News 08:00

BULLETIN 28 February 8 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Minister Modise denies reports that she has resigned to join the MK party
# The EFF says the nomination of Mandisa Maya as the next chief justice is long overdue
# And soccer: Banyana Banyana beat Tanzania to advance to the final Olympic qualifier round 

# Minister of Defence and Military Veterans, Thandi Modise, has refuted reports that she has resigned, describing the claims as fake and nonsensical. An article by Opera News Hub, claims that Modise has left her position in cabinet and resigned from the ANC to join the newly-formed uMkhonto we Sizwe Party of former president Jacob Zuma. Modise says she views these reports as barbaric acts of wedge drivers, who are hell-bent on undermining the unity of the ANC and creating instability in government:

# The EFF has welcomed president Cyril Ramaphosa’s nomination of deputy chief justice Mandisa Maya as the country’s next chief justice, saying this is long overdue. The position of chief justice will become vacant on August 31st when justice Raymond Zondo’s term ends. The EFF says it firmly believes that Maya should have been appointed immediately upon the conclusion of former chief justice Mogoeng Mogoeng’s term. It adds that the delay, coupled with the appointment of Zondo, raises serious questions.

# Grain South Africa has issued a warning about the significant economic challenges faced by summer grain production regions due to drought conditions. CEO Tobias Doyer says extreme heat and dryness have led to faster-than-expected deterioration of the harvest. Challenges faced by irrigated maize due to load-shedding and heat, along with excessive rain in winter grain production areas, have resulted in yield losses. Doyer emphasises the need for support systems to aid recovery.

# Officials from Israel, Hamas, and Qatar, say there are still differences that remain before a possible ceasefire deal can be reached. This comes after US president Joe Biden claimed that a temporary ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas conflict could be reached by next week Monday. The death toll in Gaza is approaching 30-thousand. Qatar Foreign Ministry’s spokesperson, Majed Al-Ansari, says they are hoping an agreement can be reached before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan begins in two weeks:

# Soccer: Banyana Banyana defeated Tanzania one-nil in the second leg of the Paris Olympic Games qualifiers at the Mbombela Stadium in Mpumalanga. Thembi Kgatlana’s goal ensured that South Africa beat Tanzania four-nil on aggregate after demolishing them three-nil in Dar es Salaam in the first leg last Friday. The reigning women’s African champions will face Nigeria in the last round of Olympic qualifiers. Coach, Desiree Ellis, says she is overall happy with their performance:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 19-rand-11-cents and the euro at 20-rand-71-cents. One British pound costs 24-rand-22-cents and Bitcoin trades at 56-thousand-920-dollars-17-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-31-dollars-60-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 82-dollars-35-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….