News 16:00

BULLETIN 25 May 4 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Public Protector applauds internal auditor whistleblowers who report corruption
# Electricity is restored to 80-percent of customers affected by the recent severe weather in the Western Cape
# And cricket: The IPL playoff stage kicks off this week

# Public Protector Kholeka Gcaleka has praised internal auditors who risk their safety as whistleblowers to report wrongdoing. She was speaking at the African Federation of Institutes of Internal Auditors’ Governance Forum. Gcaleka calls for stronger protection and financial support for whistleblowers, warning they remain vulnerable after exposing corruption. She also stresses the critical role of internal auditors in preventing corruption before public funds are lost:

# Western Cape premier Alan Winde says Eskom has restored electricity to 80-percent of affected customers as recovery and mop-up operations continue. This follows severe weather that caused widespread damage to infrastructure, disrupted electricity supply and affected hundreds of roads. Winde says in the Cape Winelands District, repairs to the main power line between Boskloof and Romansrivier are progressing, while teams are also attending to faults in Chavonnes, Hexrivier, Rawsonville and Witzenberg:

# City Power says it is beginning to see meaningful progress in reducing electricity losses across the City of Johannesburg. This follows several interventions implemented across the organisation, which continue to strengthen revenue management, improve operational efficiency, and support long-term network sustainability. City Power’s spokesperson, Isaac Mangena, says electricity losses have reduced from approximately 40.53-percent in July last year to 25.95-percent in April:

# Cricket: The Indian Premier League moves to the playoff stage this week. Defending champions, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, and Gujarat Titans, who finished first and second respectively in the league stage, will play each other in qualifier one in Dharamsala tomorrow. The winner will progress straight to Sunday’s final in Ahmedabad. The loser will get another chance of reaching the final on Friday, when they face the winner of Wednesday’s eliminator between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals in New Chandigarh.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-30-cents and the euro at 18-rand-98-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-1-cent and Bitcoin trades at 77-thousand-325-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-558-dollars-76-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 94-dollars-55-cents a barrel.

# And finally: KwaZulu-Natal premier Thami Ntuli has urged residents to promote Ubuntu and social cohesion during Africa Day celebrations in Durban, amid growing tensions over undocumented migrants. Ntuli says illegal migration must be addressed within the law, while warning against xenophobia. He confirmed government is engaging communities through dialogue and increasing border security measures. He added authorities will continue intelligence-driven operations amid threats against investment and social stability in the province.

Stay tuned for more news………….