News 09:00

BULLETIN 7 May 9 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Business Leadership SA says the country urgently needs a plan to avoid a gas cliff
# The death toll from the George building collapse rises to four
# And rugby: Grobbelaar is staying with the Bulls for another three years

# Business Leadership South Africa says while the gazetted draft Gas Master Plan contains many laudable principles and objectives, it does not address the major issue facing the economy. The current main source of supply, two gas fields in Mozambique operated by Sasol, will not supply South African clients from mid-2026, since Sasol will fully utilise the remaining gas itself. The organisation’s CEO Busisiwe Mavuso says the gas cliff is just 24 months away, leaving barely any time to develop the kinds of projects that will be needed to avoid it.

# The death toll following the collapse of a five-storey building under construction in George in the Western Cape has risen to four. Seventy-five construction workers were present on the site at the time of the collapse yesterday afternoon. Western Cape premier, Alan Winde, says 24 patients have been removed from the rubble at 75 Victoria Street, leaving 51 persons unaccounted for:

# Union federation Saftu says the recommendations outlined in the Khampepe Commission of Inquiry’s report must be implemented with speed. The commission investigated the Usindiso building fire, which claimed the lives of 77 mostly foreign residents, in August last year. Among its findings was the determination of the liability of the City of Johannesburg and its entities for the deaths. Saftu’s spokesperson, Trevor Shaku, says people must be held accountable for this tragedy:

# The judge presiding over Donald Trump’s hush money trial has threatened the former US president with jail time if he again violates the gag order in the case. He has flouted the gag order for the tenth time, including publicly discussing potential witnesses and the jury. Judge Juan Merchan says incarcerating Trump would be very disruptive, but the gag order violations are a direct attack on the rule of law. Trump has pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of falsifying business records to conceal a payment to adult star Stormy Daniels.

# Rugby: The Bulls have extended the contract of front rower, Johan Grobbelaar, for another three years until June 2027. The junior Springbok alumni has notched up 123 club appearances ever since making his debut with the under-19’s back in 2016. He has played a crucial role in the Bulls’ successes, including winning the Currie Cup in 2020 and 2021. Grobbelaar says he feels fortunate to be offered the opportunity to stay at the club:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-50-cents and the euro at 19-rand-92-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-23-cents and Bitcoin trades at 63-thousand-390-dollars-90-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-323-dollars-22-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 83-dollars-54-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….