News 17:00

BULLETIN 19 March 5 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Hawks raid the home of speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula over corruption allegations 
# GIWUSA joins climate justice activists in a march against Eskom
# And tennis: Aryna Sabalenka’s partner dies suddenly while she prepares for the Miami Open

# The Hawks have conducted a raid on the Johannesburg home of National Assembly speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula. This is linked to corruption allegations during her tenure as Defence minister. About six officials in unmarked cars were seen at her house in Bruma until mid-morning. Reports suggest she’s being investigated for allegedly receiving millions in cash bribes from a South African National Defence Force contractor. Investigations include accusations of soliciting and receiving up to 2.3-million-rand in cash delivered in gift bags.

# Union Giwusa will join forces with climate justice activists and other trade unions to march against Eskom tomorrow. The march will focus on rejecting electricity tariff increases and load-shedding, and a demand for affordable, reliable electricity. Giwusa’s Mametlwe Sebei says they stand firm in advocating for a truly just energy transition that prioritizes clean, safe, and affordable energy for all:

# The South African Union of Students has called on Unisa to investigate allegations of cheating among implicated students. Reports indicate thousands of students are under scrutiny for plagiarism, flagged by Unisa’s online testing system. This isn’t the first time such allegations have surfaced, with similar issues reported last December. According to spokesperson Asive Dlangwa, Unisa says its investigation is aimed at addressing academic misconduct concerns:

# President Cyril Ramaphosa has confirmed the clearance of 25-billion-rand in renewable energy projects.  Speaking at the Sustainable Infrastructure Development Symposium, Ramaphosa announced the Infrastructure Development Act facilitated this by unblocking various government authorisations, including permits, licences and exemptions. He also highlighted over 100 energy projects worth 240-billion-rand, focusing on transmission, gas, renewables, and green hydrogen:

# Tennis: World number two Aryna Sabalenka’s partner has died of a suspected detached blood clot. Former ice hockey player Konstantin Koltsov accompanied the Belarusian to the United States where she was set to participate in the Miami Open from Friday. His former club in Belarus posted the news on social media. The 42-year-old became a coach after his retirement from the game. He has three sons from a previous relationship. Koltsov and 25-year-old Sabalenka were reportedly a couple for the past three years.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 19-rand-92-cents and the euro at 20-rand-54-cents. One British pound costs 24-rand-2-cents and Bitcoin trades at 63-thousand-584-dollars-58-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-153-dollars-80-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 87-dollars-12-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….