News 16:00

BULLETIN 11 April 4 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Ratings Afrika points to financial woes at South Africa’s  municipalities due to weak governance
# The DA raises concern over police’s response times 
# And, rugby: Libbok and Van Staden takes the World Cup to George this weekend

# Ratings Afrika’s recent report has shed some light on the financial struggles faced by South Africa’s municipalities, attributing these challenges to weak governance. The report underscores the persistent issues surrounding financial sustainability, which in turn lead to inadequate service delivery for a significant portion of the population. The organisation’s analyst, Leon Claassen, raises concerns about the potential for certain municipalities to become dysfunctional if these issues are not addressed effectively:

# Police Minister Bheki Cele disclosed that in the Northern Cape, police take over an hour on average to respond to violent crimes. Gauteng police stations linked to 10111 command centres take 11 minutes 56 seconds to respond, while other provinces face varying response times. DA national spokesperson for Police, Okkie Terblanche, has criticised these figures, citing the high crime rates and understaffing in the police service:

# Most markets edged down today after US inflation dealt a blow to hopes for a June interest rate cut. The higher than expected inflation has led to a warning that the next move could even be a hike. The dollar reached a 34-year high against the yen, fuelling speculation Japanese authorities will step in to support their beleaguered currency. US inflation of 3.5-percent year-on-year was above consensus for the third month in a row, and observers warn the pick-up might not be a blip but could point to a worrying trend.

# Rugby: Springbok fans in the Southern Cape can meet two of their heroes on Sunday when the World Cup trophy tour goes to George. Manie Libbok, who matriculated in the city, and Marco van Staden will show off the Webb Ellis Cup at the Garden Route Mall and the SA Cup match between SWD Eagles and Boland Kavaliers at Outeniqua Park. SA Rugby says most of the Boks are tied up, but they wanted to fulfil their promise to take the cup to all parts of the country.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-79-cents and the euro at 20-rand-16-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-58-cents and Bitcoin trades at 70-thousand-184-dollars-44-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-335-dollars-95-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 90-dollars-15-cents a barrel.

# And finally, the Public Servants Association says government must bolster public service as South Africa marks 30-years of democracy this month. It says despite progress in education, sports, arts, culture, and the economy, challenges like poverty, inequality, unemployment, corruption, and crime, persist. The association’s Claude Naiker says government has made advancements in its legal and workplace sectors with a functional justice system and progressive labour laws, but more efforts are needed to combat corruption and address social and economic disparities.

Stay tuned for more news………….