News: 06:00

BULLETIN 5 June 6 am 

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The ANC dismisses claims of discord within its National Executive Committee
# The floods in KwaZulu-Natal claimed the lives of 11 people with over 100 displaced
# And three former Trump associates are charged with election tampering

# The ANC has firmly dismissed any false information or rumours suggesting discord within its National Executive Committee. It confirms it will be holding a NEC meeting to decide on the constitution of government this week. Consultations with various groups and political parties are underway intending to foster national unity. The party asserts its NEC is united and focused on fulfilling the mandate given by the people to improve the lives of all South Africans. The ANC urges the public to rely on official communications for accurate information.

Meanwhile,  the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse says coalition governments will likely become the norm in South Africa, bringing challenges and opportunities. The organisation states while uncertainty may unsettle, coalitions foster transparency and accountability as parties collaborate and compromise for effective governance. It aims to ensure public funds are used responsibly and corruption is rooted out. OUTA CEO Wayne Duvenage says underperforming ministers should be removed:

# South African Airways has agreed to pay a 5.4-million-rand fine to United States aviation authorities for delayed refunds on unflown tickets during the Covid-19 pandemic. News24 reports the settlement with the US Department of Transportation’s Office of Consumer Protection aims to avoid prolonged litigation. The airline argued it took extraordinary steps to process refunds from 2019 to 2022, paying around 2.2-billion-rand in refunds between April 2021 and March last year. SAA looks to normalise relations with US customers and resume flights to America.

# The KwaZulu-Natal government has confirmed that eleven people including a 16-month-old child have died since the devastating floods hit parts of the province on Monday evening. The heavy rains accompanied by strong winds wreaked havoc in five districts, including the eThekwini Metro, Umzinyathi, and Amajuba Municipalities. Over 100 people have been left displaced. KwaZulu-Natal premier, Nomusa Dube-Ncube, says affected families are receiving humanitarian aid:

# Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul has filed felony forgery charges against three former US president Donald Trump associates for their roles in the Wisconsin 2020 fake electors scheme. The three are Trump’s former attorneys Kenneth Chesebro and Jim Troupis and his aide Mike Roman. They allegedly got a slate of pro-Trump electors to sign paperwork attesting, falsely, that he had won Wisconsin in the 2020 election. The felony crime is punishable by a fine of up to 187-thousand-rand and up to six years in prison.

# Tennis: Novak Djokovic withdrew from the French Open ahead of his quarter-final against Casper Ruud due to a knee injury suffered in the previous round. World number one and 24-time Grand Slam champion Djokovic was due to play Ruud today for a place in the last four. Djokovic defeated Ruud in last year’s final at Roland Garros. The 37-year-old Djokovic had cast doubt over his fitness following Monday’s five-set win over Francisco Cerundolo, admitting he needed anti-inflammatory drugs to get through the match.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-70-cents and the euro at 20-rand-36-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-90-cents and Bitcoin trades at 70-thousand-980-dollars-76-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-328-dollars-12-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 77-dollars-41-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….