News 07:00

BULLETIN 12 February 7 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The minister of Basic Education says she won’t tolerate the politicisation of the BELA Act
# The FF Plus leader says Afrikaners are part of South Africa’s diversity
# And the UN chief says a return to war in Gaza must be avoided at all costs

# Basic Education minister Siviwe Gwarube says she will not tolerate any politicisation of the Basic Education Laws Amendment Act, in a way that distracts learning and teaching. The government is currently finalising the regulations that will go out for public comment and input. She was speaking at the state of the nation address debate in Parliament on Tuesday. Gwarube says the BELA Act’s guidelines and regulations must be implemented in a manner that protects the learner, teacher, and schools:

# Freedom Front Plus leader and Correctional Services minister Pieter Groenewald says Afrikaner rights must be respected while working for a better future for all South Africans. He rejected expropriation without compensation for land reform and called for stronger police action on illegal land occupations. Debating the state of the nation address, Groenewald firmly stated he is here to stay:

# Parliament’s portfolio committee on Higher Education has expressed concern over the ongoing accommodation crisis at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, and the Nelson Mandela University in Gqeberha. Students struggling to find accommodation have been forced to sleep in a student centre, disability hall, or outdoors. Delays in National Student Financial Aid Scheme payments, along with accommodation caps have exacerbated the student housing issue. The committee says the systemic failure to address recurring student accommodation shortages, reflects a broader institutional and governmental neglect of student welfare.

# The DA in Gauteng urges the provincial government to expedite the process of issuing e-hailing permits to help drivers work without fear of harassment. The party called on MEC Kedibone Diale-Tlabela to clarify regulations and introduce temporary measures to address the e-hailing permit backlog causing frustration and protests in Tshwane. The DA’s Evert du Plessis says the system should be fair and transparent, allowing drivers to work legally and without unnecessary obstacles:

# United Nations secretary-general, António Guterres, says the resumption of hostilities in Gaza that will lead to an immense tragedy must be avoided at all costs. Hamas has postponed Saturday’s scheduled release of Israeli hostages in Gaza, blaming what it says are Israeli violations of the ceasefire deal. Three hostages were set to be freed in exchange for more Palestinian prisoners held in Israel. Guterres says both sides must fully abide by their commitments in the ceasefire agreement, and resume serious negotiations for the second phase of the deal.

# Rugby: Six Nations officials put a stop to France’s plan for flyhalf Romain Ntamack to serve part of his ban for his club, Toulouse, this weekend. He was suspended after his red card for foul play against Wales in the first round. Ntamack already missed the loss to England and France hoped he would be available for next weekend’s clash with Italy. But the organisers say his status as a premium player for France means he would not have been available for Toulouse anyway.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-50-cents and the euro at 19-rand-16-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-4-cents and Bitcoin trades at 96-thousand-123-dollar-50-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-899-dollars-82-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 76-dollars-69-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….