News 07:00

BULLETIN 4 August 7 am

Good morning/Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The SACP general secretary delivers a scathing assessment of the ANC
# Gauteng premier Panyaza Lesufi reshuffles his department heads
# And motorsport: Norris secures a hard-earned victory in the Hungarian Grand Prix

# The SACP says contesting the 2026 local government elections independently is to exercise power on behalf of the working class and unemployed, not to break the tripartite alliance. The party celebrated its 104th anniversary at KwaDlengezwa near Richards Bay in KwaZulu-Natal on Sunday. SACP general secretary, Solly Mapaila, accused the ANC of betraying the trust of its alliance partners and prioritising capital interests. He adds that the ANC keeps making promises without delivering, creating illusions that erode public trust:

# The Border Management Authority commissioner, Michael Masiapato, says a total of 8.55-million passengers were processed entering and leaving South Africa during the first quarter of the 2025/2026 financial year at the country’s ports of entry. He says all travellers entering or departing South Africa are required to possess a valid machine-readable passport. A valid passport must contain at least two completely unused pages, excluding the last page, which must always remain blank:

# Minister of Basic Education, Siviwe Gwarube, has called on all stakeholders across government, civil society, and the private sector to take bold and coordinated action to expand access to quality Early Childhood Development across South Africa, particularly in underserved communities. Gwarube emphasised the urgent need to address systemic inequities that continue to shape the future prospects of South Africa’s children from as early as birth. The minister says two children may be born in the same country, but their chances of success diverge drastically depending on their early years.

# Gauteng premier Panyaza Lesufi has removed or reshuffled several heads of department. This comes after a damning report that revealed approximately 1.8-billion-rand in budget underspending, including missed service delivery performance targets. Some of the appointments include Masabata Mutlaneng and Rufus Mmutlana, who have been named as the new heads of eGovernment and Infrastructure Development, respectively. Four departments have acting HODs while a recruitment process is ongoing. Lesufi says he won’t tolerate underexpenditure and underperformance by departments:

# French president Emmanuel Macron has condemned the videos of Israeli hostages held in Gaza released this weekend. Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad released clips showing captives Rom Braslavski and Evyatar David in a visibly fragile state. They were kidnapped during the 7 October 2023 attack on Israel that triggered the war. Macron says Hamas has shown abject cruelty and unlimited inhumanity by showing the unbearable images of Braslavski and David. They are among 50 hostages that remain in the territory, at least 20 of whom are believed to be alive.

# Motorsport: Lando Norris held off teammate Oscar Piastri to win the Hungarian Grand Prix as McLaren claimed another one-two of the season. Mercedes’ George Russell finished third, while pole-sitter Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc had to settle for fourth, with Fernando Alonso in fifth place for Aston Martin. Norris, who has reduced Piastri’s Drivers’ Championship lead to nine points going into the Formula One summer break, says he still has a lot to work on:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-2-cents and the euro at 20-rand-85-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-92-cents and Bitcoin trades at 114-thousand-695-dollar. Gold sells at three-thousand-352-dollars-46-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 69-dollars-15-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….