Update@Noon

The CEO of ArcelorMittal South Africa, Kobus Verster, says the company is open to engagement and consultation processes with labour, the government, and various stakeholders. This is as the company has announced plans to cut up to 3-thousand 500 jobs as it's forced to shut down its long steel products business (e.g., railway tracks). The company has blamed negative steel demand growth and the stat...

Parliaments' Police Committee has adopted its report on the Independent Police Investigative Directorate Amendment Bill. This bill aims to strengthen the independence of the directorate, and includes the issue of the appointment of its Executive Director.  The bill has been widely criticised because the appointment of the Executive Director still lies with the Minister of Police and Cabinet. Befor...

A legal drama is unfolding in Britain's Supreme Court, involving South African government's attempt to strike out claim for salvage of silver from wartime wreck.  The dispute relates to the ownership of cargo (bars of silver) carried by a ship that sank in 1942 & raises questions of state immunity. Over R873m (about £37m) worth of silver meant for the SA Mint in 1942 was salvaged off the East...

The Multi-Party Charter comprising eight opposition parties is holding a gathering of civil society organisations in Boksburg, east of Johannesburg ahead of the 2024 general election.   The purpose of the meeting is solicit views from different community organisations and to bring about a political change in South Africa. DA leader, John Steenhuisen says the enemy is not the ANC but poverty, unemp...

Operations at the Impala Platinum Mine remain suspended following a freak accident at Shaft 11 late in the afternoon Yesterday. Family members of the deceased mine workers have since made their way to the mine premises for further details. For the latest from the mine, Sakina Kamwendo spoke to SABC reporter, Zebilon Maine and National Union of Mineworkers spokesperson, Livhuwani Mammburu

The Impala Platinum Mine in Rustenburg in the North West says all 86 employees involved in an elevator accident are accounted for. Eleven people died while 75 others sustained injuries. The injured have been transferred to hospitals around Rustenburg. The mining company says rescue operations have been complete and operations will be suspended at its 11 shaft in Rustenburg until further notice. Mi...

Four- members of the same family in Imfume- south of Durban have been shot and killed this morning.  The family's surviving son says he was woken up by his mother's screams, and heard gunshots- but he does not know why the attack happened. SABC Reporter, Vusi Khumalo caught up with family survivor and KwaZulu Natal police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda 

Volkswagen (VW) is refuting reports that it's threatening to leave the country if the government fails to fix the country's regulatory, energy and logistics problems.  VW directly employs 3-thousand 500 people and contributes 6.4% of GDP. The logistics and energy crises in SA pose a huge threat to many companies' productivity. Now to get more on this matter we're now joined on the line by VW spoke...

The national estimate of HIV prevalence in South Africa for all ages in 2022 was 12.7 percent which translated to 7.8 million people living with HIV in 2022.This is according to The Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) which is currently releasing its sixth South African HIV Prevalence, Incidence, Behaviour and Communication Survey results. The study is a population-based, cross-sectional survey...

Early this year, Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi announced the creation of a new unit of crime fighters as part of his anti-crime strategy. The Gauteng government defines Crime Prevention Wardens (CPWs) as a "multiplier force" with the aim of amplifying responsiveness and police visibility in communities. The Crime Prevention Wardens are supposed to monitor and police Gauteng 24 hours a day. Howeve...

Eskom has escalated load shedding to stage 6 until 05h00 on Monday. The escalation follows warnings all week that the grid is highly volatile and only being kept under control through lower demand and less maintenance. Eskom has experienced a rise in breakdowns over the past few weeks, which forced the group to escalate to stage 4 on Wednesday. According to data compiled by the shedding schedule a...

The Department of Social Development and the Mjejane community in Mpumalanga embarked on a 3-day program to raise awareness about child protection and address concerns about the practice of Fulelani Nganeno, also known as "ukuthwala. Several social activist in Mjejana village in Mpumalanga, wrote petitions to the Human Rights Commission and Department of Social Development to say enough is enough...

