News 06:00

BULLETIN 5 May 6 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Minister Motshekga says the Southern African Development Community financed the DRC mission
# Paul Mashatile will today engage with business leaders on the transformation fund
# And a woman will appear in court today for allegedly burning down Kelly Smith’s home

# Defence and Military Veterans minister, Angie Motshekga, says the financing of the Southern African Development Community Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo came from the 16 countries that make up SADC. The South African National Defence Force has begun the phased withdrawal of troops from the DRC. The estimated cost of the mission is around three-billion-rand. Motshekga says they are still waiting on SADC to state what South Africa’s contribution will be towards the three-billion-rand:

Meanwhile, the chief of the South African National Defence Force, Rudzani Maphwanya, says the troop withdrawal from the Democratic Republic of Congo is a strategic political move to promote peace and stability. The withdrawal follows an agreement between the DRC government and M23 rebels. He confirmed that the second withdrawal phase has begun, with 57 members of phase one already at the assembly area in Tanzania:

# Deputy president Paul Mashatile will attend a business breakfast today focused on the Transformation Fund at Freedom Park Heritage Site and Museum in Pretoria. Hosted by Trade, Industry, and Competition minister Parks Tau and the National Empowerment Fund, the event promotes economic inclusion through support for black-owned businesses. The Fund seeks to provide financial and non-financial aid to Small, Medium, and Micro Enterprises as well as cooperatives, leveraging B-BBEE laws. It will mobilise public and private resources for meaningful black economic participation.

# Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities deputy minister Steve Letsike has urged Parliament to use its powers to hold podcasters accountable for online gender-based violence. This follows public outcry over Podcast and Chill host MacG’s comments about media personality, Minnie Dlamini. Letsike called on Communication minister Solly Malatsi to implement content regulations and policies to stop harmful content in digital spaces:

# A 27-year-old woman will appear in the Vredenburg Magistrate Court facing a charge of arson for allegedly setting fire to the Middelpos home of Kelly Smith, in Saldanha Bay. The arson occurred shortly after Smith’s conviction alongside her boyfriend and a friend of kidnapping and trafficking Joslin. Police have registered a case of arson and are continuing their investigation. The trio is remanded in custody ahead of sentencing proceedings.

# Motorsport: The 15th Simola Hillclimb event in the Western Cape turned into a tragedy on Sunday morning when seasoned competitor Pieter Joubert died during an accident. The accident occurred during his first run on the second day. According to the event organisers, Knysna Speed Festival, Joubert lost control of his vehicle while travelling on the high-speed uphill section, after a suspected mechanical failure. He was declared dead at the scene, and authorities are conducting a full investigation.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-40-cents and the euro at 20-rand-82-cents. One British pound costs 24-rand-41-cents and Bitcoin trades at 94-thousand-330-dollar-10-cents. Gold sells at three-thousand-243-dollars-98-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 61-dollars-24-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….