News 11:00

BULLETIN 27 February 11 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Minister Lamola says all involved in the Russia-Ukraine recruitment scam must face the full might of the law
# The DA officially opens nominations for leadership candidates ahead of its elective congress
# And motorsport: McLaren’s team prinicipal says they are not heading into the new season as the frontrunner

# Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Ronald Lamola, says the law must take its course in the case of South Africans who were lured into the Russian-Ukrainian war. Seventeen men allegedly joined the frontline under false pretences, 15 of whom have returned home, while two others are still in Moscow. Two others who were part of another recruitment scam, have died. Lamola says the recruiters must also be held accountable:

# The DA has officially opened nominations for its new leader, federal chairperson, and three deputy federal chairpersons. John Steenhuisen announced earlier this month he will not seek re-election for a third term as leader in the elective congress in April. Nominations close on the 23rd of March. The DA’s Matthew Gerstner says nominations received will be interrogated and vetted by the party’s Federal Compliance Department:

# Statistics South Africa says the number of business liquidations fell by 9.4-percent in January compared to the same period last year, with 96 cases recorded. Liquidations of close corporations decreased by 23, while company liquidations rose by 13. Stats SA’s Onica Mushwana says over the three months ending in January, total liquidations fell slightly by 0.6-percent, from 324 to 322 cases, indicating a modest easing in financial pressures on South African businesses:

Moving abroad:

# Pakistan’s military has bombed Afghanistan’s capital of Kabul and two other provinces in the early hours of this morning. There has been no information on the exact location of the strikes or of any potential casualties. Last night, Afghanistan’s military launched an offensive against Pakistan, calling it a retaliation for airstrikes on militant camps last weekend that left at least 18 people dead. Pakistan’s Defence minister, Khwaja Asif, has proclaimed his country is in an open war with Afghanistan.

# Motorsport: Formula One champions McLaren’s team principal, Andrea Stella, says they will start the new season on the defensive, as early indications suggest Ferrari and Mercedes are the teams to beat. McLaren is chasing their third successive constructors’ title, with Britain’s Lando Norris aiming for a second consecutive drivers’ championship. Stella says they will bring some small aerodynamic updates to the first race, the Australian Grand Prix, and continue to work on important issues such as reliability.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 15-rand-89-cents and the euro at 18-rand-76-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-40-cents and Bitcoin trades at 67-thousand-619-dollars. Gold sells at five-thousand-188-dollars-38-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 71-dollars-21-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….