News 15:00

BULLETIN NEWS AGENCY 23 December 3 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Referendum Party says the government of national unity has become a rubber stamp for ANC policy
# Mozambique braces for the decision over the disputed election results amid rising tensions
# And cricket: South African-born Bevon Jacobs could make his debut for New Zealand in the T20 series against Sri Lanka

# The Referendum Party says the decision to fully implement the Basic Education Laws Amendment Act is extremely significant. RP leader Phil Craig says it confirms what the party already strongly suspected, that the government of national unity has become a rubber stamp for ANC policy. He says this has serious implications which extend well beyond just BELA. Craig says the ANC continues to implement its own economic policy, is proceeding full speed ahead with the National Health Insurance, and is extending race-based policy making:

# ActionSA has revealed that the Ministry of Minerals and Petroleum Resources, under minister Gwede Mantashe, has spent a staggering 1.92-million-rand on international travel in just four months. ActionSA’s Alan Beesley says under the guise of official duties, taxpayer money is being drained to fund what appear to be lavish travel expenditure. He says these patterns are symptomatic of a broader failure by the ANC to give preference to fiscal discipline in governance:

# The City of Tshwane has reported improved reservoir levels, with most exceeding 50-percent of capacity. Mayor Nasiphi Moya urged residents to continue using water wisely, despite challenges from water restrictions imposed by Rand Water. Areas like Soshanguve, Mabopane, and Laudium face ongoing issues due to high consumption, overpopulation, and illegal connections. Bronkhorstspruit remains without water due to the shutdown of its treatment plant. Moya reassures residents interventions are in place, including water tankers to affected areas.

# Mozambique awaits the validation of contested election results from the Constitutional Council, with fears of escalating violence after opposition leader Venancio Mondlane vowed chaos if Frelimo’s Daniel Chapo is declared president. The October election has sparked deadly protests, with at least 130 killed amid claims of vote-rigging. Analysts warn that the nation faces its most dangerous crisis yet, likened to a Southern African Spring.

# Cricket: South African-born batter Bevon Jacobs could make his debut for New Zealand after his maiden call-up for his adopted country’s three T20s at home against Sri Lanka. The 22-year-old, who started playing for Canterbury last year, will also represent Mumbai Indians in next year’s Indian Premier League. This followed his impressive Super Smash campaign in which he scored 134 runs in six innings. National selector Sam Wells says Jacobs is a promising, highly talented player who deserves exposure to the international game.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-40-cents and the euro at 19-rand-13-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-9-cents and Bitcoin trades at 96-thousand-32-dollars. Gold sells at two-thousand-619-dollars-67-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 72-dollars-32-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….