NEWSFLASH NEWS AGENCY 5 February 7 am

Good morning,

In this bulletin:

# Loadshedding has been reduced to stage one
# Raymond Zondo says South Africa is plagued by high levels of corruption
# And, the Winter Olympic Games get going in Beijing

# Eskom was able to reduce loadshedding to stage one from nine o’clock last night. This came as the utility noted some good progress in recovering generating capacity. Spokesperson Sikonathi Mantshantsha says they hope reduced weekend demand will also have a further impact in mitigating the effects of blackouts. He urges the public to continue to use electricity sparingly:

Play sound: ENG-SikonathiMantshantsha

# South Africa has been described as a country with a huge corruption problem. This is according to acting chief justice Raymond Zondo. He was speaking in Sandton during his interview for the chief justice position:

Play sound: ENG Zondo Corruption

Zondo says he knew he would make enemies during the commission process:

Play sound: ENG Zondo corruption 2

# Parliament has welcomed the decision of the Constitutional Court to allow for the impeachment process against public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane to go ahaed. This comes after former speaker Thandi Modise had appointed a panel chaired by retired Constitutional Court judge Bess Nkabinde to determine if there was a prima facie case against Mkhwebane. In a statement, Parliament says current speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula appreciates the clarification and guidance provided by the Constitutional Court which removes any hurdle to the continuation of the process.

# Pressure is mounting on British prime minister Boris Johnson after a fifth member of his personnel resigned in the wake of so-called Partygate. This follows the emergence of proof that employees held several social gatherings in 10 Downing Street in contravention of the country’s strict lockdown measures. Johnson himself attended some of the parties. The latest aide to quit within 24 hours is a member of the office’s policy unit, Elena Narozanski. The others are the chief of staff, the principal private secretary and two key advisors.

# And, Olympics: The 2022 Winter Games are in full swing in Beijing following yesterday’s opening ceremony in the Chinese capital. The highlight was when the Olympic torch was placed in the centre of a giant snowflake that illuminated the cauldron. The president of the International Olympic Committee, Tomas Bach, said during the event one of the missions of the Games was to unite humankind in all its diversity. He asked the world’s political authorities to give peace a chance. A total of about three-thousand athletes from 91 countries are participating in the Games.

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