News 14:00

BULLETIN 28 March 2 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The FF Plus says South Africa tightens its back as America tightens the screws
# Phil Craig defends his Cape Independence advocacy amid calls for his deportation
# And cricket: The Proteas will visit Zimbabwe for the first time since 2014

# The Freedom Front Plus says the screws of US sanctions against South Africa are already being tightened and the ANC in the government of national unity must take note of this. Corné Mulder of the FF Plus says according to a media report from Azernews, the US Department of Commerce has imposed export restrictions on 70 companies from South Africa, Iran, China, the United Arab Emirates and Pakistan:

# Cape Independence advocate Phil Craig has responded to calls for his deportation, asserting his legal residency in South Africa and right to free expression. The British-born member of the Cape Independence advocacy group, says his immigration status is irrelevant to the broader movement for Western Cape self-determination. He plans to visit the US in April to seek diplomatic support for Cape Independence. Craig insists secession is constitutionally viable and calls for a referendum to gauge public support.

# The National Council of SPCAs says it has uncovered that the Eastern Cape Gambling Board has enabled a licensed South African bookmaker to promote and profit from illegal cockfighting. The bookmaker, referred to as ‘Roosterbet’ for legal reasons, has been offering bets on cockfighting streamed from the Philippines. The council’s spokesperson, Jacques Peacock, says this is despite online cockfighting being banned in the Philippines since 2022 due to concerns over illegal gambling, criminal activity, and animal cruelty:

# Cricket: The Proteas will tour Zimbabwe for the first time in 11 years this season. The two countries will meet in two Tests as well as a T20 tri-series with New Zealand, with all the matches taking place in Bulawayo. The first Test will start on the 28th of June and the second one on the sixth of July, shortly after the Proteas take on Australia in the final of the world Test championship at Lord’s in London. The T20 series starts on the 22nd of July.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-14-cents and the euro at 19-rand-55-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-48-cents and Bitcoin trades at 85-thousand-171-dollars. Gold sells at three-thousand-and-67-dollars-66-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 73-dollars-19-cents a barrel.

# And finally: Discovery Bank has introduced new security features, including a panic code for secretly alerting law enforcement during emergencies. CEO Hylton Kallner calls it an industry-first innovation as customers store valuable accounts in a digital vault, accessible via a security code. He explains if forced to open under duress, entering a custom panic code will trigger covert monitoring and emergency response. In addition, the bank has launched fraud warnings and AI-powered support to enhance customer safety amid rising financial crimes.

Stay tuned for more news………….