News 12:00

BULLETIN 14 April 12 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The DA overtakes the ANC in a public opinion poll for the first time
# The ANC says the inquest into Chief Albert Luthuli and Griffiths Mxenge is a long-overdue step towards justice
# And otorsport: Marc Marquez extends his lead at the top of the MotoGP riders’ championship

# The Institute of Race Relations says the DA has surpassed the ANC for the first time in its polling public opinion. The DA at 30.3-percent edges past the ANC at 29.7-percent in the poll, with the budget proposal to raise the VAT contributing significantly to this shift. The IRR says the DA’s support among black voters has surged from five to 18-percent, demonstrating the political potential for the party to grow its support across traditional divides. The full results of the poll will be released tomorrow.

# The reopened inquest into the death of anti-apartheid activist and Nobel Peace laureate, Chief Albert Luthuli, and anti-apartheid lawyer, Griffiths Mxenge, begins in the High Court in Pietermaritzburg today. A 1967 inquest ruled that Luthuli was walking on a railway line when he was struck by a train and died after fracturing his skull. Mxenge was stabbed to death in 1981. ANC KwaZulu-Natal provincial convenor, Jeff Radebe, says the inquest represents a long-overdue step towards justice and accountability:

# The Department of Water and Sanitation says it is continuing with controlled water releases out of the Vaal and the Bloemhof Dam to reduce rising water levels. Water outflows have decreased to 104.96-percent at the Bloemhof Dam. The department’s spokesperson, Wisane Mavasa, says the five sluice gates at the Vaal Dam remain open:

# Motorsport: Six-time MotoGP world champion, Marc Marquez, has extended his lead at the top of the riders’ championship by winning the Qatar Grand Prix. The Ducati rider finished ahead of Red Bull KTM Tech3’s Maverick Vinales and VR46 Racing’s Franco Morbidelli. South Africa’s Brad Binder finished 13th place for Red Bull KTM. Marquez, who is 17 points clear at the top of the rider’s standings, says he is happy to win in Qatar for the first time since 2014:

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-91-cents and the euro at 21-rand-56-cents. One British pound costs 24-rand-92-cents and Bitcoin trades at 84-thousand-517-dollars. Gold sells at three-thousand-218-dollars-20-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 64-dollars-38-cents a barrel.

# And finally: In its second weekend of release, Warner Brothers’ kid-friendly movie, A Minecraft Movie, remains number one at the worldwide box office. The film, which stars Jack Black and Jason Momoa, is already the highest-grossing film of the year. The King of Kings, an animated faith-based family film from Angel Studios, debuted in second place. In third place is 20th Century and Disney’s Rami Malek spy thriller The Amateur. A24’s Warfare opened in fourth place with Universal and Blumhouse’s horror film Drop rounding out of the top five.

Stay tuned for more news………….