News 17:00

BULLETIN 18 June 5 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The president’s inauguration at the Union Buildings is a normal working day
# The premier of KwaZulu-Natal appoints a diverse executive council 
# And Rugby: Pieter-Steph du Toit is to captain the Boks against Wales

# It’s all systems go for president Cyril Ramaphosa’s inauguration tomorrow at the Union Buildings in Pretoria. This ceremony marks Ramaphosa’s re-election following parliamentary confirmation during the first sitting of the seventh administration. He first became president following the resignation of former president Jacob Zuma in February 2018. The event will gather a diverse array of South African and international dignitaries under the theme 30-years of democracy, partnership, and growth. Despite celebrations, the public is reminded that tomorrow remains a normal working day.

# KwaZulu-Natal premier Thami Ntuli has appointed his executive council with a composition reflecting multiple political parties. The council includes four members from the IFP, three from the ANC, two from the DA, and one from the NFP. This diverse appointment aims to foster cooperation and inclusive governance across party lines in the province. Ntuli thanked voters and political allies for their support in achieving a government of provincial unity:

# The United Nations says global conflicts killed three times as many children and twice as many women in 2023 than in the previous year. United Nations rights chief, Volker Turk, told the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva warring parties were increasingly pushing beyond boundaries of what is acceptable and legal. He said his office had gathered data indicating that last year, the number of civilian deaths in armed conflict soared by 72-percent.

Rugby: Flanker Pieter-Steph du Toit will captain the Springboks for the second time as they face Wales at Twickenham on Saturday. Du Toit is part of an exciting loose trio that includes Evan Roos and Kwagga Smith. Jordan Hendrikse will make his debut in the green and gold at flyhalf with the experienced Faf de Klerk at scrumhalf. The talented Edwill van der Merwe makes his debut at wing with the uncapped lock Ben-Jason Dixon and utility back Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu included on the replacements bench.

# Financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-8-cents and the euro at 19-rand-41-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-95-cents and Bitcoin trades at 65-thousand-182-dollars-48-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-313-dollars-90-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 84-dollars-21-cents a barrel.

# And finally: The 1000 Women Trust has launched a national From-Bystander-to-Upstander competition. 1000 Women Trust brand manager, Adrie Jurgensen says this initiative aims to mobilise learners across South African schools to address bullying. Jurgensen says with the distribution of 20-thousand pamphlets to schools, the organisation invites participation in the competition, and encouraging schools on how to intervene when bullying occurs at schools:

Stay tuned for more news………….