News 07:00

BULLETIN 2 February 7 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The DA says minister Ramokgopa has failed to implement the Energy Action Plan
# Ukraine’s president welcomes new funding of 929-billion-rand by the European Union
# And motorsport, Mercedes confirms it will part ways with Lewis Hamilton

# The DA says it is clear that the implementation of the Energy Action Plan by the Electricity minister, Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, has dismally failed. The plan was launched by president Cyril Ramaphosa in July 2022, as a roadmap to end load-shedding and promote the long-term sustainability of electricity supply in South Africa. The DA’s, Samantha Graham-Maré, says Ramokgopa has failed to improve the performance of Eskom’s power generation fleet and has overseen the rapid decline of the Energy Availability Factor:

# ActionSA has submitted comments on the immigration white paper. The party wants specific details on what it achieves. The white paper on citizenship, immigration, and refuge protection was introduced to overhaul the migration system. All stakeholders were invited to comment on the documents. ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba says the document fails to propose appropriate measures to address the issue: 

# Gauteng Education MEC, Matome Chiloane, has expressed sadness over the death of a Grade six learner from Modiselle Primary School in Ga-Rankuwa, north-west of Pretoria. It is alleged that the learner fell from the scholar bus and the rear wheels went over him, resulting in him losing his life. The MEC’s spokesperson, Xolani Mkhwemte, says this tragic incident occurred yesterday afternoon as learners were being transported home after school:

# Trade union Solidarity has issued a ten-day ultimatum to North West University to revoke directives allegedly promoting racial discrimination. The directives, revealed by the union, require 80-percent of appointments to be exclusively black, raising concerns about the systematic removal of white employees. The university is urged to explain and rectify these practices. Solidarity’s deputy CEO, Anton van der Bijl, describes the policy as appalling and blatant racism. The university faces widespread criticism for its alleged discriminatory bonus system tied to racial demographics.

# Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has welcomed the 929-billion-rand aid package agreed by all 27 European Union leaders. The funds for Ukraine had been blocked since December last year after Hungary’s prime minister, Viktor Orban, had vetoed the deal at a previous summit. The four-year package is designed to keep Ukraine’s economy afloat, with cash for hospitals, schools, and civil servants’ wages and pensions, amidst the war with Russia. Zelenskyy says the funding will strengthen the country’s long-term economic and financial stability.

# Motorsport: Mercedes has confirmed that seven-time Formula One champion, Lewis Hamilton, will leave the team at the end of the season to join Ferrari. He activated a release option in the contract he signed last August. The Briton has raced for the Silver Arrows since the 2013 season and has won six of his seven world titles with the team. Hamilton says leaving was one of the hardest decisions, but the time is right to take on a new challenge. He will join Ferrari on a multi-year deal from next season.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-56-cents and the euro at 20-rand-19-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-67-cents and Bitcoin trades at 43-thousand-49-dollars-6-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-52-dollars-22-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 79-dollars-19-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….