News 17:00

BULLETIN 12 January 5 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# AfriForum pledges to defend property rights amid Fikile Mbalula’s expropriation plans
# Tennis: A former world number three retires at the age of 35
# And, a Japanese chimpanzee who counted and painted, dies at 49

# AfriForum has vowed to defend private property rights following ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula’s pledge to push for land expropriation without compensation. Speaking at the ANC’s 114th anniversary in Mogwase, North West, Mbalula confirmed intentions to nationalise the Reserve Bank. AfriForum’s Ernst van Zyl says the organisation will challenge the Expropriation Act in the High Court in Western Cape in March 2026 and continue campaigns highlighting constitutional importance of property rights:

# The Soil of Africa Civic Movement is calling for the immediate placement of all learners and transparency on infrastructure plans in Gauteng. Over four thousand learners remain unplaced as part of the 2026 Online Admissions process for Grade 1 and Grade 8. The movement’s chairperson, Bongani Ramontja, says it will conduct an oversight visit at the Ekurhuleni North Education District today to assess the situation:

# Nelson Mandela Bay deputy mayor Gary van Niekerk has urged residents to remain cautious following recent wildfires. Speaking to SABC News, van Niekerk warns that with temperatures nearing 30-degrees Celsius, strong winds, and dry conditions, embers could reignite new fires. Private property damage has been minimal, however, municipal infrastructure has been affected with water supply disrupted. He called on residents to remain vigilant as they await possible rain:

# Tennis: Canadian Milos Raonic has announced his retirement after a 15-year career wrecked by injuries. The 35-year-old reached world number three in November 2016, but could not built on his promising start as he was sidelined for extended periods several times. Raonic, who earned the nickname “Missile” for his powerful services, nevertheless won eight ATP tour titles and almost 330-million-rand in prize money. He says he is very lucky to have fulfilled his dreams since tennis had been his love and obsession for most of his life.  

# Financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-41-cents and the euro at 19-rand-16-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-10-cents and Bitcoin trades at 90-thousand-609-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-592-dollars-51-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 62-dollars-99-cents a barrel.

# And finally: A female chimpanzee famous for her cognitive skills has died in Japan at 49. The Kyoto University’s Centre for the Evolutionary Origins of Human Behaviour says Ai died of old age and organ failure. She was born in western Africa and arrived in Japan in 1977, where she became the namesake of the Ai research programme into chimpanzees’ minds. Ai was able to use numbers, identify colours, and enjoyed drawing and painting. A scarf made from one of her paintings was gifted to the late primatologist Jane Goodall in 2017.

Stay tuned for more news………….