News 18:00

BULLETIN 8 April 6 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# School closures are extended in the Cape Winelands and Overberg Districts because of the weather 
# The IEC’s power to uphold objections and disqualify candidates is under scrutiny
# And, Olympics: South Africa’s best swimmers fight for qualification this week

# Western Cape Education MEC David Maynier has announced that schools in the Cape Winelands and Overberg education districts will remain closed tomorrow. He says 365 schools have been affected following the harsh weather conditions and predictions of risk. Maynier says approximately 240-thousand learners have been affected:

Meanwhile, leading short-term insurer, Santam, reports a spike in claims, receiving 160 within 48 hours due to severe weather in the Western Cape. Gale force winds and fires have caused widespread damage in places such as Stellenbosch and Fish Hoek, with storm damage in several areas including Paarl, Strand, and Muizenberg. The company has deployed assessors to affected areas to quantify the extent of the damage. Santam’s head of non-motor claims, Rowland Ramalingam, advises the public to take the necessary precautions as extreme weather events intensify.

# The Electoral Commission has cautioned if the Electoral Court rules in favour of the uMkhonto we Sizwe party, unqualified individuals could sit in the National Assembly. The party is challenging the IEC’s decision to bar former president Jacob Zuma from contesting elections due to his previous contempt of court conviction, for failing to appear before the state capture commission. In his arguments, the commission’s legal representative, Tembeka Ngcukaitobi, emphasised that contempt of court was a crime:

# Olympics: South Africa’s best swimmers are fighting it out for qualification for this year’s Games in Paris during this week’s national championships in Gqeberha. Among them are Olympic gold medal winners Tatjana Schoenmaker and Chad le Clos. Thirty-one-year-old Le Clos, whose Olympic medal tally stands at four, doesn’t expect to set the world alight, but wants to defend his national titles. Schoenmaker, who won two medals, set her best time ever in the non-Olympic 50-metres breaststroke, suggesting she’s in good shape for the longer distances.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-62-cents and the euro at 20-rand-19-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-53-cents and Bitcoin trades at 71-thousand-705-dollars-49-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-327-dollars-70-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 89-dollars-69-cents a barrel.

# And, University of Cambridge-trained artificial intelligence expert, professor Tshilidzi Marwala, is receiving the highest academic accolade at the Tshwane University of Technology today. He receives an Honorary Doctorate in Engineering in recognition of his exceptional academic leadership and great strides made in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Marwala has published 27 books on artificial intelligence and related topics and has received more than 45 awards, including the Order of Mapungubwe.

Stay tuned for more news………….