News 15:00
BULLETIN 3 March 3 pm
Good afternoon. I am……..
In this bulletin:
# Parliament’s standing committee on Public Accounts will probe municipal spending
# Iran vows to attack any ship trying to pass through the Strait of Hormuz
# And motorsport: FIA’s decision over F1 races in the Middle East will be guided by safety and wellbeing
# Parliament’s standing committee on Public Accounts says it will intensify oversight of local government spending amid concerns over wasted funds. Chairperson Songezo Zibi says municipalities must explain why budgets meant for services fail to reach communities. He says the review, aligned with the national budget process, will focus on key metros and infrastructure projects, working with the Auditor-General and the Special Investigating Unit to enforce stricter accountability and prevent recurring financial mismanagement.
# The ANC in Greater Johannesburg is calling for a thorough and urgent investigation into the building collapse in Ormonde. Six people were confirmed dead after a section of the structure that was still under construction caved in yesterday. The retrieval of two other bodies is underway, while one is still unaccounted for. Spokesperson Mantombi Nkosi says the investigation must determine whether health, safety, and labour regulations were upheld:
# The South African Council of Churches has expressed concern at the deadly military actions in the Middle East. The joint US-Israeli attack on Iran has triggered retaliatory strikes across the region, including on countries hosting US military bases. The council’s General Secretary, Mzwandile Molo, says this dangerous spiral of violence places millions of civilians at immediate risk, undermines regional and international security, and threatens already fragile economic and social stability:
Meanwhile, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards says the Strait of Hormuz is closed and they will fire on any ship trying to pass. This is Iran’s most explicit warning since closing the export route on Saturday, a move that threatens to choke a fifth of global oil flows and send crude prices sharply higher. Iranian state media quotes senior official Ebrahim Jabari as saying if anyone tries to pass, the Navy will set those ships ablaze. The reported death toll from US-Israeli strikes meanwhile rose to 787.
The president of motorsport world governing body F-I-A, Mohammed Ben Sulayem, meanwhile says decisions over Formula One races in the Middle East will be guided by everyone’s safety and wellbeing. The conflict in the Middle East has raised uncertainty over the hosting of next month’s races in Bahrein and Saudi Arabia, as well as the Endurance Championship in Qatar at the end of this month. Ben Sulayem says they hope for calm and a swift return to stability at this stage, and are monitoring the situation closely.
# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-42-cents and the euro at 19-rand-2-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-77-cents and Bitcoin trades at 66-thousand-804-dollars. Gold sells at five-thousand-197-dollars-86-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 84-dollars-11-cents a barrel.
Stay tuned for more news………….