News 17:00

BULLETIN 21 June 5 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The IEC is to monitor the developments in commissioner Nomsa Masuku’s fraud case
# A union accuses Grindrod Logistics of rehiring retrenched workers through labour brokers 
# And Rugby: Willie le Roux is out, but Kurt-Lee Arendse is back for the Bulls

# The Electoral Commission says that it will monitor developments in the case of commissioner Nomsa Masuku, accused of fraud and corruption. The Palm Ridge Commercial Crimes Court in Gauteng granted her 20-thousand-rand bail following her arrest earlier today. The IEC clarified that the matter appears to be related to her previous employment at Standard Bank and does not pertain to her tenure at the commission, either as an employee or a commissioner. It is alleged Masuku granted scholarships to friends and family and received kickbacks totaling 1.2-million-rand.

# Tirisano Transport and Services Union has embarked on strikes at Grindrod Logistics, where over 85 workers face retrenchment. The union accuses the company of unfairly dismissing permanent staff and replacing them with lower-paid labour brokers to cut costs. Spokesperson Gcobisa Kelembe disputes the retrenchments’ validity and demands reinstatement of affected employees, condemning the dismissals amid South Africa’s high unemployment rate:

# The City of Cape Town has welcomed the Department of Public Works’ eviction application for unlawful occupants around the Castle of Good Hope in the city centre. Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis emphasised the need to restore the area for tourism and public safety. He says this move is part of efforts to manage public spaces and assist the homeless:

# The death toll from the latest case of tainted liquor in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu has climbed to 47, with over 100 people still in hospital. More than 150 people, suffering from vomiting, stomach aches, and diarrhoea, have needed treatment after drinking methanol-mixed liquor made in the Kallakurichi district. At least 118 people are still being treated in hospitals. Police arrested four people over illicit liquor sales and seized 200 litres of the alcoholic drink. The state government had taken disciplinary action against ten officials for failure to prevent it.

# Rugby: The Bulls have lost playmaker fullback Willie le Roux for the United Rugby Championship final tomorrow, but exciting wing Kurt-Lee Arendse is back in the starting team. Devon Williams moves from wing to fullback. Johan Goosen starts at flyhalf again with Chris Smith on the bench. Akker van der Merwe and Nizaam Carr are two of the impact players included on the bench. Kick-off at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria is at 6pm tomorrow.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-90-cents and the euro at 19-rand-13-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-63-cents and Bitcoin trades at 63-thousand-735-dollars-27-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-362-dollars-70-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 85-dollars-92-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….