The National Pulse

Yesterday we spoke to whistleblower Thabiso Zulu, following his arrest Wednesday night. Zulu, who exposed allegations of corruption in the uMzimkhulu municipality and also a close friend of slain youth league leader Sindiso Magaqa, says he is being unfairly targeted with trumped up charges. Zulu has been in hiding since he first made public allegations on tender irregularities and political killin...

Black property businesses have been hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic. This is largely because they remain small in size and play minuet role in the almost six trillion rand sector. The black property business is not properly protected against such hard times because of limited financial resources. Vuyiswa Mutshekwane is the CEO of South African Institute of Black Property Practitioners (SAIBPP) s...

August is celebrated as Women’s Month in South Africa – we do this to remember the contribution that was made by close to 20 000 women who marched to Pretoria on the 9th of August in 1956 to protest against passes for black women. Now, to mark the start of Women’s Month – we look at the noble initiative that is driven by the Zungu brothers which is called “My Enough is Our Enough” campaign. The ca...

On World News today - we examine the Zimbabwe’s deal that has taken many by surprise. On Wednesday, as you probably know by now, Zimbabwe's government signed a $3.5 billion agreement to compensate white farmers that were forcibly removed from their farmland during a chaotic land reform program two decades ago. Guest: Vince Musewe, Economist based in Zimbabwe

The latest national crime statistics that were released by the Minister of Police earlier on today show that murder rates have again increased – but the most worrying thing is that 45% of murders were firearm-related, followed by knife wounds at 21% and according to Gun Free South Africa, this is scandalous. Guest: Clair Taylor, Researcher at Gun Free South Africa

KZN Corruption Whistleblower Thabiso Zulu has been arrested. Zulu, a close friend of slain ANC Youth League secretary-general Sindiso Magaqa‚ who exposed alleged corruption in the Umzimkhulu local municipality says he was arrested by police at his home. Guest: KZN Corruption Whistleblower, Thabiso Zulu

The Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (POPCRU) held a Special National Executive Committee (SNEC) meeting on Tuesday to discuss, among others, the restructuring of the South African Police Service (SAPS), developments on salary disputes, the ever-changing regulations at the Department of Correctional Services (DCS) and the impact of Covid-19 within sectors. POPCRU now joins us on the line to t...

South Africa has recorded nearly 60 per cent more natural deaths than expected in recent weeks, which suggests a much higher death toll from the coronavirus than officially reported. According to the South African Medical Research Council's latest report on weekly deaths, there have been more than 17-thousand excess deaths. But statistics by the Health Department seem to be at odds with the figure...

Deputy Minister Sindisiwe Chikunga discusses the state of mental health for Public Service servants during the battle against Covid19. As it is public knowledge that the Public Service is the biggest employer in the country. Also, the Public Service has taken strain during this time as a number of public servants are frontline workers and are as affected as all citizens Guest: Sindisiwe Chikunga,...

Madzikane Thandisizwe Diko says he is the king of the Amabhaca. This after the Eastern Cape department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs has confirmed that the Elubhacweni Traditional Council, led by Madzikane Thandisizwe Diko, does not have kingship Guest: Madzikane Thandisizwe Diko, king of the Amabhaca

Meanwhile the Eastern Cape department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs has confirmed that the Elubhacweni Traditional Council, led by Madzikane Thandisizwe Diko, does not have kingship. Diko referred to himself as the king MADZIKANE II DIKO in a statement released this week in relation to the Gauteng PPE tender story. He has also been referred to the king of the Amabhaca in other...

In conversation with Piet Rampedi about the controversial Gauteng PPE tender that has caused so much noise in the country. Remember Piet is the one who first reported that Bandile Masuku and his wife, Loyiso Masuku were linked to a R125 million Personal Protective Equipment contract allegedly awarded to AmaBhaca King, Thandisizwe Diko Guest: Piet Rampedi, Assistant Editor at the Sunday Independent

Today on Both Sides of the Story we ask - How do we build trust between police and community and what causes conflict between law enforcement and citizens? Our discussion is informed by yesterday’s conversation that we had with Gun Owners of South Africa, following the Supreme Court of Appeal’s decision to set a side gun owners’ interim interdict for expired licence holders. During the discussion...

Latest News, Trends, and light features for an afternoon commute- Business, Traffic, Weather and Sport

The Democratic Alliance has filed an application in the High Court in Pretoria against President Cyril Ramaphosa's announcement to close schools. Schools have been closed until the 24th of next month. However Grade 12 learners and teachers will return on the third of August while Grade 7 learners return on the tenth. The DA is asking the court to declare the closure unlawful and unconstitutional....

What Is the Special Investigating Unit (SIU)? This afternoon we will learn more about one of South Africa's anti-corruption body dedicated to tackling serious malpractices or maladministration in the administration of the state. Not much is known about the SIU as the Unit has been largely overshadowed by other anti-corruption investigation units such as the Hawks, the Public Protector and NPA. But...

We look at the preliminary results of an in vitro study on ColdGuard. Apparently, early results show that ColdGuard can offer a protective barrier against harmful viruses such as SARS-CoV-2 by local virus deactivation in the oral cavity. Therefore, ColdGuard sprayed onto the mouth and throat could lower the risk of infection and decrease the viral load locally. Lowered viral load may decrease vira...

World News today: Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni has been nominated unopposed by his party to run for a sixth presidential term in the elections due to take place early next year. Museveni has been the president of Uganda since 1986 when he overthrew the then-government of Milton Obote after waging a five-year guerrilla war Guest: Professor Martin Rupiya, from the African Centre for the Constr...

BSS: Last week we spoke to Professor Debbie Bradshaw, Chief Specialist Scientist, at the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) about how natural deaths have increased by 59% against historical trends. The council's Burden of Disease Research Unit partnered with the University of Cape Town's Centre for Actuarial Research to examine the deaths trends that had been exacerbate by Covid-19. Pr...

Is your business being billed correctly for electricity by its local municipality? With over 900 different tariff options, the South African municipal tariff structure for grid-tied electricity is quite complicated and it's easy for businesses to end up on the wrong one. Because of this, many local businesses are inadvertently paying significantly more in energy tariffs than they rightfully should...

Last week Friday, Gun Owners of South Africa’s interim interdict for expired licence holders was set aside by the Supreme Court of Appeal. In 2018, Gun Owners of SA secured interim relief in the form of an interdict against SAPS, prohibiting them (meaning the SAPS) from taking action against expired licence holders Guest: Paul Oxley, Chairman of Gun Owners South Africa

On World News today, we ask – Was it a wise move for South Africa to approach the International Monetary Fund and what are the conditions for this massive loan? Guest: Professor Patrick Bond, Professor in the School of Governance at the University of the Western Cape

On Monday, the IMF approved South Africa’s request for emergency funding under its Rapid Financing Instrument, saying this was a low interest loan that would contribute to the government’s fiscal relief efforts without impacting on its sovereignty as it grappled with the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. Let’s get reaction from Cosatu, as you may know that initially they were opposed to government...

BSS: Student body - The Congress of South African Students (COSAS) - claims to have shut down several private schools in Gauteng today. Last week, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that all public schools would close for four weeks starting from today, in an effort to curb the spread of COVID-19. Matric leaners, however, will stay at home for only a week, while grade seven pupils will return to...

Can changing our food system reducing future pandemics? We speak to Donovan Will, the Director of ProVeg South Africa, about a new report that looks at the relationship between pandemics and our food system. This as there is growing consensus among NGOs, academic institutions, and the scientific community that the global food system needs to change if we are to prevent future pandemics Guest: Dono...