News 13:00

BULLETIN 27 March 1 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Division of Revenue Bill is passed despite opposition from political parties
# AfriForum says the water cuts as a debt collection mechanism could be over
# And Soccer: Pitso Mosimane is humbled to receive an honorary UJ doctorate

# The National Assembly has approved the Division of Revenue Bill. They also adopted the Second Adjustment Appropriation Bill, and both bills are now heading to the National Council of Provinces for concurrence. The Division of Revenue Bill allocates funds to all government levels, addresses public workers’ salary increases, and tackles infrastructure backlogs. The bill was passed despite facing criticism from political parties. FF Plus MP Wouter Wessels said the bill does not address key areas of service delivery:

Meanwhile, the Assembly has penalised ten Members of Parliament for not disclosing financial interests by the deadline of 30 September last year. The joint committee on Ethics and Members’ Interest emphasises accountability and say they have adopted a no-tolerance approach in the non-disclosures. The MP’s have been slapped with a fine equal to 25 or 30 days’ salary.

# AfriForum says the implementation of water cuts as a debt collection mechanism for outstanding debts may be a thing of the past. Two weeks ago, Rand Water decided to reduce the water supply to several municipalities in Gauteng, the Free State and Mpumalanga, which collectively owe it three-billion-rand. The High Court in Pretoria yesterday found that Rand Water’s water cuts were illegal. AfriForum’s Petrus Coetzee says access to clean water is a basic human right:

# Soccer: Former Bafana Bafana coach Pitso Mosimane says he is humbled and grateful that he will receive an honorary doctorate from the University of Johannesburg in July. This is in recognition of his success as a player and coach. Among his achievements, Mosimane has won the Safa Coach of the Year Award and the PSL Coach of the Season Award on five occasions. Mosimane, who is currently the head coach of Abha Club in Saudi Arabia, says this honour is special:

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-91-cents and the euro at 20-rand-50-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-89-cents and Bitcoin trades at 69-thousand-844-dollars-92-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-179-dollars-94-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 84-dollars-69-cents a barrel.

# And finally: Children under 14 in the US state of Florida will not be allowed to have social media accounts from next year, while 14- and 15-year-olds will also need parental consent before using platforms such as Snapchat and Instagram. Governer Ron DeSantis signed the law which directs social media platforms to delete the accounts of children under 14. Companies who don’t comply will be sued on behalf of children. Sky News reports platforms are expected to challenge the act, saying it violates the country’s Constitution.

Stay tuned for more news………….