The National Pulse

With the local government elections less than a month away, social media, particularly the X platform, formerly known as Twitter, was buzzing with the words DON’T VOTE ANC, DA & EFF. Political parties have been hot on the campaign trail, wooing voters to mark a tick next to their candidates’ names on the ballot. Let’s make sense of this with… GUEST: Professor Andre Duv...

Following our conversation with the organisers in the build-up to the Wits Social Good Hackathon, we’re now joined by the winning team behind Blockfix, a student-developed app designed to help communities tackle everyday problems like potholes, illegal dumping and broken infrastructure. We find out more on the project with… GUEST: Alton Maseko – Member of BlockFix 

The Employment Services Amendment Bill has sparked fear, anger and misinformation. What’s fact, what’s fiction, and how can an informed public shape the final legislation. GUEST: Sabelo Chalufu – Founder and Director of Better Governance Initiative

Gauteng Health has acknowledged challenges in the supply of some medicines at public facilities while disputing claims that patients are being left without treatment. I’m joined by… GUEST: Steve Mabona - Gauteng Health Department Spokesperson  

South Africa is facing a growing water crisis with ageing infrastructure struggling municipalities and concerns about the reliability and quality of water services. Against this backdrop, the National School of Government and Russia’s RANEPA have launched a programme to strengthen water-management skills among public servants. We find out more with… GUEST: Phindile Mkhwanazi – A...

More than a hundred asylum seekers have gathered outside the Department of Home Affairs Durban Refugee Reception Centre, closing off Che Guevara Road today. Tensions are expected to be high around the centre after the asylum seekers were denied entry by the March and March anti-illegal immigration movement yesterday. Let’s get the latest on this story with… GUEST: Taliesha Naidoo, SAB...

Suspended Deputy National Police Commissioner, Lieutenant-General Shadrack Sibiya, was back in the Randburg Magistrates’ Court in Johannesburg for a formal bail application today. Sibiya is facing a string of charges including rape, human trafficking, contravention of the Firearms Control Act and the alleged sexual grooming of a sixteen-year-old girl. Let’s find out what happened today...

The murder trial of rapper Kiernan “AKA” Forbes and his friend Tebello “Tibz” Motsoane is continuing at the KwaZulu-Natal High Court in Durban. On Monday, the KwaZulu-Natal High Court Judge, Nomfundo Sipunzi, presiding over the murder trial of the alleged killers of Kiernan “AKA” Forbes and Tebello “Tibz” Motsoane, handed down an order effectively pr...

The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) held its first day of interviews yesterday to fill vacancies in the superior and specialist courts. The names of three senior High Court judges will be recommended to President Cyril Ramaphosa following a decision by the JSC. GUEST: Mbekezeli Benjamin, Judges Matter Research and Advocacy Officer

Part of an on-going research into Lifetime exposure to the suicidal thoughts and behaviours of others has uncovered a concerning unmet need for mental healthcare. To share more of the research is…   GUEST: Professor Frederik Booysen – Wits PPS Chair of Health Economics

Civil society organisation, the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity Group (PMBEJD), is calling on the government to play a greater role in determining the prices of essential food items. For more on this, I am joined on the line by… GUEST: Sibusiso Mboto, Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity Group Advocacy Coordinator

About 20 political parties contesting elections in the Eastern Cape will today sign the electoral code of conduct. Let’s talk about the significance of this signing in the province, state of readiness, touching on important milestones such as the readiness to service the 3,6 million registered voters in the province after the disasters the province suffered. For more on this, I am joined on...

Last week, the Commission for Gender Equality told the portfolio committee on health that its investigation into six hospitals in the Eastern Cape found that women who had just given birth in the province’s hospitals were left to sleep on cold, hard floors and benches because there were not enough beds. It was also found that some patients were sharing beds, blood on the floors and mould-cov...

South Africa’s municipalities face persistent service delivery and governance challenges. Government’s Revised White Paper promises change, but the Better Governance Initiative says implementation will determine whether residents see meaningful improvements. GUEST: Sabelo Chalufu – CEO and Founder of Better Governance Initiative  

WhatsApp is introducing optional parental controls that will allow parents to manage aspects of their teenagers’ experience on the messaging platform without accessing their private messages or calls. For more on this, I am joined on the line by… GUEST: Paul Hjul, Hjul Consulting Managing Executive

South Africa’s asylum system has reopened its doors to new applicants following a Constitutional Court judgment that found asylum seekers could not be shut out of the system before their claims were properly considered. So, what do the new rules mean, and why could this actually strengthen the asylum process rather than undermine it? I’m joined by… GUEST: Ashraf Essop – Im...

Community health workers in Cape Town led by SAMWU have launched a month wide pickets against the Western Cape government for various issues. I’m now joined by the Provincial SG to find out more on thi GUEST: Solly Malema - General Secretary of NUPSAW.

South Africa’s young maths champions are preparing to make 24 as Peregrine Capital 24SumMore national final looms. We find out more about this competition with… GUEST: Jacques Conradie – CEO of Peregrine Capital 

Today, the country observes World Teachers' Day, an annual celebration on October 5 to commemorate the adoption of the 1996 International Labour Organisation and Unesco recommendation on the status of teachers. The recommendation sets benchmarks on the rights and responsibilities of teachers and standards for their further education, recruitment, employment, and teaching and learning conditions&he...

The Portfolio Committee on International Relations and Cooperation has noted with concern the Department of International Relations and Cooperation’s confirmation that it has issued a third demarche to the Ambassador of the United States of America to South Africa, Leo Brent Bozell III, over what DIRCO has described as undiplomatic conduct. For more on this, I am joined on the line by&hellip...

The Mitchells Plain Safety and Development Forum has launched a trauma-informed holiday programme for children aged 7 to 14. To tell us more on this is… GUEST: Wendy Abrahams - Founder of the Advance Edukos Foundation and a resident of Strandfontein who grew up in Mitchells Plain

#TeachersDay Teachers do far more than teach lessons and prepare learners for exams they are often the first to recognise potential in a young person before they see it in themselves. As we mark World Teachers’ Day today, we look at the vital role teachers play in shaping futures, and the support they need to fulfil that role. GUEST: Shaun Fuchs – CEO and Founder of Centennial Schools...

  For many small businesses, success is not only about having a good product or service. Soft skills such as communication, negotiation and conflict management can play a critical role in attracting clients, resolving challenges and building sustainable businesses. Our guest this afternoon takes us through the importance of this… GUEST: Promise Twala, founder and Chief Operations Offic...

The long-awaited trial into the murders of rapper Kiernan “AKA” Forbes and his friend, Chef Tebello “Tibz” Motsoane finally got under way at the Durban High Court on today. We cross now to our SABC Reporter to find out on today’s proceeding… GUEST: Celumusa Zulu – SABC Reporter  

A KwaZulu-Natal Midlands sexual misconduct scandal is widening with 60 women now coming forward with allegations against a Hilton man. The allegations span several years with a private investigator working with police to revisit an earlier case that stalled. We find out more on the case… GUEST: Brad Nathanson - Private investigator investigating the case