News 13:00

BULLETIN 7 February 1 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Parliament responds to the DA’s allegations of abuse of power and maladministration
# Firefighters continue to battle the wildfire in Du Toitskloof Pass
# And cricket: Pakistan narrowly trump the Netherlands in the T20 World Cup opening match

# Parliament says it remains open to address matters of concern raised by any political party through the appropriate parliamentary processes. Parliament was responding to a media statement by the DA regarding allegations of maladministration and abuse of power. The party submitted a 393-page dossier probing Secretary to Parliament Xolile George’s rapid salary escalation, amongst others. Spokesperson Moloto Mothapo says it would have been appropriate for the DA to raise these concerns within the Parliament Joint Standing Committee on the Financial Management:

# KwaZulu-Natal premier Thamsanqa Ntuli says government and the Agriculture Department are committed to bring foot-and-mouth disease cases under control across the country. Ntuli held a media briefing on measures taken by the Provincial Government to curb the spread of FMD in the Province. The premier says 700-thousand doses of FMD vaccine is expected from the Botswana Vaccine Institute by the end of this month:

Meanwhile, the provincial Agriculture Department’s Veterinary Services division informed Agri Western Cape and the Red Meat Producers’ Organisation in the Western Cape that foot-and-mouth disease cases are currently under investigation in the Khayelitsha and Mfuleni areas. Agri Western Cape spokesperson Louis Wessels says this once again confirms the critical importance of biosecurity. He says FMD remains a state-controlled disease, and the department is taking responsibility for the containment and control of the disease, with the support of all relevant stakeholders:

# The Cape Winelands District Municipality’s Fire Services in the Western Cape, together with their partner CapeNature, continue to battle a wildfire at Du Toitskloof Pass in the Western Cape. Spokesperson Anesca Roodt says the fire originated on the Worcester side of the pass yesterday afternoon and has burned over an extensive area in difficult terrain. She says by yesterday evening, the fire crossed over to the Paarl side of the pass:

# Organisers of a Gaza-bound aid flotilla that Israel seized at sea last year say they are planning a new, larger mission next month. The Global Sumud Flotilla announced that it will sail more than 100 boats carrying up to one-thousand activists, including medics and war crimes investigators, to Gaza in March. In a meeting at the Nelson Mandela Foundation in Johannesburg, one of the campaigners, Mandla Mandela, grandson of the late Nelson Mandela, described the undertaking as the largest-ever, civilian-led mobilisation against Israel’s actions in Gaza.

# And cricket: Pakistan survived a scare to defeat the Netherlands by three wickets in a thrilling T20 World Cup opener in Colombo. Chasing 148, Pakistan collapsed from 98 for 2 to 114 for 7, needing 29 runs from the final 12 balls. Player of the Match Faheem Ashraf scored 29 off 11 balls, turning the game with a 24-run 19th over, including three sixes. Earlier, Salman Mirza, on 3 for 24, helped bowl out the Dutch for 147. Scotland and the West Indies are playing now, and later today India is taking on the USA.

Stay tuned for more news………….