News 16:00

BULLETIN 16 April 4 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s fight for a gratuity payment of ten-million-rand is postponed 
# A Moja Love presenter is granted bail in an attempted murder case 
# And rugby: Another former All Blacks coach joints Toyota Verblitz in Japan

# Judge Colleen Collis of the High Court in Pretoria has postponed former Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s gratuity case to Thursday. Mkhwebane is contesting the decision by the Public Protector’s office to withhold her ten-million-rand gratuity. She filed papers last month over the payment of the gratuity, which she argued was due to her. The judge says the postponement arises from disputes over the urgency of the case’s enrollment and cost concerns:

# Former Sizokthola presenter on Moja Love, Xolani Maphanga, and a co-accused have been granted bail of five-thousand-rand each by the Soshanguve Magistrate’s Court. NPA regional spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana says they face charges of attempted murder and trespassing. The charges stem from an incident where they allegedly assaulted a woman while searching for drugs at her residence. The complainant reported the matter to the police. Mahanjana says the matter has been postponed to 21 May:

# South Africa has initiated consultations with the European Union in the World Trade Organisation regarding phytosanitary trade regulations affecting South African citrus exports. The regulations, particularly those related to Citrus Black Spot, impose significant financial burdens on local citrus growers. Ministers Thoko Didiza and Ebrahim Patel stress the importance of the citrus industry for job creation and economic growth. The consultations aim to find a resolution to the trade restrictions, safeguarding the industry’s future.

# The UK parliament will today kick off its first debate on prime minister Rishi Sunak’s planned legislation to prevent young people from ever smoking. This comes despite opposition from many in his own Conservative Party. The law would ban the selling of tobacco products to anyone born after 1 January 2009, effectively raising the smoking age by a year each year until it applies to the whole population. The government says this has the potential to phase out smoking in young people almost completely as early as 2040.

# Rugby: Former All Blacks head coach Ian Foster says he is determined to make a difference at Toyota Verblitz when he joins the Japanese team next season. He will reunite with his predecessor, Steve Hansen, who is now Toyota Verblitz’s director of rugby. Foster worked under Hansen as New Zealand’s assistant coach from 2011 to 2019. He left the Kiwis after last year’s World Cup when they lost to South Africa in the final. It’s not exactly clear as yet which role he will fulfil in Japan.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-98-cents and the euro at 20-rand-21-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-64-cents and Bitcoin trades at 63-thousand-394-dollars-4-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-373-dollars-78-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 89-dollars-71-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….