Update@Noon

The South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG), has called on the public to make donations so that it can continue to provide assistance to people who have mental illnesses. The NGO is running out of funds and this may force it to cut down on some services it provides. The organisation says some of the individuals who call the helpline are suicidal. SADAG's Operations Manager Cassey Chambe...

Deputy Chief Justice, Raymond Zondo, who is chairing the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture, says the State Security Agency and the National Treasury should have provided assistance ahead of the start of the inquiry. He was speaking on day one of the hearings held in Parktown Johannesburg. The commission was set up to investigate, among others, the alleged influence of the Gupta family in th...

Fans around the world are mourning the death of the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin. It emerged earlier this week that the 76-year-old was gravely ill and receiving hospice care at her home in Detroit. She died of advanced pancreatic cancer. Executive Producer Krivani Pillay takes a look at Aretha Franklin's her life through her music

Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane has strongly criticized South African Police Services for failure to provide security for the whistle-blowers in the murder of former ANC youth league secretary-general and PR Councillor at uMzimkhulu Municipality, Sindiso Magaqa. Thabiso Zulu, an ANC member, anti-corruption activist and friend of Magaqa, and Les Stuta, an official at Harry Gwala Municipality, w...

Two community members have been arrested in connection with an incident of mob justice which left one person dead in the eastrand on Wednesday. The pair were part of a group that assaulted, stabbed and shot a boy outside his house. Another boy was attacked outside a school in the area and set alight. He is currently in hospital. The community accused the two of being part of a gang that is terrori...

The motion of no confidence again the DA Mayor of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro Athol Trollip has been postponed after the opposition parties seeking to remove him walked out of a council meeting this morning. They raised issues around the legality of the meeting. This was to be the fourth attempt to remove Trollip from office. It was unclear before the meeting whether the Patriotic Alliance would...

Hundreds of residents around Marikana in the North West have gathered at the Koppie where 34 mineworkers were killed six years ago. This ahead of an AMCU organised programme to commemorate the Marikana tragedy. AMCU president Joseph Mathunjwa is expected to give the keynote address this afternoon. Ten other people died in the days leading up to the massacre as the workers continued to strike. Saki...

Media Monitoring Africa says the government of Mozambique should be helping journalists to do their jobs better instead of trying to impede them. It is being alleged that authorities in that country are introducing exorbitant media accreditation fees for journalists working there. Many have called this an assault on freedom of the press and a clear attempt to clamp down on journalists. Under new r...

Some residents in Marikana in the North West, say they are disappointed that president Cyril Ramaphosa has not yet visited the area, despite promises he made publicly. Some still blame Ramaphosa for the manner in which police handled the 2012 strike that resulted in the deaths of 34 miners on August 16 and ten other people including security guards and police officers in the preceeding week. Ramap...

The death of Mark Minnie, co-author of the controversial book "The Lost Boys of Bird Island", has shocked many South Africans. It implicates a prominent businessman and two former National Party ministers, including Magnus Malan, as central figures in an alleged paedophilia ring that operated during the apartheid era. The book alleges the trio molested and raped minors at Bird Island off the coast...

The African Independent Congress (AIC) which is in a coalition with the ANC at at least two key municipalities, is once again threatening to pull out of the partnership. It has given the ANC 30 days to mend relations or face losing the Ekurhuleni and Rustenburg municipalities. The AIC gave the ANC numbers at the municipalities following the 2016 local government elections on condition that the ANC...

Tributes have been pouring in for struggle stalwart Zondeni Veronica Sobukwe, who was affectionately known as Mother of Azania. Sobukwe died in the early hours of this morning at the age of 91. Remembered as a strong anti-apartheid activist, she was also the wife of the late Pan Africanist Congress leader, Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe. Our executive Producer Krivani Pillay takes a look at the life of...

