News 13:00

BULLETIN 2 June 13 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# A Mpumalanga chief magistrate retires after the controversial Sibanyoni ruling
# OUTA warns tariff hikes cannot be used to cover corruption and mismanagement at municipalities
# And rugby: The Blitzbok Tristan Leyds is nominated for a Sevens award

# The chief magistrate of the Kwaggafontein Magistrate’s Court in Mpumalanga, Tuletu Tonjeni, has retired days after a complaint was lodged to the Magistrate’s Commission over her decision to strike the case against taxi boss Joe Sibanyoni and his co-accused off the roll. She dismissed the extortion and money laundering matter last month after the prosecutor failed to appear. Legal sources say Tonjeni’s retirement means the commission cannot pursue disciplinary action. The National Prosecuting Authority has re-enrolled the case in Delmas, with proceedings set to continue in September.

# The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse says local government reform is making residents pay for municipal failure. The organisation has submitted its final comments on the revised draft white paper on local government. It wants councillors to meet basic competency standards and for political leaders to face consequences for corruption, interference and poor performance. OUTA’s Julius Kleynhans says the white paper is a critical opportunity to fix municipalities ahead of municipal elections:

Moving abroad:

# The director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi, says the 2015 nuclear agreement with Iran is no longer a workable model. Tehran’s nuclear and technological capabilities have significantly advanced since the previous deal was reached. Iran shipped approximately eleven tonnes of low-enriched uranium to Russia in exchange for natural uranium as a key part of the agreement. Grossi told Al Jazeera the next nuclear deal will look differently:

# Rugby: Springbok Sevens star Tristan Leyds has been nominated for the men’s Sevens Player of the Year award, together with Australia’s Henry Hutchison and Fiji’s Vuiviwa Naduvalo. In the men’s Rookie of the Year category, Kele Lasaqa of New Zealand, Australia’s Harry Wilson and Finley Lloyd-Gilmour of Great Britain are nominated. Australia’s Maddison Levi, New Zealand’s Jorja Miller and Ariana Ramsey of the USA are contenders for the women’s Player of the Year. The winners will be crowned after the final World Championship tournament in Bordeaux, France, on Sunday.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-21-cents and the euro at 18-rand-87-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-82-cents and Bitcoin trades at 69-thousand-328-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-528-dollars-47-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 92-dollars-58-cents a barrel.

# And finally: The ANC Youth League says it is honouring the fearless spirit of the youth of 1976 who stood against injustice and fought for a better future. On the 16th it will be the 50th anniversary of the Soweto uprising, when thousands of students demonstrated against Bantu Education and the imposition of Afrikaans in schools. Spokesperson Sindiswa Scheepers says this milestone provides an opportunity for the nation to honour that courageous generation:

Stay tuned for more news………….