News 11:00

BULLETIN 20 July 11 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Ramaphosa says government’s response to the country’s water crisis focuses on sustainable, long-term reform
# Rubio says the US is still open to diplomacy with Iran
# And soccer: Mbappé wins the World Cup’s Golden Boot and Rodri is named best player

# President Cyril Ramaphosa says government is responding to the need to expand access to safe and reliable water to underserved communities through the National Water Access Acceleration Programme. It is intended to shorten the time between identifying a community’s need and delivering a working water supply. In his weekly newsletter, Ramaphosa acknowledged government has not succeeded in maintaining water infrastructure in too many municipalities. He says this is why they have allocated 156-billion-rand to water and sanitation infrastructure over the next three years.

# The DA has formally submitted a Promotion of Access to Information Act application to obtain the long-awaited interim Operation Prosper report from police and the Defence Force. Spokesperson Nicholas Gotsell says without one, no answers or tangible solutions can be offered to communities living under daily siege from gang violence. He says acting minister Firoz Cachalia has previously admitted after three months of deployment, not a single gang was dismantled:

# ActionSA says government has continued to fail the families of Pretty Nkambule, Yvonne Mnisi and Solomon Nyirenda. Last Thursday marked a decade since a crown pillar underground collapsed and dragged down a container the three mineworkers were working on at Lily Mine near Barberton in Mpumalanga. Their remains were never retrieved. ActionSA’s Omogolo Taunyane says since the party has been involved in this matter, it has spent more than four-million-rand in legal costs alone pursuing justice through the courts:

Moving abroad:

# Secretary of State Marco Rubio says the US is still open to a diplomatic solution with Iran. The US military launched a ninth consecutive night of strikes in Tehran. In Iran, at least 50 people have been killed, and more than 500 injured in US strikes over the past three weeks. Seventeen American soldiers have been killed in the conflict. Rubio says Iran cannot have a memorandum of understanding that’s alive if they’re violating the terms of it.

# Soccer: French captain Kylian Mbappé has won the Golden Boot for the World Cup, becoming the first player to win the award twice. He scored ten goals and is also the tournament’s all-time top scorer with 22. A key figure in Spain’s run to a second men’s World Cup triumph, Rodri, won the Golden Ball for the tournament’s best player, while 19-year-old teammate Pau Cubarsi was named the best young player. Spain’s Unai Simón claimed the Golden Glove award for best goalkeeper after conceding just once in eight games.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-54-cents and the euro at 18-rand-91-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-26-cents and Bitcoin trades at 63-thousand-833-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-and-5-dollars-38-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 88-dollars-66-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….