News 06:00

BULLETIN 12 February 6 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# President Ramaphosa says offender rehabilitation will curb crime
# Soft water restrictions will be imposed in parts of the country
# And, tropical cyclone Gezani slams into Madagascar

# President Cyril Ramaphosa says tackling crime in South Africa requires honest discussions on offender rehabilitation and reintegration. Speaking at the launch of the Nelson Mandela Rules Training Academy, in the Western Cape, he noted that over 18-thousand ex-offenders on parole re-offended in the past three years. He stressed the need to support ex-offenders and underscored that the Academy aims to break the cycle of crime and ensure successful reintegration into communities:

# United for Change is calling on president Cyril Ramaphosa to prioritise collapsing municipalities in today’s State of the Nation Address. The coalition, made up of RISE Mzansi, GOOD Party, and Build One South Africa, says dysfunctional local governments are undermining service delivery and economic growth. It wants urgent reforms, stronger law enforcement coordination, and action against corruption. Spokesperson Mabine Seabe emphasised that rebuilding local government is critical:

# Deputy minister of Water and Sanitation, David Mahlobo, says there will be soft water restrictions imposed in parts of the country. This comes as water systems are under pressure. He conducted an oversight visit to Emmarentia, Johannesburg, yesterday, where residents staged a protest over ongoing water outages. Mahlobo says the soft water restrictions will affect Johannesburg, Tshwane, Ekurhuleni and parts of Mpumalanga and North West:

# Independent Police Investigative Directorate acting national head of investigations, Thuso Keefelakae, has told the Madlanga Commission has heard that suspended Ekurhuleni Metro Police deputy chief Julius Mkhwanazi could soon face prosecution. Keefelakae confirmed Mkhwanazi has been referred regarding the murder case of Emmanuel Mbense and the controversial blue lights matter. A decision is expected before the month-end. IPID also cited an eleven-thousand-case backlog due to limited investigators in Ekurhuleni.

# Tropical cyclone Gezani slammed into Madagascar’s eastern coastline, killing 31 people in the Indian Ocean island nation’s second-largest city, as walls of wind and rain left a trail of devastation.  Officials said on Wednesday, 19 people were injured and nearly one-thousand-500 residents evacuated in the port city of Toamasina. Gezani hit the country 10 days after tropical cyclone Fytia killed 14 and displaced over 31-thousand people. At its peak, Gezani unleashed wind gusts surging to nearly 270 kilometres per hour, powerful enough to rip metal sheeting from rooftops and uproot large trees.

# Rugby: The Stormers have ensured their fly-half depth for the next few years with Jurie Matthee extending his contract until 2029. He is vying for the position with Springbok number ten Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Bok fullback Damian Willemse, who can also play in the position. Twenty-five-year-old Matthee joined the Cape team in 2023 and has since proved himself as a match-winner. Director of rugby John Dobson says he is respected by his teammates as well as the opposition, and the Stormers are delighted to keep him long-term.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 15-rand-86-cents and the euro at 18-rand-83-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-61-cents and Bitcoin trades at 67-thousand-478-dollars. Gold sells at five-thousand-84-dollars-75-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 69-dollars-17-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….