Mining company Goldfields has denied that it failed to follow legal processes before announcing that it plans to cut 1 560 jobs at its Deep South Mine in Johannesburg. The company is responding to Mineral Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe's statement that the business is breaching laws that govern the sector. The company has for years been operating at a loss running into millions each month. It s...

President Cyril Ramaphosa says current models of sanitation are expensive, they require large scale networks of infrastructure and use high energy budgets. Ramaphosa was speaking at the launch of the Sanitation Appropriation for Education Initiative in Pretoria. The initiative seeks to eradicate pit latrines in the country's schools and save lives following a series of deaths involving children us...

The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education is investigating an incident which has allegedly led to the suicide of a 17-year old learner at a school in Chartworths, near Durban. Matthew David was allegedly confronted and verbally attacked by his school principal and a member of the school governing body about his sexual orientation. He was found dead at his home in Westcliff. His brother Joshua Davi...

The co-author of explosive book, The Lost Boys of Bird Island, has been found dead in Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape. Mark Minnie, a former policeman, together with reporter, Chris Steyn, details in the book how former National Party defence minister, Magnus Malan and other National Party ministers allegedly had sex with young boys during fishing excursions, on Bird Island near PE. Executive p...

Justice and Correctional Services Minister Michael Masutha says corruption within the State Attorney's office is costing government billions of rands. Masutha together with the ministers of police and health, briefed the media this morning in Pretoria about an investigation that the Special Investigative Unit has launched into unethical and corrupt activities. The minister says they have to pursue...

Tributes continue to pour in for hip-hop artist ProKid. The 37-year-old Soweto-born musician, whose real name is Linda Mkhize, died on Wednesday night after suffering a seizure. Arts and Culture Minister Nathi Mthethwa joined scores of fans who took to social media to pay tribute to the musician. Political parties have also expressed their condolences. ProKid is regarded as one of the pioneers of...

The children of the late legendary actor and playwright Dr. Wintson Ntshona say he was a loving and humble father. Ntshona has been accorded a Special Official Provincial funeral. The service was held in his home town of Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape earlier today. He passed away last week at the age of 77 after a long illness. The eldest daughter of the Tony award winner and recepient of the...

The legal representative of controversial senior National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) officials, Nomgcobo Jiba and Lawrence Mrwebi, says they will submit a letter to the president by the end of the day explaining why the pair should not be suspended. President Cyril Ramaphosa has given them until today to do so, as he plans to establish a commission of inquiry into their fitness to hold office. He...

The National Union of Mineworkers NUM, says power utility Eskom, is provoking its members by announcing that there will be disciplinary action against those who allegedly sabotaged the supply of electricity. Unions at the company have been on strike for weeks now over wages and other issues such as bonuses. The union says the employer wants to blame workers for acts committed by other strikers and...

About 200 people have gathered outside the offices of the Sephaku Cement factory in Lichtenburg in the North West, to handover a memorandum of demands. The group comprises of employees of the company who are complaining about their working conditions, EFF supporters and community members. The company has been operating in the area for four years. Our reporter Bafedile Moerane is following the stor...

Rail company Metrorail says it will provide buses to help commuters connect from Naledi train station to New Canada. Trains could not operate between Naledi in Soweto and Johannesburg because of a power outage caused by cable theft. Angry commuters attempted to set alight coaches but failed to do so. They instead stormed the offices and caused damage to property. Sakina Kamwendo spoke to Metrorail...

Today marks Women's Day in South Africa. It has been 62 years since the historic march to the Union Buildings by 20 000 women. Despite improvements in some areas, women continue to face rape and other forms of violence on a daily basis. This is main issue that was raised by speakers. The main event is taking place in Paarl in the Western Cape.

Thousands of residents in the mining areas of Brits in the North West have marched to the offices of companies that are mining in their areas. They are complaining that the businesses do not employ locals and are not abiding by the social responsibility plans, part of which is to develop the areas they mine in. The march is being led by a group called VTSD Chamber of Commerce. Sakina Kamwendo spok...