News 14:00
BULLETIN 25 November 2 pm
Good afternoon. I am……..
In this bulletin:
# The Pretoria High School for Girls’ governing body seeks a full report on alleged racism
# Gangsterism and bullying are identified as key threats to learner safety in Gauteng
# And swimming: Australia’s most decorated Olympian Emma McKeon retires
# The Pretoria High School for Girls’ governing body is taking legal action to compel the Gauteng Education Department to release its full racism report. Allegations include a whites-only WhatsApp group and white teachers ignoring black colleagues. School governing body chairperson Craig Hezlett dismissed the report summary as a witch hunt. He told Newzroom Afrika the report failed to substantiate claims of racism:
Meanwhile, the Gauteng Education Department has identified gangsterism and bullying as key threats to learner safety. MEC Matome Chiloane held a school safety imbizo in Tsakane, Ekurhuleni. A total of 245 schools in the province have been identified as high-risk concerning safety and violence. Chiloane says the increased level of school fights among learners is another concerning issue:
# The Financial Sector Conduct Authority has addressed high transaction fees under the two-pot retirement system where fees average 357-rand for 30-thousand-rand. The authority has insisted on transparency and fairness from fund administrators. MoneyWeb reports that the FSCA highlights issues such as payment delays, poor communication, and system inefficiencies since the system’s September launch. Additionally, seven-thousand-770 employers owe 5.2-billion-rand in pension contributions, affecting 310-thousand workers, with municipalities and the private security sector as top offenders.
# Thousands of protesters are marching towards Pakistan’s capital Islamabad as part of nationwide protests calling for the release of former prime minister Imran Khan. The march is in response to a call made by Khan to his supporters. The 72-year-old is serving a three-year jail term for corruption, which he denies. Authorities have put the capital under lockdown, blocking highways and suspending mobile and internet services in certain areas. The march began yesterday, with Khan’s wife and former first lady, Bushra Bibi, among those leading the rallies.
# Swimming: Australia’s most decorated Olympian, Emma McKeon, has announced her retirement, saying she is ready to start the next chapter of her life. The 30-year-old has won 14 Olympic medals, six of them gold, over the Rio, Tokyo and Paris Games. She is also an eight-time world record holder. Swimming Australia’s CEO, Rob Woodhouse, says McKeon will be remembered for how she represented swimming, as the standards she set in and out of the water were second to none.
# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-4-cents and the euro at 18-rand-92-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-68-cents and Bitcoin trades at 98-thousand-646-dollars. Gold sells at two-thousand-670-dollars-58-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 74-dollars-25-cents a barrel.
Stay tuned for more news………….