Employment and Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi briefed the media in relation to allegations of corruption made a few weeks ago by Thuja Holdings CEO, Mthunzi Mdwaba. Nxesi, together with two other Cabinet ministers, are alleged to have demanded bribes of five hundred million rands from a five billion unemployment insurance fund (UIF) bid aimed at creating job opportunities for the UIF. The two other...

Age-old lease agreements between the City of Durban and an iconic hotel group are coming to an end. This is putting pressure on the city's covert golden mile. Lease agreements for the Southern Sun's Elangani and Maharani hotels expire at the end of 2025. The hotel group and the municipality are reportedly at loggerheads over market value for rental. The city has put out a tender notice for interes...

Two hotels in Durban are allegedly at loggerheads with the eThekwini Municipality over a lease agreement that is due to end in 2025. The Southern Sun Elangeni and Maharani hotels, located on the Golden Mile of the city, have been paying one-thousand-250 rands in rent to the municipality as per an agreement reached in 1965. Sakina Kamwendo on UpdateAtNoon spoke to SABC reporter Vusi Makhosini 

The National Assembly has passed the Economic Freedom Fighters' motion - amended by the African National Congress - with 248 MPs voting in favour of the closure of the Israeli Embassy until a ceasefire has been agreed on. The original motion by the EFF called for the Israeli Embassy to be closed and all diplomatic ties with Israel to be suspended. The motion was supported by the EFF, the ANC, Al J...

Parliament's Portfolio Committee on Finance has decided to allow members of retirement funds early access to their pension funds from next year. The committee agreed to introduce the two-pot pension system from the 1st of March 2024. This is despite the National Treasury recommending that the new system should start in 2025. Other stakeholders feel an extended period will give them enough time to...

The Standing Committee on Public Accounts has been briefed on the progress of made at the South African Airways by the office of the Auditor general and the Special Investigating Unit following investigations into the national carrier. The Auditor general's office has noted that there is not much progress made regarding SAA's financial statements. Deputy Business Executive at Auditor General of So...

The South African Association of Freight Forwarders has warned as critical the state of the country's freight industry. The association was responding to a reported notice by Transnet announcing the entity's intention to suspend receiving of all cargo brought to its Richards Bay ports of entry via road. Sakina Kamwendo spoke to Director of Maritime Affairs at the South African Association of Freig...

Transnet is reportedly circulating a notice announcing that it will suspend the receiving of all cargo that is brought to the ports via road freight (trucks). This comes as the entity announced an urgent programme to acquire equipment for the country's busy ports of entry. The group's chairperson Sandile Sangqu says a long period of under-development and ageing infrastructure are affecting state-o...

An alleged gang leader of a notorious Westbury gang, the Varados, has been shot and killed in the parking lot of a shopping complex on 14th Avenue in Roodepoort, west of Johannesburg. The circumstances surrounding the incident are unclear. However, it is believed to be an apparent hit. Gauteng police are yet to confirm this. The incident occurred around 10 a.m. this morning, as the alleged gang le...

Impoverished families are forced to hunt and eat monkey meat in the community of Cwebeni, in the Eastern Cape. This follows a recent report by South African Human Rights Commission which found that over 100 children died from malnutrition in the province between 2021 & 2022. More than 60 starving toddlers in the Port St Johns community are forced to daycare on empty stomachs. In this village m...

The Boarder Management Authority has joined forces with the South African Revenue Service to pilot a system that seeks to co-locate in truck canopies at the Lebombo Boarder Post, to ease delays in the movement of trucks. The  Authority says the process will ensure the processing of truck drivers without requiring the  disembarkment of truckers from their vehicles. The news comes days after tension...

Transnet is currently briefing the media about the rollout of a temporary recovery plan aimed at clearing backlog at its ports.  In a statement on Friday, Transnet said several initiatives had been implemented to clear the backlog but has also cautioned that it will take months to clear Durban port backlog. Durban port handles 60% of South Africa's container traffic. Acting Group Chief executive a...