News 13:00

BULLETIN 24 August 1 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The National Lotteries Commission chair Barney Pityana resigns
# Experts are  concerned about a surge of gambling among women
# And rugby: Rassie says yesterday’s win restored momentum, but New Zealand remains the challenge

# National Lotteries Commission chairperson Barney Pityana has resigned, two years before completing his five-year term. He informed Trade, Industry, and Competition Minister Parks Tau in writing, but his reasons remain unclear. Appointed in 2022 after a disputed process, Pityana succeeded scandal-hit Alfred Nevhutanda. Working with Commissioner Jodi Scholtz and a new board, he introduced anti-corruption measures to stabilise the troubled body. Despite progress, the NLC faces ongoing reputational damage as the Special Investigating Unit probes irregular projects worth at least two-billion-rand.

# Experts warn of growing financial risks as a 2025 Old Mutual Savings and Investment Monitor reveals more women are gambling to supplement income. The survey found 46-percent of working women engage in gambling, with 52-percent doing so for extra income. Many, especially single mothers, face debt and financial strain. Old Mutual Head of Knowledge and Insights, Vuyokazi Mabude, highlighted overspending, poly-jobs, and sandwich-generation pressures as contributors to women’s financial stress:

# EFF leader Julius Malema is set to deliver the keynote address at the Nigerian Bar Association Annual General Conference this afternoon. The event will be hosted at the Enugu International Conference Centre in Enugu State, Nigeria. Discussions will focus on legal developments, justice reforms, and the role of legal practitioners in strengthening democratic governance and the rule of law in Nigeria.

# US defence secretary Pete Hegseth has fired the Pentagon’s intelligence agency chief, lieutenant general Jeffery Kruse, just weeks after a White House rebuke of a review assessing the impact of American strikes on Iran. In June, President Donald Trump pushed back strongly on a leaked report that found the attacks on Iran had set back its nuclear programme by only months. In a statement, US Senator Mark Warner warned that Kruse’s sacking was a sign that Trump had a dangerous habit of treating intelligence as a loyalty test rather than a safeguard for the country.

# Rugby: Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus welcomed a morale-boosting victory over Australia on Saturday, but the hopes of retaining the Rugby Championship title still rested on victory in New Zealand. Erasmus said the 30-22 victory was far from a perfect performance. He said compared to last week’s two or three out of ten performance, this week was a six or seven. The Springboks will take a 36-man squad on tour next week for two tests, which remain pivotal in the Boks’ hopes.  The first match against New Zealand will be at Eden Park in Auckland on 6 September.

# And finally, president Cyril Ramaphosa met Toyota Tsusho president and CEO Toshimitsu Imai on the sidelines of the 9th Tokyo International Conference on African Development Summit in Yokohama, Japan. The discussions centered on strengthening trade and investment ties and explored opportunities to boost economic collaboration, promote sustainable development, and enhance industrial partnerships. Ramaphosa and the South African delegation were surprisingly welcomed with the South African hymn, Wahambanathi, sung by two Japanese musicians:

Stay tuned for more news………….