News 09:00

BULLETIN 2 July 9 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The EFF says the government of national unity is nothing more than an ANC-DA coalition
# ActionSA slams the increased and bloated new Cabinet
# And the French president suffers a huge blow in the snap parliamentary elections

# The EFF says the new cabinet confirms its longstanding view that the government of national unity was nothing but a smokescreen for the ANC, to secure a predetermined grand coalition with the DA. The DA has six ministers in the new cabinet and six deputy ministers. EFF’s spokesperson Leigh-Ann Mathys says by gifting the DA ministerial posts, the ANC has surpassed the compromises it made in 1994:

Meanwhile, ActionSA says the bloated new cabinet will cost more than one-billion-rand annually in benefits and perks to the ministers and deputy ministers. The new cabinet under the government of national unity has 32 ministers of 43 deputy ministers. ActionSA’s Athol Trollip says they are equally concerned about the retention of cabinet members who have been implicated in wrongdoing:

# The City of Tshwane says residents will experience water supply interruptions due to Rand Water’s extensive maintenance campaign. All reservoirs supplied by Rand Water’s Palmiet system will be affected today, on the 15th and 29th of this month. The city’s spokesperson Lindela Mashigo says the planned maintenance aims to preserve the lifespan of the water utility’s infrastructure and improve its reliability during the higher summer demand period:

# Exit polls show Frace’s Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally party is projected to win the first round of the snap parliamentary elections. The party is on course to win around 34-percent of the vote, with a left-wing alliance behind at 28.1-percent, and president Emmanuel Macron’s alliance behind at 21-percent. It appears the National Rally party may fall short of the 289 seats required for an absolute majority. Le Pen says French people have shown their wish to turn the page on seven years of the corrosive presidency of Macron.

# Rugby: Former Wallabies captain Michael Hooper has announced his retirement from international rugby, after missing selection for the national Sevens team for the Paris Olympics. The 32-year-old is one of the most decorated players in Australian history, having captained the Wallabies more than any other player leading the men in gold on 69 occasions. He made his Test debut in 2012 against Scotland, at the age of 20. Hooper says his incredible journey has been filled with unforgettable experiences, challenges, and memories.

# 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-88-cents and Bitcoin trades at 63-thousand-242-dollars-71-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-324-dollars-23-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 85-dollars-30-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….