News 17:00

BULLETIN 12 May 5 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# An officer tells the Madlanga Commission the Aeroton bust was his first drug operation
# A youth advocacy group says impeachment will not solve South Africa’s problems
# And soccer: Mexico is ready for the Bafana World Cup opener

# Gauteng Crime Information Management and Analysis Centre head, Marumo Magane, has told the Madlanga Commission that the 715-kilogram Aeroton cocaine seizure in 2021 was the first drug operation he had worked on. Magane said he previously focused on gathering intelligence. He also revealed they did not have a search warrant when they went to the premises where a truck suspected of carrying drugs destined for Aeroton in Johannesburg was parked:

# The Young Intelligent Minds of SA says calls for president Cyril Ramaphosa to resign over the Phala Phala matter are premature. The organisation’s Jeffrey Mabunda says the Constitutional Court ruling on the Section 89 Independent Panel report still needs review and understanding. Mabunda argues Ramaphosa was a victim of crime and not involved in the farm’s daily operations. He says the president should remain in office while the judicial review process continues:

# XA Global Trade Advisors has warned that South African companies may be losing confidence in the country’s trade administration system due to lengthy delays in import duty investigations. Approximately 97-percent of the 33 active investigations have exceeded the six-month deadline, with some cases lingering for more than six years without a decision. In its latest report, the agency says only one new application was submitted to the International Trade Administration Commission of South Africa in the past six months, the lowest in 23 years.

# European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen has proposed a social media delay for children and says new legislation could be put forward soon. She told an EU summit in Copenhagen an expert panel was due to come up with steps on how to protect minors online. Several countries worldwide have already introduced social media bans for minors. Von der Leyen says the question is not whether young people should have access to social media, but whether social media should have access to young people.

# Soccer: Mexican ambassador to South Africa, Sara Valdes Bolano, says they are ready to host Bafana Bafana in the opening match of the World Cup. The encounter at Estadio Azteca on 11 June takes place 16-years after they drew one-all in the 2010 World Cup opener in South Africa. Bolano said in Pretoria Mexico is also looking forward to hosting the 2010 legends match, featuring former players, in Pachuca:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-51-cents against the rand and the euro at 19-rand-38-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-33-cents and Bitcoin trades at 80-thousand-727-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-687-dollars-51-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 105-dollars-43-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….