News 11:00

BULLETIN 23 January 11 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The director of Accountability Now says voters have an opportunity to exact accountability
# The World Health Organisation says 2024 will be a defining year for global health
# And tennis, Coco Gauff advances to her first Australian Open semifinal

# Accountability Now director, Paul Hoffman, says the upcoming elections are an opportunity to exact accountability from those who have governed, and a chance to replace those whose governance has proved disappointing. A total of 350 political parties have already registered for the elections. Hoffman says factors such as load-shedding, failing water infrastructure, poor health services, corruption, crime, a crippled criminal justice system and inferior education may inform how South Africans vote. He adds that everyone eligible to vote should do so out of informed self-interest, if for no other reason.

Meanwhile the Independent Electoral Commission aims to boost voter registration during the final registration weekend on 3 and 4 February. November’s drive saw one-million new registrants, bringing the total to just over 26-million out of 42.3-million eligible voters. Chief Electoral Official Sy Mamabolo assures preparations are in place to address challenges, including protests that disrupted some voting stations. The IEC plans to visit prisons and extend online registration for South Africans abroad. Mamabolo will announce readiness closer to the registration weekend.

# Police have confirmed that three more child online sexual predators have been arrested in Worcester, Kraaifontein and Mitchells Plain, in the Western Cape. This was a joint operation by the police’s Serial and Electronic Crime Investigations unit and the USA Department of Homeland Security. Four others were arrested in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal in November last year. Police spokesperson, Athlenda Mathe, says a 53-year-old man from Worcester was arrested after being found with 95-thousand images and six-thousand videos of child pornography:

# The World Health Organisation says an alarming combination of conflict, climate-related threats and increasing economic hardship means an estimated 166-million people require health assistance. This year alone the organisation will need 28.7-billion-rand to provide life-saving health care to millions of people in emergencies. WHO’s director-general, Tedros Ghebreyesus, says this year will be a defining year for global health, as the organisation continues to make the world a healthier, safer and fairer place.

# Tennis: American Coco Gauff is through to the semifinals of the Australian Open for the first time in her career. She battled passed Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk, 7-6, 6-7, 6-2, in three-hours-and-eight-minutes. This is the reigning US Open champion’s 12th straight major match win and she has not lost a match this year. Gauff says she left everything on the court today:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 19-rand-5-cents and the euro at 20-rand-80-cents. One British pound costs 24-rand-29-cents and Bitcoin trades at 39-thousand-971-dollars-55-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-and-37-dollars-57-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 80-dollars-17-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….