The National Pulse

Assessing SA’s state of readiness: As South Africa prepares for the reopening of schools on Monday - we hear from the National Teachers’ Union on what they think about the country’s state of readiness. You may recall that last week, many South Africans were taken aback when they were told by the ministry of basic education that some schools were not ready to resume classes; in some provinces for i...

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

Is the cash strapped Pretoria Bar Council on the brink of collapse and possibly finding itself having to apply for provisional liquidation due to the Covid-19 pandemic, which has affected many other businesses financially. We now speak to Henru Kruger, sector head for professional services at Solidarity who says the Bar has a remarkable and exceptional history, surviving two world wars and politic...

The founder of The People's Dialogue, Herman Mashaba has written an open letter to Finance Minister Tito Mboweni, encouraging him to challenge the recent comments made by Ekurhuleni, Mayor Mzwandile Masina, advocating for the collapse of our economy in the wake of COVID-19. Masina had said he was prepared to resign if he is made to defend what he called 'White Monopoly Capital'. He aligned himself...

The South African Police Service says it has been vindicated by the ruling of the High Court in Pretoria that set aside the Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane's finding against Police Minister Bheki Cele. In a 2018 report, Public Protector, advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane found that Minister Cele along with SAPS failed to provide protection to two KwaZulu-Natal whistleblowers; Thabiso Zulu and Lesley...

On World News today we ask - what does the return of Laurent Gbagbo mean for the people of Ivory Coast? Gbagbo, the first head of state to stand trial in The Hague, and his deputy Charles Ble Goude, were both cleared of crimes against humanity in January last year and released the following month but there were still restrictions on their movement or return to Ivory Coast. But now, Mr Gbagbo can l...

Following Tuesday’s North Gauteng High Court ruling on lockdown regulations – Professor Thuli Madonsela joins us to share her thoughts on the ruling and its implications thereof. According to her, there would have been a lot to learn from the judgment if it were clearer, concise, accurate, professionally reasoned, and persuasive. Guest: Adv, Professor Thuli Madonsela, Law Trust Chair in Social Jus...

BSS The ANC says it will not hesitate to reprimand its members who speak against its policy positions regardless of their positions and says it’s Chair in Ekurhuleni, Mayor Mzwandile Masina must stop tweeting. Masina had said he was prepared to resign if he is made to defend what he called 'White Monopoly Capital'. He aligned himself with the EFF leader Julius Malema who had said the so called "wh...

What are the implications of yesterday’s High Court ruling on lockdown regulations? Yesterday, the Gauteng High court declared that the country’s alert level 3 and alert level 4 lockdown regulations are invalid and unconstitutional. In its ruling, the court specifically highlighted how the regulations did not pass the rationality test and have infringed on the Bill of Rights. What rights are those...

Government cannot force covid-19 patient into compulsory state quarantine. The North Gauteng High Court has issued a court order prohibiting government from forcing those who test positive for Covid-19 into state quarantine facilities if they are able to self-isolate. We now speak to Monique Taute, head of campaigns at AfriForum. The lobby group brought the application against Minister of Cooperat...

We assess President Donald Trump's announcement that the United States will terminate its relationship with the World Health Organization. Recently, Trump has been criticizing the UN’s health agency for failing to quickly sound the alarm when the novel coronavirus emerged and accused it of helping China cover up the threat it posed. Guest: Dr John Stremlau, Visiting Professor of International Rela...

We hear from the ANC Youth League national task team on why they want the government to reconsider the unbanning of alcohol sales under lockdown level 3. They are arguing that the sale of alcohol has the potential to put a strain on the health system unnecessarily. Guest: Sizophila Mkhize, Spokesperson of the ANC Youth League Task Team

BSS: South African Human Rights Commission says it is concerned that the opening of schools in the Western Cape will exclude learners in disadvantaged communities. The Commission has given the Western Cape Education Department until 2 o'clock this afternoon to confirm that no teaching and learning will take place at schools this week in line with a decision by the national Basic Education Departme...

Companies across Africa have taken rapid steps to initiate community emergency relief efforts in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. The need for ongoing social relief will be front of mind for a network of African purpose-led Shared Value companies and leaders, who will participate in the continent's first ever virtual Shared Value Leadership event from 2-5 June 2020 to discuss challenges faced by...

The SA Youth Chamber of Commerce has been assessing the Impact of the Covid-19 national lockdown on small businesses in South Africa. As the country officially enters level alert three of the lockdown, the Youth Chamber of Commerce says many businesses have suffered unrecoverable costs and some are on the brink of closure. We now speak to the President of the Youth Chamber of Commerce, Thapelo Mal...

President Cyril Ramaphosa has appointed the Advocates Ouma Rasethaba and Rodney de Kock as the deputy national directors of the National Prosecuting Authority. The pair will start their duties effective from today. Ramaphosa has also appointed Advocate Mthunzi Mhaga as the Special Director of Public Prosecutions in the office of the NDPP Shamil Batohi. Advocate Mhaga will provide legal advice to t...

KwaZulu-Natal Premier Sihle Zikalala has just concluded tabling the Provincial Government's 1st ever Virtual Budget 2020 for the Office of the Premier. His speech also focused on the latest developments on the Coronavirus pandemic Guest: Sihle Zikalala, Premier of KwaZulu-Natal

Moving further afield: European Union and UK negotiators begin their final round of scheduled trade negotiations today. For more details on this, let’s hear from the BBC’s Europe Editor Katya Adler. Guest: Dr David Monyae - Director at the Centre for Africa China studies at the University of Johannesburg

We look at the recent ruling by the Supreme Court of Appeal against the South African Reserve Bank. On Friday last week, the Supreme Court of Appeal found the decision by the South African Reserve Bank to refuse access to the records requested by the South African History Archive and Open Secrets in respect of the late Brigadier Blaauw, Robert Hill and Vito Palazzolo in terms of the Promotion of A...

BSS Basic Education Minister, Angie Motshekga, says schools must keep a Covid19 file, to record their work plan and incidents affecting the institution amid pandemic. Motshekga has apologized for rescheduling last night's briefing - on whether schools would reopen today - amid on-going consultations. Speaking during a media briefing in Rustenburg, in the North West, Motshekga says schools must res...

I’m sure many of you may have heard or read about some worrying reports that suggest that South Africa may run out of burial space due to Covid19. The spread of coronavirus infections has already prompted a number of changes to our daily lives, including how communities conduct funerals. But the changes made for funerals might even be further removed from what we have known. The demand for burial...

South Africa was not better off under the depraved system of apartheid this according to the Institute of Race Relations. The Institute was responding to claims made by Unathi Kwaza, who was elected this year to the IRR Council, who tweeted over the weekend that: 'Black people were better off under apartheid. It's time we admit this. At least those of us with honour.' Meanwhile the Institute's CEO...

Moving further afield now, we look at the sad story of George Floyd which has made international headlines. The death of George Floyd in police custody last Monday has spurred a nationwide explosion of grief and anger in the US. Rev Todd Yeary who is the Senior Vice President of the Rainbow Push Coalition joins us to unpack the events of the past week, including what has been happening recently. M...

Unisa’s Prof Malik Maaza has been awarded the African Union Kwame Nkrumah Award for Scientific Excellence (AUKNASE)—a major recognition at a continental level for his pioneering work in science and technology. Guest: Prof Malik Maaza, an African physicist and an accomplished researcher and educator

We now speak to the Black Business Council who recently met with National Treasury over the 200 billion loan guarantee scheme. The meeting was to explore how the scheme can cater for and include non-bank small, medium and micro enterprise businesses Guest: Bonolo Ramokhele, Treasurer General of the Black Business Council