News 07:00

BULLETIN 14 August 7 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Paul Mashatile says gender equality is fundamental to democracy
# The MK Party takes its challenge of Ramaphosa’s MChunu decision to the High Court
# And AfriForum vows to continue its fight for private fire services’ rights

# Deputy president Paul Mashatile has called for the prioritisation of the empowerment of women to promote economic growth and social equality. He addressed the inaugural P20 Women’s Parliament of the seventh administration. South Africa holds the second position among G20 nations regarding female representation, with women constituting 42-percent of the members in Parliament. Mashatile says true democracy can only flourish when all individuals are treated with dignity and respect and have access to equal opportunities:

# The MK Party has filed an urgent application in the Gauteng High Court to overturn president Cyril Ramaphosa’s decision to place Police minister Senzo Mchunu on leave of absence, and appoint professor Firoz Cachalia as acting minister. This comes after the Constitutional Court refused the party direct access in July, citing that the matter did not fall within its exclusive jurisdiction. The party is also challenging Ramaphosa’s decision to establish the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry into alleged corruption, collusion, and political interference within the police service.

# The trial in the murder case of rapper Kiernan ‘AKA’ Forbes and his friend and businessman, Tebello Motsoane, will be heard in July next year. The pair were shot and killed in Durban’s popular Florida Road in February 2023. Five men are accused of conspiracy to commit murder, two counts of murder, as well as firearms and ammunition-related charges. The KwaZulu-Natal National Prosecuting Authority’s spokesperson, Natasha Ramkisson-Kara, says on the 19th of July, the judge will certify the matter trial-ready:

# AfriForum says it will continue to support private firefighting services in Tshwane. This follows a ruling by the High Court in Pretoria ordering the city to pay legal costs after bungling their case against the Sinoville Firefighting Association. The court criticised the city for acting without proper authority to ban private firefighting services. AfriForum’s Tarien Cooks says the funds will be used to strengthen private firefighting capacity, while the main legal battle over private firefighting continues:

# Russia announced curbs on calls on the WhatsApp and Telegram messenger apps. A government watchdog says she messenger apps have become the main voice services used for fraud and extortion, and for involving Russian citizens in subversive and terrorist activities. Russian security services have frequently claimed that Ukraine was using Telegram to recruit people or commit sabotage acts in Russia. Moscow wants the messengers to provide access to data by request from law enforcement, not only for fraud probes but also for investigating activities that Russia describes as terrorist ones.

# Tennis: Seven-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams has received a wildcard into the US Open. The 45-year-old American returned to action last month at the Washington Open, playing her first match in 16 months. Five other Americans have also been granted wildcards into the women’s singles main draw, as well as France’s Caroline Garcia and Australian Talia Gibson. Meanwhile, NextGenATP star Nishesh Basavareddy is among six Americans who have received wildcards into the men’s singles draw. They are joined by France’s Valentin Royer and Australia’s Tristan Schoolkate.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-47-cents and the euro at 20-rand-47-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-75-cents and Bitcoin trades at 123-thousand-571-dollar. Gold sells at three-thousand-367-dollars-89-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 65-dollars-54-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….