First Take SA

The Department of Justice and Constitutional Development says police officers are allowed to carry their service pistols when entering any building in South Africa, as long as they have the appropriate permit on them. This comes after a police officer who was attending a divorce matter at the Durban Magistrate's Court, shot dead his estranged wife during court proceedings. A second person - believ...

South Africa has among the highest rates of child mortality in the world. A recent Children's Institute report estimates that 34 in every one-thousand children die before their fifth birthday. Most of these deaths can be prevented through the combined efforts of the state and families

In a resurgence of violence in northern Mozambique, 12 people have been killed in a suspected militant attack, with thousands of villagers fleeing the area into neighbouring Tanzania. Officials in the Cabo Delgado province say the attackers set fire to houses and used knives to kill women and children. This is the third such incident this month in Cabo Delgado, leaving 20 dead in all. Over the pas...

The Reserve Bank's Monetary Policy Committee has decided to hike the repo rate by 25 basis points citing the rising inflation outlook in the longer term due to administered prices. Delivering the committee's decision, Reserve Bank governor Lesetja Kganyago warned that the longer term inflation outlook remains elevated.

Bargain hunters are on the prowl this morning hours before shops open for today's Black Friday shopping frenzy. The annual ritual of Black Friday is a shopping phenomenon that gives consumers the opportunity to buy different items at supposedly low prices.

A grade one learner has been stabbed to death in Makapanstad, North West, allegedly by a Grade 11 learner from another school. The Basic education department said in a statement YESTERDY that the incident happened at the Dikeledi Makapan Primary School.

Leading international tobacco company, Philip Morris International is shifting its focus . The company is replacing cigarettes with smoke-free products . The aim is to create a better world for smokers .

The South African Savings Institute has warned consumers against reckless spending ahead of Black Friday. The institute says consumers should guard against spending money they do not have on things they do not need. South Africa has joined other countries in participating in Black Friday, the name given to the shopping day after Thanksgiving in the Unites States.

Sibanye Stillwater says it is crucial for both business and its employees that the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) agrees to sign the same wage agreement that the other three represented unions have agreed to. AMCU has refused to sign the wage offer and it's members at the mine will do down tools today. AMCU, which represents forty-three percent of the 32-thousand two-hund...

Insurance company Momentum has bowed down to pressure and agreed to pay the two point four million rands death benefit to the wife of a Durban man that was killed during a hijacking in Shallcross. Momentum had faced a storm of outrage on social media after it refused to pay the claim because the victim, Nathan Ganas, had not disclosed his high blood sugar levels. SABC's Francis Herd last night spo...

Limpopo police have urged motorists to be vigilant when travelling on the N1 between Polokwane and the Gauteng province. This follows reports of some motorists being attacked on the major highway. Two truck drivers were recently robbed of their personal belongings and assaulted by a group of criminals near the Kranskop tollgate. There have also been reports on social media of sharp objects being p...

Power utility ESKOM says its power supply will remain constrained this week and is urging residents and businesses to use electricity sparingly. The utility has also urged consumers to check their planned load shedding schedule. A comprehensive "Stage 1" load shedding schedule was implemented on Sunday.

Sibanye-Stillwater has described the planned strike action for tomorrow* (Wednesday) by the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) as unfortunate and irresponsible. AMCU, which represents forty-three percent of the 32-thousand two-hundred employees at the mining company is demanding higher wages following negotiations which started as early as June this year. Sibanye Stillwater h...

Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan will TODAY take the seat before Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo at the state capture commission of inquiry in Parktown, Johannesburg. His statement to the commission, which was leaked to the media 2 weeks ago, detailed behind-the-scenes plans to procure nuclear energy, with former President Jacob Zuma insisting the country needed to secure the deal. Th...

Former Cape Town mayor, Patricia de Lille is expected to announce the name of her new political party soon. De Lille resigned as the city's executive mayor and from the DA last month, after an 18-month battle with the party.

The Automobile Association has announced that South Africans could expect a huge drop in fuel prices next month. The AA says based on current data, the price of petrol could drop by R1.54 a litre, the price of diesel by 92c and illuminating paraffin by 85c. However, Efficient Group chief ecnomist Dawie Roodt says motorists may not see the full benefits of the price cuts

Nine learners from Dlulukwana Senior Primary School suspected of food poisoning remain in a stable condition at the St Barnabas Hospital in Libode in the Eastern Cape. This after a total of sixty-nine lerners were rushed to the hospital after complaining of stomach cramps which they say started last week Friday. The province's health spokesperson, Lwandile Sicwetsha says some of the learners had a...

Standing Committee on Public Accounts Chair Themba Godi says the SABC must resolve its irregular expenditure behaviour and not use it as an excuse to retrench workers. The SABC met with SCOPA yesteraday and committed itself to ensuring that it curbs irregular expenditure. For the financial year under review the Corporation has received a disclaimer from the Auditor General and it says because of t...

The Special Investigating Unit - SIU - has managed to set aside a contract which the SABC entered into irregularly with Vision View Production to the value of approximately R52 million. The contract, annulled last Friday, comes hot on the heels of another contract, which the SIU also managed to have set aside in May this year, which had been irregularly entered between SABC and Lornavision (PTY) L...

Explosive evidence is expected to be submitted to the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture , which will resume in Parktown, Johannesburg this morning. Former and current ministers of Public Enterprises Barbara Hogan and Pravin Gordhan are expected to testify today and Thursday respectively.

IEC Western Cape Electoral Officer, Courtney Sampson, political parties allowed to lay criminal charges against farmers who prevent election campaign . This follows a complaint by the EFF that a farmer in the Witzenberg municipality prevented them from campaigning on his farm ahead of a by-election this week.

The South African National Blood Services is concerned by the critically low blood stock as the country has just enough units to last 3 days. SANBS spokesperson Sifiso Khoza says South Africa requires an average of three-thousand units of blood to treat thousands of patients daily. He is hoping that people will use the the upcoming festive season to donate blood to match the high demand during tha...

Four people have been injured following an explosion at a chemical factory in Boksburg, east of Johannesburg. Ekurhuleni Emergency Services spokesperson William Ntladi says the injured have been taken to hospital

The impasse between DA and EFF continued last night in parliament following rulings by the house chair, Thoko Didiza. Didiza ordered both parties to apologise for their scuffle. The DA Parly Chief Whip John Steenhuisen says they will not stop giving fair comment against any party in fear of being called racists. Steenhuisen also says threats by EFF of making the DA lose metros will not deter them...

Democrats fight to regain the House of Representatives as more than 35 million people cast their votes in early voting ahead of the official Election Day, a large increase from the 20 million people who cast ballots in the early voting in the 2014 midterms.