News 08:00

BULLETIN 26 April 8 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The GOOD Party says the Multi-Party Charter’s social relief framework is insulting 
# Solidarity criticises Lesufi for his comments on NHI 
# And, the Supreme Court is unlikely to grant Trump’s request for absolute immunity from prosecution

# The GOOD Party says the DA-led Multi-Party Charter’s social relief framework is a set of pie-in-the-sky promises. The charter says the framework secures the socioeconomic development needed to break the cycle of poverty, inequality and hunger. The GOOD Party’s secretary-general, Brett Herron, says the framework, which contains 30 promises, is not grounded in any real commitment to addressing poverty:

# Solidarity has slammed Gauteng premier Panyaza Lesufi’s bold promises related to the National Health Insurance scheme. Campaigning in Diepsloot, Johannesburg, earlier this week, the premier promised that anyone who votes for the ANC will be able to walk into any private healthcare facility and get medical assistance for free. Solidarity’s, Theuns du Buisson, says Lesufi’s comments cannot just be laughed off as mere election talk, as they can have serious consequences:

# The US Supreme Court has expressed scepticism toward former president Donald Trump’s broad argument that he should be granted absolute immunity from criminal prosecution. Trump is charged with four criminal counts over his efforts to overturn the 2020 election results. The former president claims he was immune from all criminal charges for acts he said fell within his duties as president. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson says she is deeply concerned that granting immunity would encourage future presidents to commit crimes and use their office as a shield.

# Tennis: Five-time champion Rafael Nadal is through to the second round of the Madrid Open. The Spaniard, who plans to retire at the end of the season, defeated 16-year-old American wild card Darwin Blanch, 6-1, 6-0. Nadal will play Australian Alex de Minaur next, who beat him in the second round of the Barcelona Open last week. Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime rallied past Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka, 4-6, 6-1, 6-4. Nadal says playing in Madrid for the last time is emotional:

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 19-rand-3-cents and the euro at 20-rand-41-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-80-cents and Bitcoin trades at 64-thousand-321-dollars-60-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-332-dollars-92-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 87-dollars-97-cents a barrel.

# And finally, authorities in Namibia have condemned three male tourists who posed naked at one of the country’s top attractions, the Big Daddy dune in the Namib desert. Visitors and the Federation of Namibian Tourism Associations have called for action against the tourists, stating that such behaviour risks attracting tourists and tarnishes the country’s image. Reports suggest the tourists may face being blacklisted from entering any of Namibia’s parks.

Stay tuned for more news………….