News 07:00

BULLETIN 8 February 7 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Cosatu anticipates bold measures in the State of the Nation address
# The Special Investigating Unit recovers over 700-million-rand in its NSFAS investigation
# And, the UN chief warns the world is entering an age of chaos

# Union federation Cosatu calls for concrete measures to stimulate the economy, create jobs, and address persistent socio-economic challenges when president Cyril Ramaphosa delivers his State of the Nation address this evening. It urges the government to match progressive objectives with tangible actions, resources, clear time frames, and accountability for effective delivery. Cosatu’s Matthew Parks says workers are eagerly awaiting decisive actions from the government to tackle pressing concerns such as unemployment, inequality, and the aftermath of state capture:

Meanwhile, AfriForum criticises Ramaphosa’s administration and points to unfulfilled promises from last year. It says persistent issues such as prolonged load-shedding, soaring unemployment rates, escalating poverty, and a rising cost of living remain unaddressed. They propose privatising Eskom, reforming education, reducing state intervention, and empowering communities to combat crime and enhance service delivery. AfriForum’s Ernst van Zyl advocates for a community-based approach to effective problem-solving and decentralisation:

# The Special Investigating Unit says it has so far recovered more than 700-million-rand in its investigation of the National Student Financial Aid Scheme. This is from unallocated funds due to poor control systems and the scheme’s lack of reconciliation processes. The SIU says its investigations revealed that the scheme failed to implement controls to ensure an annual reconciliation between funds disbursed to institutions and allocating those funds to students. It also signed acknowledgements of debt agreements of 49-million-rand with students and institutions, that benefitted fraudulently from NSFAS.

# The IFP in Kwa-Zulu-Natal says it is shocked that yet another of its councillors has been murdered. According to the police, a Nongoma ward councillor was ambushed along the R618 in Mtubatuba while attending to a vehicle breakdown yesterday afternoon. A group of armed men stopped next to his vehicle and shot him multiple times. The suspects then fired shots at a passing scholar transport taxi, killing one learner and wounding two others. The IFP says it is deeply concerning that political assassinations continue unabated in the province.

# United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres, has warned that the world is entering an age of chaos, with a deeply divided UN Security Council, unable to address critical issues such as the Israel-Hamas war. He presented his priorities for the year in the General Assembly. Guterres says in today’s troubled world, building peace is a conscious, bold, and even radical act, which is humanity’s greatest responsibility:

# Tennis: Former world number one Simona Halep is fighting for her career in the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland. The 32-year-old Romanian was provisionally suspended in October 2022 after a positive drug test conducted during the US Open. The two-time Grand Slam champion was charged with another doping offence last year. Halep vehemently denies the charges, blaming contaminated licensed supplements for her positive test. The hearing will continue until tomorrow, and it’s unclear when a ruling may be announced.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-87-cents and the euro at 20-rand-35-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-85-cents and Bitcoin trades at 44-thousand-528-dollars-93-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-36-dollars-78-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 79-dollars-47-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….