News 09:00
BULLETIN 24 November 9 am
Good morning. I am……..
In this bulletin:
# The Public Enterprises committee is calling for proper governance at Eskom
# Tax Justice South Africa is calling on the government to stop the 700-billion-rand crime epidemic
# And, the World Food Programme says 100 food trucks are ready to enter Gaza once the truce starts
# Parliament’s portfolio committee on Public Enterprises says proper governance at Eskom will translate into optimal performance and enable it to meet its mandate of providing electricity. The power utility’s management briefed the committee this week, where it reported a net loss of almost 24-billion-rand for the 2022/2023 year. Municipal debt escalated to 58.5-billion-rand at the end of the financial year. The committee’s chairperson, Khaya Magaxa, warned Eskom that borrowing money to service debt and taking a loan to pay another loan is a clear recipe for disaster.
# Tax Justice South Africa says the country has become a paradise for criminals, while honest citizens suffer. A new report from the World Bank has highlighted the huge toll the country’s high crime rate is taking on the economy. The bank is estimating that crime costs the economy 700-billion-rand a year, undermining South Africa’s growth potential and the welfare of its citizens. Tax Justice SA founder, Yusuf Abramjee, says the government has to do much more to curb crime:
# The DA is pressing the Gauteng Education Department to expedite the placement of learners who applied on time for the 2024 academic year. It says the delayed placements are causing anxiety among parents, who need to plan and budget for the upcoming school year. The DA emphasises the importance of opening the online placement process earlier, suggesting April, to ensure timely completion by October. The DA’s Khume Ramulifho calls for clear communication and timely placement for all applicants before the school year ends next month:
# The United Nations World Food Programme says it has more than 100 trucks with around one-thousand-300 tonnes of food supplies ready to enter Gaza once the temporary truce comes into effect. A four-day ceasefire in Gaza will begin today, which will lead to the release of about 13 hostages held by Hamas in Gaza, as well as 150 Palestinians imprisoned by Israel. WFP’s Abeer Etefa says while the temporary truce is a step forward, only a total ceasefire will allow humanitarian needs in Gaza to be properly met.
# Rugby: Springbok Sevens head coach Sandile Ngcobo will not travel with the team to Dubai for the 2024 Sevens Challenger opener on the ninth and tenth of next month, due to medical reasons. He injured his Achilles in training last week and had to undergo surgery. Assistant coach Philip Snyman will take over the main coaching responsibilities assisted by SA Rugby’s High-Performance Manager for Sevens, Marius Schoeman. Ngcobo says he has faith in Snyman and he will get good support from the senior players in the squad.
# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-82-cents and the euro at 20-rand-53-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-61-cents and Bitcoin trades at 37-thousand-329-dollars-32-cents. Gold sells at one-thousand-992-dollars-46-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 81-dollars18-cents a barrel.
Stay tuned for more news………….