News 13:00

BULLETIN 21 October 1 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The suspended Police minister Senzo Mchunu denies links to businessman Vusimusi ‘Cat’ Matlala
# ZANU-PF moves to extend Emmerson Mnangagwa’s presidency until 2030
# And the French police are racing against time to recover the priceless jewels stolen from the Louvre

# Suspended Police minister Senzo Mchunu has denied any association with controversial businessman Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala before Parliament’s ad hoc committee. Mchunu told members of Parliament he has never met or spoken to Matlala, stating that his lawyers obtained an affidavit confirming this from Matlala’s legal team:

Meanwhile, Witness A has told the Madlanga commission the political killings task team only joined engineer Armand Swart’s murder investigation after he and his colleague, Witness B, were placed under 24-hour protection. He said their safety was taken over by Crime Intelligence. Witness A added that being moved to safe houses changed their lives completely, as they could no longer return home or live normally while under tight security:

Moving abroad:

# Zimbabwe’s ruling party, ZANU-PF, has endorsed extending president Emmerson Mnangagwa’s term until 2030. This would allow the 83-year-old leader to remain in power until the age of 88. The plan, adopted at the party’s annual conference in Mutare, directs the Ministry of Justice and Parliament to draft constitutional amendments. Critics, including opposition parties and civil society, warn this undermines democracy and public trust. Justice minister Ziyambi Ziyambi defended the move, citing continuity and stability for Mnangagwa’s Vision 2030 development agenda.

# Rugby: Former All Black great Wayne Smith has urged his country and coach Scott Robertson to be brave when they aim for a fifth undefeated end of year tour. New Zealand starts the Northern Hemisphere tour against Ireland in Chicago in the US on the first of November, followed by Tests against Scotland, England, and Wales. The Kiwis previously won all four matches against the home nations in 1978, 2005, 2008 and 2010. Smith believes the All Blacks have the necessary experience to do it again.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-31-cents and the euro at 20-rand-12-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-17-cents and Bitcoin trades at 107-thousand-826-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-269-dollars-17-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 60-dollars-81-cents a barrel.

# And finally: French police face a race against time to recover objects stolen in a daring heist at the world-famous Louvre Museum in Paris. An art detective told Sky News it’s the theft of the decade and to recover the priceless crown jewels, police will need to find the culprits within a week. Eight objects were stolen with a ninth item recovered at the scene. The stolen jewellery include earrings, necklaces, tiaras and a brooch which belonged to the French royals Queen Marie-Amelie, Queen Hortense, Empress Marie and Empress Eugenie.

Stay tuned for more news………….