News 12:00

BULLETIN 18 March 12 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The case against the fourth accused in Joslin Smith’s disappearance is postponed
# ActionSA accuses companies of enabling political disinformation
# And soccer: NotInMyName vows to defend former Safa vice president Ria Ledwaba 

# The Vredenburg Magistrate’s Court in the Western Cape has postponed the case against accused number four in the disappearance of Joslin Smith to next Monday. Thirty-two-year-old Lourencia “Renz” Lombaard appeared in court today, charged with trafficking in-person and human trafficking. She was arrested over the weekend and the state says she made a confession. The six-year-old Grade 1 learner went missing from her house in the Middelpos informal settlement four weeks ago today. Her mother, Kelly Smith, and two men will return to court on 13 May.

# ActionSA says it has laid a complaint with the Independent Electoral Commission and the Press Ombud about political misinformation arising from the polling industry. The party has accused some companies of being enablers of political disinformation under the guise of legitimate polling. ActionSA’s national chairperson, Michael Beaumont, says this issues arose from publications in three media outlets yesterday, which published a poll they believe came from the DA:

# The US says Russia’s elections were not free and fair, given how president Vladimir Putin imprisoned political opponents and prevented others from running against him. Putin easily claimed another six-year term by getting 87-percent of the vote in an election where no credible opposition candidate was allowed to stand. Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Putin has become addicted to power, and this imitation of elections has no legitimacy. Germany’s Foreign Ministry calls it a pseudo-election, under an authoritarian ruler reliant on censorship, repression, and violence.

# Soccer: NotInMyName International says it remains resolute in its defence of former South African governing body Safa’s vice president, Ria Ledwaba. She has been banned from all activities in the sport over her decision to take the association to court and challenge the outcome of the presidential elections held in June 2022. NotInMyName’s Themba Masango says they will brief the media on Wednesday to defend Ledwaba’s legacy:

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-76-cents and the euro at 20-rand-45-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-91-cents and Bitcoin trades at 67-thousand-439-dollars-48-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-152-dollars-78-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 85-dollars-96-cents a barrel.

# And finally: Pufferfish sightings on Fish Hoek and Glencairn beaches have prompted warnings from Cape Town authorities. The true danger of pufferfish, also known as blowfish or fugu, lies in their toxic flesh, which contains a potent neurotoxin known as tetrodotoxin. City officials say pufferfish toxicity is a serious and potentially life-threatening condition for dogs. It adds that with toxicity persisting after these fish die, it is common for dogs to become intoxicated after digging them up from the sand or snatching their bodies from tide pools or rock jetties.

Stay tuned for more news………….