The National Pulse

The Congress of SA Trade Unions has welcomed President Cyril Ramaphosa’s recent proclamation of certain provisions in the Companies Amendment Acts. The trade union sees this as a step in the right direction of fighting corruption and labour inequality within the country. Matthew Parks, COSATU Parliamentary Coordinator, joins me on the line to share the unions views on these proclamations&hel...

The Verulam Water Crisis Committee is calling on Deputy President Paul Mashatile to intervene and address the ongoing water crisis in Verulam. We understand that residents in the area have now endured a full week without access to water. For more on this, we are joined by…… GUEST: Roshan Lil-Ruthan, Spokesperson of the Verulam Water Crisis Committee

The department of mineral and petroleum resources has announced that petrol and diesel prices are set to increase from Wednesday this week due to factors including global oil prices and the rand exchange rate. Our guest Visvin Reddy joins us to highlight areas of possible reform the government can approach to keep fuel prices low in the country. GUEST: Visvin Reddy, MK Party MP & National Conv...

Dr John Stremlau unpacks the legacy of former U.S President Jimmy Carter who sadly passed away yesterday. Some will remember Carter, who lived longer than any other U.S president as someone who redefined what a post presidency could be through humanitarian work which earned him the Nobel Peace Prize. Also some of his successes included promoting human rights and the Camp David Accords, which forge...

Today, we celebrate Professor Mashudu Tshifularo who is known worldwide for being the first doctor to cure deafness, using 3D-printed bones for reconstructive middle ear implants. Earlier this year, Tshifularo won the Africa Genius Award. Interestingly - we are always told that a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step - so how was the beginning of his journey?   GUEST: Professo...

The annual month-long traditional bare-knuckle fist fight known as Musangwecontinued this afternoon at the Tshifudi cattle dip, outside Thohoyandou in Limpopo. The President of Musangwe, Pfarelo Mahadulula joins me on the line to tell us about the significance of this bare-knuckle fist fight… GUEST: Pfarelo Mahadulula, President of Musangwe

The ongoing political unrest in Mozambique has affected the flow of tourists from South Africa and interrupted the operations of some travel agencies. With Mpumalanga being a popular destination for many South Africans, what sort of impact will the violence in Mozambique have on the tourism sector in that province seeing that they are so close? To help us answer this question, I am joined on the l...

A fire broke out in the Joe Slovo informal settlement in Langa, Cape Town, last night displacing hundreds of people. A team from Gift of the Givers was deployed to the community provide relief and supplies needed by the community. Ali Sablay, the humanitarian aid organisation’s director, was on site and joins me on the line to give us an update… GUEST: Ali Sablay, Gift of the Givers D...

As global temperatures continue to rise, it is reported that climate change added 41 additional days of dangerous heat this year. What is even more worrying is the fact that researchers at World Weather Attribution and Climate Central suggest that these days are linked to the local minimum mortality temperature, indicating a heightened risk to human health. To talk to us further about the effects...

Office of the Information Regulator has confirmed that they will file an urgent court application before the end of business day today to halt the publication of Matric results. The Information Regulator is of the view that the publishing of the results is in violation of the Protection of Personal Information Act. We understand that the application is set to be heard on 7 January next year. For m...

AmaZulu King, Misuzulu kaZwelithini has decided to remove Reverend Thulasizwe Buthelezi from his position as the Zulu nation’s Traditional Prime Minister. We understand that King Misuzulu wasn’t impressed by Buthelezi’s conduct over the past eleven months. So what did he do exactly? To explain what this al means for the Zulu nation going forward is…… GUEST: Professo...

This year marks 95 years since the first Table Mountain Cableway started running, and guess what, as part of this milestone, the Table Mountain Aerial Cableway company has managed to deliver over 31 million people to the top for Cape Town’s most spectacular view. But what makes it one of South Africa’s successful visitor attractions? Joining us for this conversation is….. GUEST:...

KZN still has some rock star beaches despite the issues that were reported about them throughout the year. We thought we should check-in on one of the beaches today and get a sense of what is happening there this afternoon… GUEST: Fanele Mhlongo, SABC News Reporter

Police at Verena are investigating a stock theft related incident whereby two male persons were reportedly cornered and assaulted by an unidentified group of people after being reportedly found with livestock believed to have been stolen. Brigadier Donald Mdhluli, Mpumalanga SAPS spokesperson joins me on the line to share more information on this incident… GUEST: Brigadier Donald Mdhluli, M...

eThekwini Municipality's water curtailment project has officially been lifted. The project was expected to run for the next 12 months and was being implemented in a bid to reduce the volume of water abstracted from the uMgeni system. To give us more information on this, I am joined on the line by… GUEST: Sean Phillips, Department of Water & Sanitation’s Director General

In conversation with Reuben Reuters about the effectiveness of medical emergency responses during the festive period, especially with New Year’s Eve approaching. In Gauteng so far, the EMS responses have surpassed the 43 000 recorded during the same period last year. For further elucidation on this, we are joined by….. GUEST: Reuben Reuters, The Acting CEO of Gauteng Emergency Medical...

With January fast approaching, things are not looking good for workers of the North West Transport Investments (NTI) who have not been paid for five months. We understand that some workers were forced to stay in Mahikeng this festive season without any answers. To elaborate further on this, we are joined by….. GUEST: Lebusa Mamaregane, General Secretary of SAWU-YA BASHUMI Union

As the situation remains tense in Mozambique with supporters of the opposition disputing the election outcomes. We look at the political dynamics in the country as there is a general security threat after more than 1 400 detainees escaped the high security prison yesterday. GUEST: Helio Guiliche, Political analyst based in Mozambique

The situation is growing dire at Stilfontein Mine in the North West as illegal miners claim they are now eating human flesh for survival. These details were contained in a letter that recently came up to the surface, claiming that many of the miners were disappearing from shaft 10 where they are trying to escape. We thought we should check-in on what is happening in Stilfontein today. Joining me o...

A number of good Samaritans in Pretoria spread the Christmas spirit earlier today by feeding the homeless in that city. The person behind this is… GUEST: Emma Sibanyoni, Founder of Bros Do Matter and co-founder of Da Clang Foundation

The African Unite Borders Bus Trucks Association has once again raised concerns with the situation in Mozambique. The association continues to have security concerns as post-elections protests erupted again after the Mozambique’s apex court upheld Frelimo’s poll victory. Chairperson of the African Unite Borders Bus Trucks Association, Mukhwathi Phumudzo joins me on the line to share so...

Our guest, Professor Tshepo Madlingozi outlines the SA Human Rights Commission’s stance on a contentious issue of frequent arrests of adult private users, possessors and cultivators of cannabis. The commission has written to the national Police Commissioner, Fanie Masemola - urging him to pay more attention on this issue of unlawful arrests as they argue that it is inconsistent with both the...

The Limpopo department of transport and community safety is intensifying its efforts to combat drinking and driving this Christmas Day, with a strong warning to all road users to exercise extreme caution and responsibility. So far, the provincial authorities have managed to arrest 181 motorists for drunk driving since the beginning of this month. GUEST: Jane Mulaudzi, Chief Director for Transport...

City Power will be cutting the electricity supply to some parts of the Johannesburg CBD today. This as they need to implement an emergency isolation plan. To tell us more on how this operation has been carried out so far is…..   GUEST: Isaac Mangena, City Power Spokesperson