News 15:00
BULLETIN 20 March 3 pm
Good afternoon. I am……..
In this bulletin:
# Jacob Zuma’s arms deal corruption pre-trial conference is pushed to May
# Judges Matter welcomes the Constitutional Court’s end of the use of retired judges for its backlog
# And rugby: Boks Eben Etzebeth and Vincent Koch returns for the Sharks this weekend
# Former president Jacob Zuma’s arms deal corruption trial has been postponed to 17 May for a pre-trial conference. Zuma’s lawyer, Dali Mpofu, proposed indefinitely adjourning the trial for case management and to assess counsel availability for the way forward. The delay follows Zuma’s unsuccessful bid to remove prosecutor Billy Downer from the case over alleged bias. Judge Nkosinathi Chili said he was not convinced Zuma had proven keeping Downer as a prosecutor would violate his right to a fair trial:
# Judges Matter has welcomed the Constitutional Court’s decision to cease employing retired justices for leave-to-appeal applications, aiming to address the court’s backlog. Chief Justice Raymond Zondo terminated the programme due to the unavailability of retired judges. Judges Matter coordinator Alison Tilley suggests the employment of experienced lawyers to assist the Constitutional Court justices instead:
# Annual consumer inflation quickened in February, rising to 5.6-percent from 5.3-percent in January and 5.1-percent in December. Product categories that drove the upward momentum include housing and utilities, insurance, food and non-alcoholic beverages, and transport. Statistics SA noted a 10.3-percent month-on-month increase in medical aid premiums, while all types of insurance have increased over the past year. Eggs are 30.7-percent more expensive than a year ago. Annual rice inflation increased further to 25-percent in February. Several products are cheaper than a year ago, including bread flour, rusks, ready-mix flour, and pasta.
# Holidaymakers are warned of heavy traffic on the N3 as the Easter holiday approaches, with increased law enforcement and satellite traffic checkpoints planned. Southbound traffic towards Durban is expected to peak due to school closures today, continuing through the Human Rights Day and Easter Weekend. Northbound traffic may surge on Easter Monday. Roadworks will be minimal to ensure smoother traffic flow. The N3 Toll Concession urges motorists to plan ahead and adopt a risk management approach for safer travel.
# Rugby: The Sharks will be strengthened with the inclusion of two Springboks for Saturday’s United Rugby Championship match against Ulster in Durban. Eben Etzebeth is back after a minor knee operation kept him out for seven weeks, while Vincent Koch will play for the first time this season. The Stormers and the Bulls will hope the Sharks beat the Irish team so they can improve their positions on the log. The Stormers play Edinburgh in Cape Town this weekend, while the Bulls are away to the Dragons in Wales.
# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-87-cents and the euro at 20-rand-46-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-96-cents and Bitcoin trades at 63-thousand-833-dollars-52-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-153-dollars-70-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 86-dollars-63-cents a barrel.
Stay tuned for more news………….