News 13:00
BULLETIN 13 March 1 pm
Good afternoon. I am……..
In this bulletin:
# West Coast community protests outside the court as the accused linked to Joslin Smith’s disappearance return
# The Supreme Court reserves judgment on AfriForum’s challenge to the Human Rights Commission
# And cricket: The shocking state of the Pietermaritzburg Oval leads to the moving of a match
# Community members from Saldanha Bay have been gathering outside the Vredenburg Magistrate’s Court since early, as four suspects linked to the disappearance of six-year-old Joslin Smith return to court. Police presence is heightened with a barbed wire barricade as tensions rise among protesters demanding answers about Joslin’s whereabouts since she disappeared on February 19. Among the accused are Joslin’s mother, Kelly Smith, and her boyfriend, Jacquin Appollis, facing charges of trafficking for exploitation and abduction.
# The Supreme Court of Appeal in Bloemfontein has reserved judgment on AfriForum’s arguments regarding the powers of the Human Rights Commission. AfriForum, acting as a friend of the court in a case between AgroData and the commission, suggests that the outcome could affect the enforceability of all its recommendations. The commission argues its recommendations are binding. AfriForum Campaign Official Louis Boshoff disagrees, citing concerns about potential abuse of power.
# National Assembly secretary Masibulele Xaso has cautioned Members of Parliament against abusing freedom of speech. He provided testimony to the Powers and Privileges Committee addressing the incident in June 2022, when EFF members disrupted president Cyril Ramaphosa’s Presidency budget vote speech. The ten EFF MPs are now facing charges of disruptive behaviour and Xaso advised all MPs to act in line with parliamentary rules. He says the speaker reserves the right to ensure order during a sitting and should be allowed to do so:
# Cricket South Africa promised to sought alternative venues after a CSA T20 match had to be moved from the Pietermaritzburg Oval in KwaZulu-Natal due to the shocking state of the outfield. The stadion was apparently not cleaned since it hosted premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube’s state of the province address two weeks ago, and bits of glass were still strewn across the grass. TimesLIVE reports visiting teams had complained about the state of the stadium earlier. The stadium is the home of KwaZulu-Natal Inland in the competition.
# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-68-cents and the euro at 20-rand-41-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-90-cents and Bitcoin trades at 73-thousand-475-dollars-61-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-159-dollars-21-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 82-dollars-71-cents a barrel.
# And finally: The African Reclaimers Organisation has established its own sorting centre for recyclable materials in Selby, Johannesburg. This comes after almost three years of stalled talks with the City of Johannesburg on the integration of informal waste pickers. The organisation’s Recycling With Reclaimers Programme collects from nearly 100 residential areas around the city. The city’s waste management entity, Pikitup, says it is looking at how best they can assist waste pickers with sorting facilities, but budget constraints are a challenge.
Stay tuned for more news………….