News 17:00

BULLETIN 21 September 5 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The FW de Klerk Foundation distances itself from its outgoing director’s America-South Africa comments
# The City of Johannesburg joins forces with taxi associations to tackle women’s safety
# And rowing: A river which is home to 500 crocodiles is chosen as an Olympic venue

# The FW de Klerk Foundation has distanced itself from comments by its outgoing executive director, Christo van der Rheede, about tensions between South Africa and the US. News24 reports the foundation said Van der Rheede made unauthorised statements after submitting his resignation, and it has stripped him of sole authority to speak on its behalf until he leaves at the end of the year. The board has established a committee to oversee executive decisions and public statements during the transition.

# The DA says months after minister Gayton McKenzie’s World Cup trip, his Department of Sport, Arts and Culture still cannot produce a final close-out report for the nearly 31-million-rand spent. The minister has faced criticism for failing to provide a detailed financial breakdown of the expenditure and why a large delegation of 151 people was sent to the global spectacle in the US. The DA’s Leah Potgieter says that in July, the party asked the Public Protector to investigate allegations including maladministration:

# Johannesburg mayor Dada Morero says the City will partner with taxi associations to create safer spaces for women and communities. This follows the discovery of nine female bodies in Ekurhuleni. Speaking at the first Johannesburg Mayoral Lecture in Soweto Theatre, Morero said community safety remains vital. Morero says taxi operators will help identify unsafe areas and support police efforts. He emphasised that Johannesburg must become safer for women:

# The American news outlets CNN, MS NOW and Politico are suing the Trump administration over the revocation of their White House press credentials. The three organisations say the credentials were withdrawn after the White House objected to their reporting. They say the move violates their First Amendment rights and threatens independent journalism. The outlets notified the government yesterday that they would file the lawsuit. Reporters from all three were denied access to the White House on Saturday, after President Donald Trump announced the ban.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-26-cents against the rand and the euro at 18-rand-67-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-78-cents and Bitcoin trades at 85-thousand-135-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-363-dollars-12-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 101-dollars-59-cents a barrel.

# And finally: The Fitzroy River in Queensland, Australia, home to about 500 saltwater crocodiles has been chosen as a rowing venue for the 2032 Brisbane Olympics. “Salties” live in fresh and salt water and can grow to more than six metres long. The river has passed an assessment for rowing and canoe sprint events. Three-time Olympic rowing champion Drew Ginn has concerns but says he is sure the athletes will row faster. Another supporter says there are sharks in the sea but people still surf, urging everyone to keep things in perspective.

Stay tuned for more news………….