News 13:00

BULLETIN 14 February 1 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The EFF calls for an end of arms sales to Israel
# Athletics: Two world records for a Norwegian at a meeting in France
# And SANTACO celebrates Valentine’s Day by distributing roses at the Bosman taxi rank in Pretoria

# The EFF is deeply concerned that despite South Africa’s prohibition of weapons sales to Israel, there are indications of very serious breaches of this embargo. It says in 2023 South African arms companies sold arms worth 3.3-billion-rand to countries among Israel’s largest suppliers, including the US, Germany, Hungary, Italy and France. The EFF demands that government must urgently reform the country’s weak and administratively inept approach to weapons exports, and strengthen the capacity of the National Conventional Arms Control Committee to fulfil its legal mandate.

# Johannesburg mayor Dada Morero has urged residents to stop illegal water connections and cut consumption as the city grapples with water shortages. Addressing the media, Morero announced plans to dig boreholes at schools, hospitals, and informal settlements. He emphasised that these interventions are set to begin by the end of the financial year to alleviate the crisis and ensure sustainable water access:

# The Gauteng Government is aiming to ramp up its efforts to position the province as a top investment hub. MEC for Finance and Economic Development, Lebogang Maile, launched the Gauteng Investment Centre, a one-stop investment facilitation hub aimed at reducing red tape and enhancing investor confidence. The investment drive will culminate in the Gauteng Investment Conference in April. Johannesburg Stock Exchange’s Valdene Reddy says the aim is 800-billion-rand in investment pledges over the next three years:

# Athletics: Jakob Ingebrigtsen of Norway set new world records in the indoor mile and the indoor one-thousand-500-meter in World Athletics’ Indoor Tour Gold Meeting in Lievin, France. He bettered the record in the mile that American Yared Nuguse set only five days ago, finishing in over a second faster in three-minutes-45.14-seconds. Ingebrigtsen’s new record time in the one-thousand-500 is three-minutes-29.36-seconds, bettering his own record set at the same meeting three years ago. The 24-year-old won gold medals in long-distance at the previous two Olympic Games.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-37-cents and the euro at 19-rand-26-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-13-cents and Bitcoin trades at 97-thousand-23-dollars. Gold sells at two-thousand-937-dollars-16-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 75-dollars-16-cents a barrel.

# And finally: The South African National Taxi Council is celebrating Valentine’s Day by distributing roses to commuters and taxi drivers at the Bosman taxi rank in Pretoria.The event is part of SANTACO’s ongoing commitment to its Hlokomela campaign, which focuses on customer service. National spokesperson Mmatshikhidi Rebecca Phala told SABC News today is all about showing their heartfelt appreciation:

Stay tuned for more news………….