News 18:00

BULLETIN 24 February 6 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# AfriForum reports 10 farm murders between October and December and dismisses Senzo Mchunu’s crime stats
# The B20 summit in Cape Town highlights South Africa’s global engagement
# And tennis: Venus Williams turns down her wild card invitation for Indian Wells

# AfriForum has dismissed Police minister Senzo Mchunu’s crime report, stating that at least ten farm murders occurred between October and December 2024 and not one was included in his report. Spokesperson Jacques Broodryk says these incidents, involving farm owners, workers, and security personnel, highlight ongoing rural safety concerns. He accuses Mchunu of downplaying the issue, warning that ignoring farm attacks undermines public trust in law enforcement and emboldens criminals:

# Business Leadership South Africa’s CEO, Busi Mavuso, says South Africa’s hosting of the B20 this week presents a vital opportunity to connect with the global stage and advance the country’s interests. The B20, involving business leaders from around the world, will shape policy recommendations for the G20. Mavuso emphasises the importance of domestic growth, urging government to focus on structural reforms while maintaining fiscal discipline for long-term economic success.

# The DA in Limpopo says over one-billion-rand has been spent on digitising medical files with no clear end in sight. The party has criticised the provincial Department of Health for the slow progress of the Veritas Digital contract, which has scanned files at only 64 of 523 facilities. The DA’s Lindy Wilson is calling for a review, urging that funds be redirected to address more pressing healthcare challenges in the province:

# Russia says it was ready for talks on the three-year old war in Ukraine but would only stop fighting when a peace settlement suits Moscow. Russia also says it was trying to settle the Ukraine conflict with the United States, but that Europe wanted the war to continue. Foreign minister Sergei Lavrov held talks in Turkey on the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion, with uncertainty hanging over US support for the wartorn country under president Donald Trump and Kyiv ceding ground to Moscow on the front line.

# Tennis: Former world number one Venus Williams won’t play in next month’s Indian Wells tournament in the US. The 44-year-old American last week received a wild card after missing most of last year through injury. She is now in 974th place in the word rankings. Williams boycotted the tournament for 15 years after her sister, Serena, was booed by spectators during her victory over Belgian player Kim Clijsters in the final in 2001. This happened after Venus withdrew from the semifinal between the siblings.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-31-cents and the euro at 19-rand-17-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-15-cents and Bitcoin trades at 95-thousand-572-dollars. Gold sells at two-thousand-949-dollars-74-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 74-dollars-10-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….