News 12:00

BULLETIN 8 December 12 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Cape Independence Party says South Africa is a fully fledged mafia state
# Trump says Zelensky is not ready to sign off on a US-backed peace deal with Russia
# And cricket: Stokes questions England’s mental state after the defeat in the second Ashes Test

# The Cape Independence Party says South Africa is no longer a failing state; it is a fully fledged mafia state. This follows the murder of Marius van der Merwe, who was shot dead outside his Brakpan home in Gauteng after testifying at the Madlanga commission of inquiry last month. Party leader Jack Miller says every year, investigators, prosecutors, witnesses and whistleblowers are assassinated in the country because the system rewards the killers and punishes the truth-tellers.

Meanwhile, the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation says there is more to the killing of van der Merwe than meets the eye. Van der Merwe was known as Witness D at the Madlanga commission. The foundation’s Neeshan Balton says a candlelight vigil was held at his Brakpan home. He says whistleblowers are being targeted, urging urgent reforms to protect those speaking out against corruption:

# With the festive season approaching, traffic officials nationwide have intensified roadblocks, checking 229-thousand vehicles in six days. Authorities discontinued 662 vehicles due to unroadworthy conditions, including smooth tyres, faulty brakes, cracked windscreens, and leaking engines. Provinces with the highest discontinuations were the Eastern Cape, Mpumalanga, and KwaZulu-Natal. Over 700 vehicles were also impounded for operating without permits.

Moving abroad:

# US president Donald Trump says it is clear his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky, is not ready to sign off on the peace proposal. This comes after talks between the two countries’ negotiators in Miami over the weekend ended with unresolved questions over security guarantees and territorial issues. Zelensky called the discussions constructive, although not easy. Trump says the proposal will bring peace to Ukraine and Russia:

# Cricket: England’s captain, Ben Stokes, has accused his team of wilting under the intense mental pressure of Ashes cricket. This comes after England suffered an eight-wicket defeat against Australia at the Gabba, to go 2-0 down in the series. Stokes says they are a great team when they are ahead or behind and playing catch-up, but when the game is on the line, they are not able to stand up to pressure. He adds this is a state of mind issue:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-94-cents and the euro at 19-rand-76-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-58-cents and Bitcoin trades at 91-thousand-661-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-211-dollars-47-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 63-dollars-70-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….