The National Pulse

A recently founded party (the Revolution For Prosperity) looks set to win Lesotho's parliamentary election. By yesterday afternoon, results showed that the party had secured 41 seats, the minimum required to reach a simple majority. The current ruling party All Basotho Convention (ABC), was faring badly. While the Democratic Congress (DC), the main opposition party and member of the coalition gove...

General elections are currently underway in Lesotho. The All Basotho Convention (ABC) has been ruling the country since 2017, but divisions within the party have led to multiple splits that will likely compromise its status as the biggest party. On the other hand, another serious contender is the Democratic Congress party, which has so far managed to hold the centre despite losing some key members...

It was only a matter of time before mobile companies started pushing back against Icasa’s proposed new regulation to not let mobile data and airtime expire before 6 months. MTN is objecting to the proposed draft amendments to the End-User and Subscriber Service Charter Regulations of 2016. The proposed law says mobile operators should not allow prepaid data, airtime and voice bundled to expire bef...

Following Tania Campbell’s recent announcement that the City of eKurhuleni has approved 47 independent power producers that will connect directly to the City’s electricity grid to offset the effects of load shedding. The ANC in the region has reacted angrily to this, reminding the mayor that the approval of the IPPs was because of the ANC led coalition which speared the finalisation of the entire...

Earlier today Correctional Services announced that former President Jacob Zuma has been released from its system. Zuma was granted medical parole last year by former National Commissioner for Correctional Services, Arthur Fraser against the advice of the medial parole board. What transpired afterwards, Judge Elias Matojane ruled that Zuma should return to jail after an application by the Helen Suz...

As the race for the ANC's top six heats up. Today we hear from Pule Mabe, asking – Is he the right man to improve the ANC’s financial position? Mabe has raised his hand for the position of ANC treasurer-general, a key position within an organisation as the treasurer oversees all the aspects of financial management. What makes this one a difficult task is that it is an open secret that the governin...

Haiti Prime Minister Ariel Henry is appealing for support from the international community to help his country confront a growing humanitarian catastrophe and save lives as a deadly cholera outbreak sweeps across Haiti. Communities are running out of food, stores shelves are bare and drinking water is now a scarce commodity after some producers ceased production due to no longer having diesel. To...

Debating students from the University of Johannesburg and the University of Pretoria will battle it out tomorrow on the Great Debate, hosted by SAFM’s Oliver Dickson on his show, This Week, Today. The topic is ‘In South Africa there is one police officer for every 408 citizens, while the United Nations recommends one police officer for every 220 citizens. Should we Nationalize private security int...

It never rains, but pours in the healthcare system. The South African Medical Association has raised concern about the shortage of healthcare workers in the South African healthcare system. It says based on the number of registered doctors with the Health Professionals Council of South Africa, there are 0.8 doctors per one thousand patients. However, it says that number is just based on practition...

Limpopo Premier Stan Mathabatha has reshuffled his provincial executive council with three MECs being chopped. Florence Radzilani, the former executive mayor of the Vhembe municipality in Limpopo, who was implicated in the VBS scandal, is now the new MEC for Transport and Community Safety. Today’s cabinet reshuffle was Mathabatha’s second one in less than four months. For more on this, we are join...

The ANC in Johannesburg has given former mayor Mpho Phalatse 48 hours to retract her statement and publicly apologise for calling the party corrupt. They have threatened her with legal action if she fails to do so.     GUEST: Chris Vondo, Spokesperson of the ANC in the Greater Johannesburg  

 We ask this question as the country launched two more ballistic missiles this morning, one of which landed in the Sea of Japan. Their successive launch of ballistic missiles has been described by Japan authorities as a serious provocation that harms the peace and stability of not only the Korean Peninsula but also the international community. Also of major concern is that North Korea has carried...

Let’s now tell you more about the European Union’s new single charger policy. According to this new law - all new smartphones, tablets and cameras will have a single standard charger from late 2024. EU policymakers are also convinced that the single charger rule will simplify the life of Europeans, reduce the mountain of chargers that they have to carry every day and most importantly, reduce costs...

SAFM’s Oliver Dickson will be hosting The Great Debate this Friday on his show, This Week, Today. Debating students will be from the University of Johannesburg and the University of Pretoria. The topic is ‘In South Africa there is one police officer for every 408 citizens, while the United Nations recommends one police officer for every 220 citizens. Should we Nationalize private security into the...

As we enter the last quarter of the year, there are many entrepreneurs who want to expand their business. One of the most prominent challenges entrepreneurs face is access to capital, and now is the time to start getting yourself investor ready to hit the new year running. According to Nobesuthu Ndlovu, Director of SME for Old Mutual, investors are particular about what they are looking for when i...

764 misconduct cases were reported to the South African Council for Teachers between April 2021 and March 2022. 443 were reported for the same period in the previous financial year. 35% of the cases involved administering corporal punishment on learners or assaulting other colleagues. 191 of the cases implicated teachers in sexual misconduct, rape, indecent assault and sexual assault of learners....

President Cyril Ramaphosa is currently at Nkantolo village in Mbizana in the Eastern Cape where he will officially open the Little Flower Early Childhood Development Centre. The centre was built in partnership with the Nelson Mandela Foundation, the Cyril Ramaphosa Foundation and the Department of Basic Education, and it has been operating from a shack structure for several years. To explain the s...

Since Sunday (2 October), extremely hot and dry conditions have continued to prevail over a large part of the Highveld. The South African Weather Service consequently issued a weather advisory, indicating that heatwave conditions could be expected to persist from Sunday onwards. At the current time, many parts of North-West, northern Free State, Gauteng as well as the eastern Highveld of Mpumalang...

Uganda’s president, Yoweri Museveni has decided to remove his son, Lieutenant-General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, as the commander of the land forces after he posted controversial tweets that threatened bilateral relations with Kenya. In recent months, Kainerugaba sparked anger among some Ugandans who view his frequent tweets as provocative and sometimes dangerous. To explain what this all means is ……  G...

A story by IOL looks at a divorce case where a woman approached the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria to divorce her husband and ask for half of her husband’s pension. The couple is married in community of Property, however the husband said his wife is a cheater and shouldn’t be entitled to his pension. He made reference to many instances of cheating including a time where she left their home for mon...

What will it take for South Africa to start taking statutory rape seriously and prosecute men who take advantage of children? 150 young girls between the ages of 10 and 14 have given birth in the Free State in the past five months. The health department in the province also says over 14000 teenagers between 15 and 19 gave birth in the past year. Why does this keep getting worse and what can we do...

A total of 150 young girls between the ages of 10 and 14 have given birth in the Free State in the past five months. Statistics by the health department in the province also show just over 14000 teenagers between 15 and 19 gave birth in the past year. We are now joined by SABC News Reporter, Kamogelo Seekoei

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees says almost 1 million people have fled northern Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado due to violence in the past five years. The area has been marred by violence and insecurity since an insurgency broke out in 2017 and attacks have intensified since then, causing a humanitarian crisis and displacement of people. The UNHCR says it is concerned about the risks...

Elon the baboon has finally been captured following a 15 day trek through Johannesburg’s suburbs before making its way to Daveyton. The Owl Rescue Centre has been following the animal since it was first seen in September. It is suspected the baboon is from Hartbeespoort. The centre appealed to the public to not try and capture the animal or feed it. It escaped in Daveyton after residents tried to...