News 09:00

BULLETIN 4 May 9 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Minister Tolashe says child sexual abuse and teenage pregnancy remain a national disgrace
# Cape Town faces a week of water disruptions
# And, the search is continuing for two missing US service members in Morocco

# Minister of Social Development, Sisisi Tolashe, has warned that rising cases of child sexual abuse and teenage pregnancy remain a national disgrace. According to the National Child Protection Register, eight-thousand-984 cases of child abuse and three-thousand-258 sexual abuse cases were recorded in the third quarter statistics for the 2025/2026 financial year. Meanwhile, more than 100-thousand children and teenagers experience unintended pregnancies annually. The department’s spokesperson, Sandy Godlwana, says an urgent and coordinated national action is needed to protect children from abuse, neglect and exploitation:

# ActionSA says the growth of its Big Green Umbrella signifies that the time for slogans and empty promises is over. The party says the Big Green Umbrella is a growing platform that is bringing together ethical leadership, civic formations, and South Africans committed to clean governance and service delivery. ActionSA’s Omogolo Taunyane says when residents open their taps, water should flow without interruption, and neighbourhoods should have adequate streetlights, so that people are safe:

# Residents in Cape Town are urged to brace for water disruptions from today until 11 May as large-scale maintenance continues. The Faure Water Treatment Plant pipeline will only be recharged from Tuesday, while the Blackheath Plant shutdowns run until Sunday midnight. This will reduce overall water production. The large list of areas affected includes Constantia, Delft, Philippi, Elsies River, and Brakkloof, amongst others. The City says the work is part of efforts to upgrade ageing infrastructure and improve long-term water supply reliability.

# A search and rescue mission is ongoing for two US service members who went missing in southwestern Morocco following an annual multinational military exercise. Officials say they were last seen on Saturday near ocean cliffs in the vicinity of the Cap Draa Training Area. The training exercise, known as African Lion, ground to a halt Sunday as the US and Moroccan assets were redirected to the search and rescue operation. Authorities believe the incident was an accident and was not an act of terrorism or kidnapping.

# Motorsport: Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli won the Miami Grand Prix, to claim his third successive race win. The 19-year-old Italian managed to hold off McLaren’s Lando Norris to extend his lead at the top of the world championship to 20 points. McLaren’s Oscar Piastri finished third, Antonelli‘s teammate George Russell in fourth, and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in fifth, despite him receiving a five-second time penalty for crossing the white line at the pit exit. Antonelli says this was a difficult race:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-60-cents and the euro at 19-rand-45-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-57-cents, and Bitcoin trades at 80-thousand-249-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-609-dollars-88-cents a fine ounce, and Brent crude oil is quoted at 106-dollars-66-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….