News 14:00

BULLETIN 16 May 2 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Jacob Zuma’s long-awaited trial is scheduled for next year – two decades after the arms deal allegations
# The GOOD party urges the incoming government to develop a programme for the NHI 
# And soccer: Premier League clubs are set to vote on the scrapping of VAR 

# Former president Jacob Zuma is set to finally stand trial next year, 20 years after he was initially charged in connection with the controversial arms deal. The High Court in Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal, has scheduled the trial to run between April and September next year. Zuma and French arms company Thales are charged with corruption, racketeering, fraud, and tax evasion. The trial has been repeatedly delayed, including by efforts to remove state prosecutor Billy Downer. The state hopes for no further delays after a pre-trial conference, set for 29 August.

# The GOOD party urges the incoming government to develop a programme for National Health Insurance to iron out identified wrinkles in the legislation prior to implementation. This is with the explicit aim of developing the confidence of health professionals and the health sector. GOOD’s Brett Herron says South Africa cannot abandon its constitutional responsibilities to develop a just and fair state on the basis of the government’s track-record of incompetence:

# The Border Management Authority has officially assigned 400 junior border guards as law enforcement officials at a passing-out parade at the Police Training College in Pretoria. The event marks a milestone in strengthening South Africa’s border control. Home Affairs deputy minister, Njabulo Nzuza, highlighted the importance of this step in combating illegal migration and addressing border challenges:

# Soccer: English Premier League clubs will vote on the possible abolition of Video Assistant Referees for next season at their annual general meeting next month. This comes after Wolverhampton Wanderers submitted a formal proposal. The club has been on the end of several controversial VAR decisions this season and believes the decision review system is undermining the value of the Premier League brand. For VAR to be scrapped, 14 of the 20 clubs will need to vote in favour.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-22-cents and the euro at 19-rand-80-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-8-cents and Bitcoin trades at 66-thousand-273-dollars-3-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-387-dollars-8-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 82-dollars-41-cents a barrel.

# And finally: South Africa boasts 41 of Africa’s fastest-growing companies, according to Financial Times’ third list of the fastest-growing companies in Africa. This achievement comes despite a low-growth economy, with Resourgenix leading at 542-percent growth, followed by HearX Group at 178-percent. Deimos Cloud tops Information Technology firms at 121-percent growth. Notable entries include Tymebank with 114-percent growth and over eight-million customers. These successes amid economic challenges highlight South Africa’s entrepreneurial resilience and potential for growth in various sectors like fintech, healthcare, and IT.

Stay tuned for more news………….