News 12:00

BULLETIN 16 October 12 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# America will spend six-million-rand to understand why fewer Afrikaners are taking up Trump’s refugee offer
# Ramaphosa lifts the suspension of police commissioner Fannie Masemola
# And minister Gwarube condemns fake A-I-generated claims of a matric exam paper leak

# The US government is reportedly planning to spend about six-million-rand on research and advertising campaigns in South Africa to understand why fewer Afrikaners are applying for refugee status. The US Refugee Admissions Programme stems from a 2025 executive order signed by president Donald Trump, which prioritised Afrikaner resettlement on the purported grounds that they face “white genocide”. Since then, over 13-thousand have moved to the US. The Guardian reports the State Department’s proposal outlines a three-phase project involving focus groups, surveys, and a six-month Afrikaans-language media campaign.

# President Cyril Ramaphosa has lifted the precautionary suspension of national police commissioner Fannie Masemola. He was facing Public Finance Management Act-related charges in connection with a 360-million-rand tender awarded to alleged crime boss Vusimuzi “Cat” Matala. The charges were withdrawn last month after National Prosecuting Authority head Andy Mothibi ordered a review which found no reasonable prospects of a successful prosecution. Ramaphosa’s spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, says Masemola will resume his duties on Monday:

# Minister of Basic Education Siviwe Gwarube has strongly condemned a fake news article generated using artificial intelligence, alleging a leak of the matric exam English Paper Three. She says these baseless claims are designed to disrupt the examination process and prejudice over 964-thousand candidates currently writing. Spokesperson Terrence Khala says there was no evidence of a leak, and the examination security systems are functioning as intended:

# Parliament is calling on the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment to fully implement its audit action plan to address the financial management and governance weaknesses. The department has 829.2-million-rand in unspent funds, despite achieving 49 of its 52 annual performance targets in the 2025/26 financial year. The largest underspending was in the environmental programmes branch, where 390.6-million-rand remained unused. The portfolio committee says the department must also institute stronger procurement and project management controls and act firmly against recurring irregular expenditure.

# Soccer: FIFA president Gianni Infantino has apologised for his World Cup sell-off plan, saying mistakes were made which led to many consequences. In August, he scrapped a controversial plan to sell a stake in future World Cup profits to private equity investors after fierce opposition from the sport’s governing bodies. During a three-hour FIFA council meeting in Zurich yesterday, Infantino said the proposal was not intended to replace support from existing resources:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-43-cents and the euro at 18-rand-47-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-88-cents and Bitcoin trades at 82-thousand-151-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-182-dollars-46-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 107-dollars-22-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….