News 16:00

BULLETIN 8 April 4 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# South Africa applauds the Human Rights Council’s resolution on the Palestinian territories
# The MK party contends the IEC overstepped its jurisdiction in Zuma’s disqualification to contest the elections
# And, tennis: Djokovic surpasses Federer as the oldest world number one

# South Africa has lauded the Human Rights Council’s adoption of a resolution addressing the Human Rights situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem. This milestone was the council’s first response to the crisis in Gaza. It acknowledges the importance of the International Court of Justice’s provisional measures in South Africa’s genocide case against Israel, calling for an immediate ceasefire. The resolution underscores the need for accountability and prosecution of violators of international humanitarian and human rights laws, and prevention of future violations and international crimes. 

# The uMkhonto we Sizwe party argues the Electoral Commission had no authority to exclude former president Jacob Zuma as a candidate for this year’s elections using Section 47 of the Electoral Act. The party wants the Electoral Court to overturn the IEC’s decision to bar Zuma from contesting the elections due to a criminal record. MK party legal counsel Dali Mpofu contends the IEC overstepped its jurisdiction in Zuma’s disqualification:

# Eskom in the Western Cape advises affected customers to remain patient amid power outages caused by the inclement weather conditions. Provincial spokesperson Kyle Cookson cites structural damages in parts of the network. Cookson warns of ongoing challenges in restoration efforts amidst gale-force winds and heavy rain, leading to major backlogs. He cautions residents to prepare for prolonged periods without electricity supply:

# Cosatu’s parliamentary coordinator, Matthew Parks, says the two-pot retirement system could help South Africans manage the cost of living. He believes despite concerns, the system is able to offer much relief to workers who are battling with debt. Parks says the system is flexible and it offers workers many options:

# Tennis: Novak Djokovic is now officially the oldest world number one ever at 36 years and 322 days, improving Roger Federer of Switzerland’s record. The Serbian reached the position for the first time in July 2011 at the age of 24. Federer became number one for the first time in February 2004, aged 22, while the other member of the Big Three, Rafael Nadal of Spain, was also 22 when he reached the top position in August 2008. Djokovic plays in the Monte Carlo Masters this week, while Nadal is injured and Federer retired.

# And, the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-61-cents and the euro at 20-rand-15-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-49-cents and Bitcoin trades at 72-thousand-320-dollars-10-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-337-dollars-22-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 90-dollars-52-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….