News 12:00

BULLETIN 17 October 12 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Cosatu welcomes the progress in the prosecution of individuals implicated in corruption
# President Cyril Ramaphosa is to answer questions in Parliament including on minister Thembi Simelane
# And cricket: The Proteas Women captain says Australia is beatable

# Cosatu says it is encouraged by the progress, even though frustratingly slow, in the prosecution of those implicated in corruption. This comes after former ANC national spokesperson, Pule Mabe, appeared in court yesterday on charges of fraud and money laundering. This is in connection with a 27-million-tender awarded to his company, Enviro-Mobi, by the Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development in March 2017. Cosatu’s Zanele Sabela says they note Mabe’s decision to step aside as ANC national executive committee member:

# President Cyril Ramaphosa is set to answer questions in the National Assembly today. These include the functioning of the government of national unity, the fight against organised crime, including extortion, and the outcomes of the recent United Nations General Assembly. The president will also be pressed on Justice minister Thembi Simelane, who is facing claims of impropriety linked to the now-liquidated VBS Mutual Bank. Ramaphosa’s spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, says the president will soon make a decision on the minister:

# The EFF says it is appalled that South African citizens are participating in the genocide of Palestinians without any consequences. In an Al Jazeera documentary, The Ghost Unit, 22-year-old South African, Aaron Bayhack, is identified as having been a sniper in the Israeli Occupation Forces. Members of the unit have admitted to killing civilians in Gaza. The EFF says it has approached the National Prosecuting Authority and the Department of Defence to investigate this matter, as any person joining the IOF is breaking the law and must be prosecuted

# Cricket: Proteas Women captain Laura Wolvaardt believes they have the talent to beat defending champions Australia in the T20 World Cup semifinal in Dubai today. This is a rematch of last year’s final at Newlands in Cape Town, when Australia claimed its sixth title, winning by 19 runs. Tomorrow’s other semifinal will see the West Indies take on New Zealand. Wolvaardt says they need to be at their very best:

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-71-cents and the euro at 19-rand-23-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-2-cents and Bitcoin trades at 67-thousand-211-dollars-73-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-681-dollars-78-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 74-dollars-27-cents a barrel.

# And finally: An electric motorcycle, designed and built in Africa and powered only by the sun, completed the groundbreaking journey from Kenya to Stellenbosch in the Western Cape. The motorcycle was developed by researchers from Stellenbosch University’s Faculty of Engineering, and a technology-driven electric mobility company in Kenya, Roam. The journey spanned approximately six-thousand kilometres through Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia and Botswana to South Africa. Roam’s Masa Kituyi says this is proof that clean energy can power not just vehicles, but a brighter, more sustainable future for the continent.

Stay tuned for more news………….