News 08:00

BULLETIN 11 December 8 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The SACP will finalise its local government election strategy at its congress
# ACSA says over 400 flights were affected by the fuel disruption
# And swimming: Rebecca Meder shatters a 16-year-old African record in Budapest

# The South African Communist Party says it will use its upcoming national congress to finalise a strategy to contest the 2026 local government elections. In its discussion documents, the SACP says it will campaign on progressive, left-leaning policies, including pushing for a basic income grant and expanding public employment programmes. It adds that it is committed to promoting socialist principles within local governance while remaining part of the alliance with the ANC and Cosatu. The SACP’s fifth special national congress starts in Boksburg tomorrow.

# Airports Company South Africa says the four-hour fuel disruption at the OR Tambo International Airport on Monday impacted 483 flights and 49-thousand-429 passengers, as well as 31 flights cancelled for the day. The disruption was due to a drive shaft that sheared, preventing the pumping of jet fuel from storage tanks to the aprons, which enables the re-fuelling of aircraft. ACSA CEO, Mpumi Mpofu, told Newzroom Afrika that an emergency valve replacement is being coordinated to ensure the continued reliability of that component:

# Gauteng Health MEC Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko will today give an update on the department’s state of readiness for the festive season. The plans will be unveiled under the theme: Beyond The Call Of Duty – Responding to Emergencies, Preserving Lives. The department’s spokesperson, Motalatale Modiba, says the MEC will showcase the readiness to respond to the anticipated high volume of emergencies:

# The suspect in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson is fighting against his extradition to New York. Luigi Mangione was arrested on Monday at a McDonald’s restaurant in Altoona, Pennsylvania, in connection with Thompson’s killing outside a Manhattan hotel. The 26-year-old has been charged with second-degree murder, forgery, and three gun charges by prosecutors in New York. He was denied bail during a court appearance in Pennsylvania yesterday. Mangione’s lawyer, Thomas Dickey, says he has not seen any evidence that New York officials have the right guy.

# Swimming: Twenty-two-year-old Rebecca Meder shattered the long-standing 200-metre individual medley African record at the World Short Course Swimming Championships in Budapest. The South African finished sixth in the finals, clocking in a time of two-minutes-05.61-seconds. The previous record of two-minutes-06.13-seconds set by Zimbabwean Kirsty Coventry in 2008 had stood for over 16 years. Meanwhile, Ruard van Renen is through to the men’s 100-metre backstroke final after finishing fourth in his semifinal. Chad le Clos was unable to advance beyond the heats of the 50-metre butterfly.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-78-cents and the euro at 18-rand-71-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-71-cents and Bitcoin trades at 97-thousand-335-dollars-2-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-699-dollars-44-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 72-dollars-59-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….