News 15:00

BULLETIN 27 February 3 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Cabinet lauds Eskom’s efforts to stabilise the power supply amid load-shedding
# The Oscar-winning actor Gene Hackman and his wife are found dead at home
# And cricket: Pat Cummins starts training for the IPL after an ankle injury kept him out of the Champions Trophy

# The cabinet has welcomed Eskom’s recovery efforts following unexpected failures at multiple power stations that triggered load-shedding. Government highlights that load-shedding was suspended for 323 days in the past year, a big improvement from 32 days the year before. Minister in the Presidency, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, told the media more power is expected soon, with Kusile unit six and Medupi unit four set to come online next month:

# Build One South Africa has warned of nationwide protests if Justice minister Mmamoloko Kubayi fails to release the National Register for Sexual Offenders. After two-years of campaigning and nearly 20-thousand signatures, BOSA demands transparency to protect communities from sexual predators. Acting spokesperson Roger Solomons stresses the need for action against gender-based violence, urging South Africans to support the cause:

# Hollywood actor Gene Hackman, his wife, Betsy Arakawa, and a family dog have been found dead at their home in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Police told Sky News they don’t suspect foul play, but the exact cause of death has not been determined. The 95-year-old former Marine appeared in more than 80 films and won an Oscar in 1971 for a leading role in The French Connection. After he retired from acting he began co-writing adventure novels with Daniel Lenihan. Sixty-three-year-old Arakawa, a classical pianist, married Hackman in 1991.

# Cricket: Australian captain Pat Cummins has returned to bowling while preparing for next month’s Indian Premier League, as well as the final of the Test Championship against South Africa at Lord’s in London in June. He was forced to miss the Champions Trophy in Pakistan due to an ankle injury. Cummins says his ankle is much better after a good rest and should be fine for the IPL, starting on the 22nd of March. He is due to captain Sunrisers Hyderabad in the popular competition.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-42-cents and the euro at 19-rand-30-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-35-cents and Bitcoin trades at 86-thousand-607-dollars. Gold sells at two-thousand-893-dollars-12-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 72-dollars-78-cents a barrel.

# And finally: The South African Weather Service says it is another step closer towards full recovery from the cyber-attack that crippled its ICT systems late last month. The attack caused widespread uncertainty about the entity’s ability to provide critical weather and climate services. Spokesperson Oupa Segalwe says after the recovery the service is now able to digitally transmit all weather products:

Stay tuned for more news………….