News 13:00

BULLETIN 8 January 1 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Cosatu says all progressive organisations must reject the termination of Community Works Programme’ contracts
# The ANC Youth League celebrates the ANC’s 113th anniversary
# And Soccer: France’s coach Didier Deschamp is to step down after the 2026 World Cup

# Cosatu has condemned in the strongest possible terms government’s shocking decision to retrench 67-thousand Community Works Programme’ workers from the end of January. Cosatu’s Matthew Parks says the announcement by Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs minister, Velenkosini Hlabisa, must be rejected with the contempt it deserves by all progressive organisations. He says if needs be, Parliament must intervene to halt it:

# The ANC Youth League says it joins millions of South Africans today in celebrating the 113th anniversary of the ANC, Africa’s oldest liberation movement. Spokesperson Zama Khanyase says this milestone is a reminder of the party’s enduring legacy of struggle, resilience, and leadership in the fight for freedom, justice, and equality. She says the movement has to continue serving the people of South Africa with integrity, humility, and dedication:

# Motorists in Limpopo have been advised to exercise extreme caution as heavy rain, strong winds, and reduced visibility are forecast to persist throughout the day and into the weekend. The adverse weather conditions are expected to create dangerous driving conditions, particularly on major routes in the province. Traffic department spokesperson Tidimalo Chuene highlightd affected routes such as the R524 from Thohoyandou to Makhado and R71 from Tzaneen to Polokwane:

# Soccer: France’s coach Didier Deschamps will leave his post after next year’s World Cup tournament. Deschamps led France to World Cup glory in Russia in 2018 and guided them to the final of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. As a player, he captained France when they won the 1998 World Cup on home soil. The 56-year-old is the only man alive to have won the World Cup both as a player and as a coach. The other two are Mario Zagallo of Brazil and Germany’s Franz Beckenbauer, who both died last year.

# Financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-82-cents and the euro at 19-rand-43-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-43-cents and Bitcoin trades at 95-thousand-993-dollars. Gold sells at two-thousand-654-dollars-7-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 77-dollars-46-cents a barrel.

# And finally: Vietnam is to pay residents who snitch on traffic offenders as the country strives to bring rule-breaking drivers into line on its notoriously chaotic roads. Since the beginning of the year, authorities have dramatically upped the fines, to an almost unaffordable level for the average driver. This includes running a red light and using a mobile phone. Under the new rules, anyone who reports a verified traffic offence can now bag up to ten-percent of fines levied, up to a ceiling of three-thousand-700-rand.

Stay tuned for more news………….