News 16:00

BULLETIN16 September 4 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# More than 136-thousand candidates are set to contest the local government elections
# An Eastern Cape farmer is found guilty of rape and human trafficking
# And the EU opens the door to Canada as its first associate member

# The Electoral Commission has certified 136-thousand-790 candidates to contest the local government elections on 4 November. Major metros, including Johannesburg, Tshwane and Ekurhuleni, will have double-column ballots due to the high number of political parties. The commission’s CEO, Sy Mamabolo, told the media special vote applications will open on 21 September, while political parties will sign the electoral code of conduct on 23 September:

# Eastern Cape farmer Louis Lategan has been found guilty of rape and human trafficking in the Makhanda High Court. He was charged for luring six young women to his remote farm with offers of au pair work before sexually assaulting them. The court rejected his claims that the sexual encounters were consensual and that his former wife had conspired with the complainants against him. Lategan faced 22 charges, including six counts of human trafficking and eight of rape.

The South African Council of Churches is meanwhile calling for urgent action to protect women following the discovery of eight women’s bodies on Gauteng’s East Rand over two months. General-secretary, Reverend Mzwandile Molo, told the SABC the deaths in Kempton Park, Olifantsfontein and Springs have sparked fear and outrage. He calls for swift investigations, prosecutions, and implementation of the earlier declaration of gender-based violence and femicide as a national disaster:

Moving abroad:

# The European Union is opening the door for Canada to become its first associate member. European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen says the proposed status is not currently defined in EU treaties and would fall short of full membership. She says the arrangement could deepen cooperation with Canada on trade, defence, technology, energy and critical minerals. Canadian prime minister Mark Carney has been seeking closer ties with Europe as relations with the United States become more difficult. He is due to address the European Parliament later today.

On to sports news:

# Athletics: World Athletics president Sebastian Coe says taking the World Championships to Africa for the first time in 2029 will be historic, as hosts Nairobi presented a compelling and emotional bid. Kenya is the second-most successful nation in the championships’ history and finished second in Tokyo last year with eleven medals, including seven gold. Coe says Nairobi’s bid combined strong operational planning and financial guarantees, with a renovated Kasarani Stadium:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-27-cents and the euro at 18-rand-77-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-89-cents and Bitcoin trades at 76-thousand-54-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-340-dollars-67-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 108-dollars-61-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….