News 11:00

BULLETIN 16 March 11 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The GOOD Party calls the expelled ambassador Rasool’s speech an extraordinary lapse of diplomatic judgement
# Tennis : Draper stuns two-time defending champ Alcaraz to reach the Indian Wells final
# And minister McKenzie launches the bicentenary celebration of the Iziko South African Museum

# The GOOD Party says Ambassador Ebrahim Rasool’s speech to the Mapungubwe Institute that sparked his dismissal was an extraordinary lapse of diplomatic judgement. US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio declared on social media that South Africa’s Ambassador is no longer welcome in the US and persona non grata. The GOOD Party secretary-general, Brett Herron, says while it is difficult not to be critical of the US’ bullying, diplomats are highly paid to facilitate not break  relationships:

Meanwhile, the Save South Africa Civic Movement says the South African government must not take the expulsion of South Africa Ambassador Ebrahim Rasool lightly, but it must be a wake-up call. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio declared Rasool persona non grata and no longer welcome in US following comments made by Rasool at a panel discusssion, calling the US government supremacist and racist. The Civic Movement’s spokesperson, Tebogo Mashilompane says the issue of Rasool suggests that the relationship between South African and US is broken:

# Western Cape MEC for Infrastructure, Tertuis Simmers says he has requested the National Department of Human Settlement to provide reasons for cutting 300-million-rand from the grant allocation of 1.9-billion-rand from Human Settlement’s allocation for the 2024/2025 financial year. Simmers says his department believe they have given all the evidence needed to show that they are on track to spend their full human settlements budget allocation:

# Tennis: Britain’s Jack Draper ended Carlos Alcaraz’s bid to win the Indian Wells ATP Masters three times in a row, by beating the two-time defending champion 6-1, 0-6, 6-4 yesterday to reach the final. Today, world number 14 Draper will take on Holger Rune in the finals, after the Danish player beat the world number six Daniil Medvedev 7-5, 6-4. Alcaraz had been seeking to join Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic as the only men to win three straight Indian Wells titles.

# And Sport, Arts and Culture minister, Gayton McKenzie, officially launched the Bicentenary Celebration of the Iziko South African Museum in Cape Town marking 200 years of heritage preservation and transformation. The minister highlighted the museum’s evolution from its colonial origins in 1825 to becoming a transformed institution that reflects South Africa’s rich and diverse heritage. McKenzie says the Iziko South African Museum, once a symbol of colonial dominance, has undergone a profound shift towards inclusivity and representation of all South Africans.

Stay tuned for more news………….