News 16:00

BULLETIN 16 May 4 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# AfriForum vows legal action against the BELA Bill to protect Afrikaans schools 
# Cosatu welcomes the agreement to reopen the Lily Mine after a deadly incident
# And cricket: A dream come true for the new Proteas spinner Nqaba Peter 

# AfriForum has reaffirmed its commitment to oppose the Basic Education Laws Amendment Bill both nationally and internationally. Head of Cultural Affairs, Alana Bailey, says their legal team is preparing to request president Cyril Ramaphosa not to sign the bill after it was approved by the National Assembly this morning. Bailey claims the bill threatens Afrikaans schools and cultural identity by excluding the language from public schools, placing education quality at risk by centralising admissions decisions.

# Cosatu has welcomed the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy’s decision to approve the reopening of the Lily and Barbrook gold mines in Mpumalanga. Lily Mine is the site of the 2016 tragedy where three mineworkers were trapped underground in a container following a fall of ground accident. Their bodies have still not been retrieved. Cosatu’s Matthew Parks says relief can now be provided to the families and workers traumatised by the horrific accident:

# The residents of Hammanskraal, north of Pretoria, have given the City of Tshwane a May 29 deadline to fix their water treatment plant. The South African Human Rights Commission deemed the tap water in the township unsuitable for human consumption following a cholera outbreak last year. Residents have been forced to purchase water or depend on 54 tankers for drinking water, incurring a monthly expense of six-million-rand for the metro. They say the lack of clean water continues to jeopardise their health.

# University of Pretoria professor Danny Bradlow says South Africa has the potential to influence inclusive global economic dialogue and effective governance when the country assumes presidency at the G20 in 2025. The G20 comprises 19 nations, the African Union, as well as the European Union, and represents a significant share of the world’s economy, trade, and population. During its tenure South Africa will host a summit for heads of state and coordinate numerous meetings on economic cooperation. Bradlow urges South Africa to address gaps in the reform of the International Monetary Fund.

# Cricket: The Proteas will head off to the West Indies tomorrow for a series of three T20s that will precede the T20 World Cup in the United States and the Caribbean. Lions leg-spinner Nqaba Peter is included in South Africa’s squad for the series against the Windies, but is not part of the World Cup squad. The 21-year-old burst onto the scene by taking the second-most wickets in Cricket South Africa’s T20 Challenge. Peter says getting the Proteas call-up is a dream come true:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-21-cents and the euro at 19-rand-79-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-5-cents and Bitcoin trades at 66-thousand-312-dollars-14-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-384-dollars-79-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 82-dollars-89-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….