Update@Noon

Minister of Labour and Employment, Thulasi Nxesi, says some companies are not complying with the lockdown legislation and paying their workers government's contributions from the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF). Nxesi was briefing the Portfolio Committee on Employment and Labour and the Select Committee on Trade and Industry. He says the department has already paid UIF benefits to the tune of on...

The City of Cape Town's law enforcement officials are monitoring sporadic incidents of looting on the Cape Flats. At least two food truck drivers were injured following sporadic incidents of looting on Monday. There have been over 40 arrests. The city has asked the SANDF to help them deal with the looting incidents. We spoke to Cape Town's mayoral committee member for Safety and Security, JP Smith...

Department of Social Development is currently briefing a joint meeting of the committees dealing with social issues to assess its performance in responding to the challenges brought about by the Covid 19 pandemic as well as the work of SASSA. The briefing is to highlight the programmes put in place, successes and challenges experienced in their implementations. These include food security programm...

The move to online learning by institutions of higher learning has been met with skepticism especially among students from disadvantaged backgrounds. The University of Free State and the Central University of Technology in Bloemfontein alongside other universities are faced with adapting to the new conditions following the nationwide lockdown. Makgala Masiteng reports ...

North West premier Job Mokgoro is visiting Boikhutso and Lydeville Towships near Lichtenburg following the eruption of violent protests. Residents of Lichtenburg torched two vehicles including a police van after they ran over two children to death yesterday.

The Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ) yesterday called on the government to give South Africans above 18 years a once-off "universal basic income" of R4 500 as part of an emergency rescue package in response to the economic impact of COVID-19. The institute says President Cyril Ramaphosa's administration needs to unveil a R310 billion rescue package. This was just before President Cyril Ramapho...

ANC councillors in Thaba-Nchu in the Free State have criticized the quality of food parcels distributed in the area. The councillors have expressed their disappointment against Mangaung Metro executive mayor, Olly Mlamleli. They say the food parcels distributed amongst residents are of poor quality. But, Mlamleli has defended herself, and believes the councillors want to tarnish her image. Ishmael...

Statistics SA says the Covid 19 pandemic has created profound disruptions to our economy and society. Stats SA released survey results on the impact of Covid 19 on South African Businesses, today. It says many South African industries are experiencing an adverse impact from the pandemic. According to the survey; Four in ten businesses feel that they cannot continue to operate. We spoke to Statisti...

SA Express employees have been without an income for the past four weeks of the lockdown- this comes after the airline failed to pay their salaries for the month of March. The financial situation at the airline, whose flight routes typically service South Africa's smaller cities and neighbouring countries, has deteriorated further as it has suspended flight operations due to the shutdown. SA Expre...

City of Cape Town has been ordered by the High Court to return building material to community evicted over Easter. The High Court in Cape Town has ruled that the eviction of informal dwellers at Empolweni informal settlement in Khayelitsha was unlawful. This after over a hundred dwellers were evicted from the settlement over the Easter weekend. We spoke to Mayoral Committee Member for Human Settle...

Trade and Industry Minister Ebrahim Patel has asked business group Sakeliga for more time to get legal advice. This comes as business group Sakeliga is threatening court action over the ban on the sale of prepared and cooked food. The organisation gave gave the minister Patel until 9am this morning to respond, but the minister has now asked to be given at least until Wednesday. Minister Patel said...

The South African Sentence and Awaiting Trial Prisoners Organisation (SASAPO) has confirmed that prisoners have embarked on a hunger strike, following the alleged contravention of their rights during the lockdown. The organisation says the inmates are very frustrated, with certain rules and fear that their safety have been compromised. This comes after, some officials at East London Correctional C...

A new 40km fence that has been partially erected at the Beitbridge border post as one of the emergency measures that the government is implementing to mitigate the spread of corona virus in SA was vandalised over the Easter weekend and metal poles stolen. The 1.8m-high fence which will span 20km on each side of the border post, separating SA from Zimbabwe is said to cost 37.2 million rand. Public...

The Democratic Alliance (DA) says if the the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) is unable to cope with processing and paying out a high volume of Covid-19 Ters benefit applications, then this function should be handed over to the South African Revenue Service (SARS). This comes as number of people took to twitter and other platforms to voice their frustrations over the process and red tape involved...

Business for South Africa's Health Workgroup estimates that the country has about a month's worth of sterile gloves, surgical masks and other personal protective equipment left. Head of Business for South Africa's Health Workgroup Stavros Nicolaou, has warned that the country has about four weeks' worth of stock left for front line medical staff and other essential health workers.

The South African Cemeteries Association (SACA) says municipalities need to prepare for a possible increase in the demand for burials and cremations - should there be a spike in the number of COVID-19 deaths. The association says ideally remains should be cremated as is advised by the health authorities locally and internationally, however SACA says this may pose a challenge as South Africa has ve...

Education Expert Professor Jonathan Jansen says that the 2020 academic year is over due to Covid 19 . Professor Jansen suggests that schools must pass scholars from grade 1 to grade 11 with catch up plan in place. For Matric, schools need to work with universities and colleges to bridge the gap.

The South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) says it has a solution to temporary disability grants which lapsed or expired in March 2020. The agency says it will provide social relief in the form of food parcels to the affected beneficiaries. We spoke to SASSA CEO, Busisiwe Memela...

South Africa has urged China to investigate reports that African nationals in the country have been subject to forced corona virus testing, forced quarantine measures and other forms of ill-treatment. Last night our colleague, Chriselda Lewis spoke to a South African in Guangzhou, China, who is affected by this. She says she is one of those who has been kicked out of her apartment. We also spoke t...

The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the South African Reserve Bank has decided to cut the repo rate by 100 basis points. This follows calls that the Reserve Bank needs to do more to support the economy. We spoke to Dr Azar Jammine, Director and Chief Economist at Econometrix...

The Department of Basic Education says it is considering a number of options to help salvage the 2020 schooling year. South Africa's schools were closed on 18th of March as part of the measures to try and stop the spread of the coronavirus before the lockdown and schools were to resume again on the 14th of April 2020. Here is the Spokesperson for the Department of Basic Education, Elijah Mhlanga a...

Some villages in the Collins Chabane municipality have been without water for years. Residents at Masakona village are contributing money to resuscitate a borehole that has not been operating for years. The local chief has warned that those who do not contribute to the fund will not be allowed to draw water from the borehole. Earlier Collins Chabane Local municipality Spokesperson, Isaack Nokeri s...

A father and his three year old child have died in a fire at the Good Hope informal settlement near Germiston, East of Johannesburg. Firefighters of the Ekurhuleni Emergency Services managed to contain the blaze, whereafter the two bodies were found. Meanwhile in a fifty-year-old man has also died after his flat caught fire on Durban's North Beach. One other person who was also in the flat sustain...

Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula has opened a case against TV and radio personality Somizi Mhlongo at the Sandton police station North of Johannesburg. Minister Mbalula says this is in contravention of the government lockdown regulations regarding misinformation and name dropping. In an Instagram Live video by Metro FM radio host Deneo Ranaka, Mhlongo was heard saying the lockdown would be extend...

A Brakfontein community outside Delmas in Mpumalanga is devastated following the non delivery of water to their village for the past three weeks. The community relies on the municipality to supply them with water through water tankers. Residents says they had to survive by harvesting rain water in that period which has also ran out. The Covid - 19 Lockdown has also added to their misery as their m...