News 07:00

BULLETIN 17 June 7 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The DA leader appeals to young people to register to vote
# The Land Bank says youth participation is essential to the future of agriculture
# And rugby: Five uncapped players are included in the Springbok squad for the Barbarians clash

# DA leader Geordin Hill-Lewis has appealed to all young people to register to build a South Africa that works for everyone. He addressed the party’s Rock the Registration Youth Day Rally in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, yesterday. The IEC will be holding a voter registration this weekend in preparation for the local government elections in November. Hill-Lewis stated that young people have changed the course of this country before, and that is the spirit needed again today:

Meanwhile, EFF leader Julius Malema has criticised the government of national unity, accusing it of failing to address the country’s youth unemployment crisis. He addressed supporters during the party’s Youth Day Rally at the Union Buildings in Pretoria yesterday. Malema argued that government resources should be directed towards ensuring every child has access to education without financial barriers. He reiterated the EFF’s call for free education:

# The Land Bank is calling for renewed focus on removing the barriers that prevent young South Africans from participating meaningfully in the agriculture sector. The country’s official unemployment rate for young people aged between 15 and 34 currently sits above 45-percent. Land Bank acting CEO Jabu Mphambo says young people continue to enter the farming industry at far lower rates than required to secure the future of national food production and rural development. He says the sector cannot thrive without the energy, innovation and ambition of young people.

# TV presenter and rapper Molemo “Jub Jub” Maarohanye has been released on five-thousand-rand bail, after the Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg granted an urgent application yesterday. The 45-year-old was arrested over the weekend after he allegedly fired shots and kidnapped an e-hailing driver in Edenvale on the East Rand, accusing him of having a relationship with his girlfriend. Maarohanye is facing charges of kidnapping, unlawful discharge of a firearm, and defeating the ends of justice. The National Prosecuting Authority says he will appear in the Germiston Magistrate’s Court today.

# The United Nations has stressed the urgent need to open an aid corridor to transit the choked-off Strait of Hormuz and prevent a global hunger crisis. This comes as the US and Iran have agreed to a deal that will allow the reopening of the Strait, which normally transports about 20-percent of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas. UN Human Rights chief, Volker Türk, says the last months have shown that the big differences in the Middle East cannot be resolved by military means:

# Rugby: Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus has included five uncapped players in the 23-man squad to face the Barbarians in Gqeberha on Saturday. Junior Bok captain Riley Norton and Carlu Sadie are in the starting lineup, while the uncapped players among the replacements are JJ Kotze, Paul de Villiers, and Vusi Moyo. Faf de Klerk, who has not featured for the Boks since their win over Georgia in 2025, is on the bench. Experienced players, including captain Siya Kolisi, Cheslin Kolbe, and Franco Mostert, are also in the squad.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-17-cents and the euro at 18-rand-78-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-72-cents and Bitcoin trades at 65-thousand-540-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-341-dollars-61-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 79-dollars-1-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….