News 18:00

BULLETIN 23 January 6 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# President Cyril Ramaphosa signs the Expropriation Bill into law
# Chris Brown files a huge lawsuit against Warner Bros over allegations in a documentary
# And cricket: India’s big name batters falter in a forced return to domestic cricket

# President Cyril Ramaphosa has signed the Expropriation Bill into law, replacing the 1975 Expropriation Act. The legislation underwent five-years of public consultation and ensures expropriation is not arbitrary. The Presidency’s spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, says according to the act, authorities must negotiate with property owners and use mediation or courts to resolve disputes. He says the law aims to promote inclusivity and equitable access to resources:

# North West police are probing some of their own members for allegedly helping the escape of a suspected kingpin in illegal mining in Stilfontein. James Tshoaeli, known as Tiger, disappeared after his arrest earlier this month. He was apprehended as he and other illegal mineworkers surfaced from a shaft after an extended standoff with police. Acting provincial commissioner Patrick Asaneng says Tshoaeli was transported by police, but never booked into a station or admitted to a hospital. He says they will not tolerate corrupt members.

# The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse urges Eskom to implement simple, fair, and affordable residential electricity tariffs. They raised concerns over the utility’s proposed 36-percent tariff hikes for 2025/’26, including higher fixed charges and mandatory time-of-use tariffs for solar users. Energy regulator Nersa is expected to announce its decision on the tariff plan by the end of the month. OUTA’s Stefanie Fick says these changes would hurt consumers and discourage clean energy use:

# Chris Brown has filed a nine-billion-rand lawsuit against Warner Brothers for making a documentary about his alleged sexual assault and other accusations. The film, “Chris Brown: A History of Violence” chronicles allegations of domestic violence, assault and sexual misconduct against the 35-year old American R&B singer and rapper. He rose to fame at a young age, but his reputation was tarnished by allegations of domestic violence and other abuse. Brown was convicted of beating Rihanna, then his girlfriend, before the 2009 Grammy Awards, forcing him to miss the event.

# Cricket: Some of India’s top stars faltered on their return to domestic cricket after being told by the sport’s national board to play in home competitions. India’s Test series defeat in Australia earlier this month prompted the Board of Control for Cricket in India to issue new guidelines to promote discipline in the senior men’s set-up. Batters Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Rishabh Pant could not even get to double figures for their domestic teams.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-53-cents and the euro at 19-rand-30-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-85-cents and Bitcoin trades at 102-thousand-85-dollars. Gold sells at two-thousand-743-dollars-24-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 78-dollars-34-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….