application at the High Court in Mbombela to stop the re-enrolment of their extortion case. Their lawyer argues the arrest warrant procedure was incorrect, saying the accused are not fugitives. National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago says the accused appeared in the Delmas Magistrate’s Court today with a different state prosecutor taking over:

# The Western Cape Education Department has released the outcomes of the on-time admissions applications for Grades R, 1 and 8 for 2027. Schools determine the outcome of admissions applications based on their admissions policies. Parents with offers have until 15 June to confirm their choices. MEC David Maynier says they are still very early in the process, appealing to parents for patience and understanding:

Moving abroad:

# At least 16 learners have died and over 70 have been injured when a fire broke out in a dormitory at the Utumishi Girls Academy in Gilgil, Kenya, in the early hours of this morning. The building was housing 220 learners. Police say search and rescue operations are continuing, with the death toll likely to increase. Police commander Masoud Mwinyi says the cause of the blaze is unknown at this stage. Fires are common in Kenyan boarding schools, with some caused by arson and others by electrical faults. 

# Rugby: The United Rugby Championship warned players they will be punished for going overboard when challenging on-field decisions. Teams have complained about certain players, especially from Irish provinces, consistently challenging referees and asking for reviews of potential head contact. The URC’s head of referees, Tappe Henning, says captains are allowed to approach the referee to raise an issue, but the rest of the players cannot shout or challenge decisions on any aspect of the game. The quarterfinals are taking place this weekend.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-37-cents and the euro at 19-rand-2-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-93-cents and Bitcoin trades at 73-thousand-295-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-399-dollars-76-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 93-dollars-95-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….