News 13:00

BULLETIN 7 January 1 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Freedom Front Plus requests an urgent Portfolio Committee meeting, following Outa’s latest NSFAS report
#  Gauteng Traffic Police intensify law enforcement operations today
#  And, Rugby: The United Rugby Championship sets new attendance records

The Freedom Front Plus requested an urgent meeting of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Higher Education, Science, and Innovation after the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse’s new allegations of corruption once again rocked the National Student Financial Aid Scheme. NSFAS has been in a state of emergency ever since it was saddled with delivering on the ANC’s promise of free higher education in 2018. The FF Plus’s Wynand Boshoff says, there is a constant cloud of corruption hanging over the Scheme and its budget of more than 40-billion-rand:

# The Department of Tourism says the decrease in the fuel price will facilitate ease of access to tourist attractions, and contribute to growing tourism communities in South Africa. The department’s Spokesperson, Tasneem Carrim says the country has a wealth of diverse tourism and cultural offerings nestled in their small dorpies, townships, and villages. She says this part of the domestic market is the backbone of the tourism sector, playing a crucial role in addressing the holiday and leisure needs of visitors, whilst creating much-needed employment for the citizenry:

# The Gauteng Traffic Police says it will intensify law enforcement operations today across the province to ensure that holidaymakers return safely from the festive season. Major routes in the province are expected to be busy today until late in the evening as holidaymakers return to the province. The Traffic spokesperson, Sello Maremane says to date, a total of 290 people have lost their lives due to road fatalities in the province since the beginning of the festive season:

# South Korea’s border island of Yeon-pyeong warned residents to stay inside Sunday, local officials told AFP, as North Korea for a third consecutive day was conducting live-fire drills near the contested maritime border with the South. The powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un earlier today denied Seoul’s claims that Pyongyang had fired dozens of artillery rounds near their border yesterday. The South’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the shells landed in a buffer zone created under a 2018 tension-reducing deal. That deal fell apart in November after the North launched a spy satellite.

# And, finally, Rugby: Another new record was set by the United Rugby Championship yesterday, with the league setting an all-time high for single-round attendance. SuperSport reports, the 19-thousand-703 fans who attended the final game of Round 8 in Durban, where the Sharks took on the Lions, pushed the total for the round to 135-thousand-747, which surpasses the figure of 123-thousand-207 set in Round 11 last season. This comes off the back of a record 1.6-million total attendance for the 2022/23 URC season, which also saw the highest-ever crowd for the league’s Grand Final, 56-thousand-334. An all-time high of 37.4-million watched across the campaign.

Stay tuned for more news………….