News 09:00

BULLETIN 9 May 9 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Public Servants Association demands intervention at the National Lotteries Commission
# The Driving licence card printing machine is fixed
# And world leaders congratulate the new head of the Catholic Church

# The Public Servants Association is demanding that the Department of Trade, Industry, and Competition urgently address challenges of corruption, maladministration, and poor management at the National Lotteries Commission. The association’s Claude Naiker says employees at the commission are working in an unconducive and oppressive environment, as the management and board have failed to ensure efficiency and governance. He adds that delays in the appointment of a lottery operator pose a serious threat to the commission’s sustainability:

# The Department of Transport has confirmed that the driving licence card printing machine has been fixed, with operations resuming after a three-month hiatus. This has led to a significant backlog in licence card production. The department’s spokesperson, Collen Msibi, says Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, and the Western Cape currently report the highest number of pending licences:

# The DA in Gauteng says cancer patients will continue to suffer and die while the provincial Health Department fights needless court battles, instead of cooperating with NGOs like the Cancer Alliance. The department has been granted leave to appeal against a High Court judgment, which found its failure to provide radiation treatment to thousands of cancer patients was unconstitutional and unlawful. The DA’s Jack Bloom says the department failed to spend 250-million-rand in 2023/2024 to save the lives of cancer patients:

# World leaders have congratulated Robert Prevost on being elected as the new pope. Sixty-nine-year-old Pope Leo the 14th is the first American pontiff. French president Emmanuel Macron says, may this new pontificate be one of peace and hope. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky says he hopes for the continued moral and spiritual support of the Vatican in his country’s efforts to restore justice and achieve a lasting peace. Russian president Vladimir Putin wished the new pope success in fulfilling the high mission entrusted to him.

# Golf: South Africa’s Robin Williams is among a three-way tie with Germany’s Tiger Christensen and France’s Martin Couvra for the lead at six-under-par 65 following the opening round of the Turkish Airlines Open. Williams, who had missed nine cuts in 14 starts since his promotion to the DP World Tour, produced six birdies in a flawless round to make a late charge up the leaderboard. Dutchman Joost Luiten and England’s Brandon Robinson Thompson sit fourth on five under.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-24-cents and the euro at 20-rand-48-cents. One British pound costs 24-rand-14-cents and Bitcoin trades at 102-thousand-643-dollars. Gold sells at three-thousand-316-dollars-78-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 62-dollars-92-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….