News 08:00

BULLETIN 1 July 8 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The DA says it’s ready to take its place in the new Cabinet
# The FF Plus says the Cabinet position is an opportunity to rebuild the country
# And Rise Mzansi is disappointed by an enlarged Cabinet

# The DA says it is proud to rise to the challenge and take its place at the seat of national government for the first time. The party has secured six ministries and six deputy ministers in the new cabinet. These include leader John Steenhuisen as minister of Agriculture, Siviwe Gwarube as Basic Education minister and Leon Schreiber as the minister of Home Affairs. Steenhuisen says they are ready to introduce their track record of governance excellence, zero tolerance for corruption, and pragmatic policymaking:

The Freedom Front Plus said in its reaction it is committed to fulfilling its role in the government of national unity to facilitate stability and progress in the country. Leader Pieter Groenewald is the new minister of Correctional Services. The party says this new post in cabinet gives recognition to the role it has played in South Africa for the past 30 years. Groenewald says the FF Plus’ participation in the executive authority will ensure that the right policies are implemented to create equal opportunities for everyone in the country.

And RISE Mzansi has welcomed the announcement of the new cabinet but it is disappointed by the national executive being enlarged. Cabinet has now grown from 30 to 32 ministers and 43 deputy ministers. The party, which is also part of the government of national unity, did not demand positions in the executive nor were positions offered to it. RISE Mzansi’s Mabine Seabe says its support of the government of national unity is dependent on the unwavering and fundamental principles including upholding the Constitution:

# Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelenskyy has appealed for more long-range weapons, saying his country needs to increase the number of advanced air defence systems. This comes after seven people, including children, were killed and at least 31 injured after Russia launched a missile strike on the town of Vilniansk in Ukraine’s southern Zaporizhzhia region. Zelenskyy says Russia used more than 800 glide bombs on Ukrainian targets in the past week. He adds that the sooner the world helps his country deal with Russia, the closer they will be to peace.

# Soccer: England and Spain are through to the quarterfinals of the European Championships in Germany. Goals from Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane gave England a two-one extra-time win over Slovakia in the last-16. Gareth Southgate’s side face will face Switzerland in the quarterfinals on Saturday. Meanwhile, Spain thrashed Georgia four-one to set up a clash with hosts Germany. Southgate has praised the mentality of the team:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-8-cents and the euro at 19-rand-45-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-89-cents and Bitcoin trades at 63-thousand-328-dollars-82-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-327-dollars-2-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 85-dollars-43-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….