News 11:00

BULLETIN 31 December 11 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Western Cape Education Department welcomes the court decision to strike the teacher post cut application off the roll
# Sassa confirms the remaining payment dates for the Social Relief of Distress grant
# And soccer: AC Milan has a new manager once again after just six months

# The Western Cape Education Department has welcomed the decision to strike off the roll the urgent court application aimed at preventing the cut of two-thousand-407 teacher posts. The last-minute application was lodged by the Special Action Committee for Education after the department announced the cuts in August, citing a 3.8-billion-rand budget shortfall. WCED spokesperson Bronagh Hammond says the application was baseless from the start:

# The South African Social Security Agency has confirmed the remaining payment dates for the Social Relief of Distress grant, which ends on 31 March 2025. Payments are scheduled for 25 to 31 January, 22 to 28 February, and 24 to 29 March. According to the agency’s Paleka Letsatsi, beneficiaries do not need to re-apply in 2025 if they were previously approved. Introduced in May 2020, the grant supports unemployed South Africans, refugees, and asylum seekers. Recipients can collect payments via bank deposits, Cash Send, or retail stores. 

# United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has advocated for a safer world in 2025. Delivering his New Year’s message, he urged nations to unite for a peaceful future. He highlighted the ongoing pain from wars, and emphasised the importance of building peace through disarmament. Guterres pledged to stand with those working for a peaceful, equal, and stable world:

# Soccer: AC Milan has a new manager again after just six months. This follows after its Portuguese manager, Paulo Fonseca, was sacked yesterday. The Italian team is currently eighth in the Serie A competition after winning only two of their last seven league games. Fonseca replaced Stefano Pioli in June after the Italian led AC to a single league title in 2022 and finished second behind Inter Milan in his last season. Former manager of Porto, Sergio Conceicao, has been appointed to replace Fonseca untill 30 June 2026.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-76-cents and the euro at 19-rand-52-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-55-cents and Bitcoin trades at 92-thousand-749-dollars. Gold sells at two-thousand-607-dollars-68-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 74-dollars-46-cents a barrel.

# And finally: Lifesaving SA has cautioned beach goers in KwaZulu-Natal as spring tide begins today, bringing higher high tides, lower low tides, and stronger rip currents. The organisation’s president, Dhaya Sewduth, says these conditions pose dangers, particularly for inexperienced swimmers. Sewduth has advised swimmers to prioritise safety during this period. He also mentions that beaches are being monitored by lifesavers or municipal lifeguards, who have established safe zones.

Stay tuned for more news………….