News 13:00

BULLETIN 9 January 1 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Activists and Citizens Forum wants Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi to become the national police commissioner
# ActionSA criticises the government for failing to answer parliamentary questions
# And tennis: The final three wildcards for the Australian Open men’s singles are rewarded

# Activists and Citizens Forum is calling for KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner, Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, to be appointed as the national commissioner. This comes as KZN premier Thami Ntuli has endorsed him for a second term. Last year, Mkhwanazi blew the lid on alleged widespread corruption and political interference within the police and the criminal justice system. Forum spokesperson, Dennis Bloem, says Mkhwanazi  is a true ethical leader:

# ActionSA says the government of national unity has failed a basic test of democratic governance, namely accountability to Parliament. This comes as 64 parliamentary questions submitted during the year have been allowed to lapse and remain unanswered. Top offenders include ministers Dean Macpherson, Solly Malatsi, and Maropene Ramokgopa. ActionSA’s Lerato Ngobeni says in the final weeks of last year, ministries rushed to submit hundreds of last-minute replies in a superficial show of compliance:

# Chinese and Iranian warships docked in the Simon’s Town Naval Base in Cape Town begin their week-long ‘Will for Peace’ exercises with South Africa today. The drills, expected to also involve Russia, form part of BRICS Plus cooperation and focus on maritime security and shipping safety. The exercises risk straining ties with the US, which has criticised South Africa’s relations with Russia and its foreign policy positions. The DA has since criticised the government, demanding transparency on costs, command structures, and diplomatic implications.

# German president, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, has strongly criticised the US foreign policy under president Donald Trump, saying America is destroying the world order. A poll shows 76-percent of Germans feel the US is not a partner that Germany could rely on. By contrast, roughly three-quarters felt they could rely on France and Britain. Steinmeier says the world order must not be allowed to disintegrate into a den of robbers, where the most unscrupulous take whatever they want, and countries are treated as the property of a few great powers.

# Tennis: Former champion Stan Wawrinka, Jordan Thompson, and Chris O’Connell have received the last three wildcards for the men’s singles main draw for the Australian Open. Wawrinka won the title at Melbourne Park in 2014 and reached the semifinals in 2015 and 2017, as well as advancing to the 2020 quarterfinals. This year will be the Swiss star’s final season on tour. The addition of Thompson and O’Connell in the field means there are now 18 Australians set to compete in the men’s and women’s singles main draws.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-54-cents and the euro at 19-rand-26-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-18-cents and Bitcoin trades at 90-thousand-155-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-476-dollars-58-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 62-dollars-6-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….