The National Pulse

Earlier on today, Home Affairs Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi appeared before a Parliamentary Committee to explain how Sheperd Bushiri and his wife skipped the country. The couple is now in Malawi and South Africa has started extradition processes to bring them back to face charges of fraud, corruption and money laundering amounting to more than R100 million. Guest: Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, Minister of...

The South African Bone Marrow Registry (SABMR) has partnered with the world's largest registry to Improve local donor recruitment and retention. The SA Bone Marrow Registry in partnership with Be The Match - a leading NGO in bone marrow transplantation is hoping to increase their efforts aimed at recruiting blood stem cell donors in South Africa. GUEST: Jane Ward, Deputy Director for the South Afr...

One in three South African doctors have been verbally and physically abused by patients during the pandemic. This is according to a survey by the Medical Protection Society (MPS). MPS, which supports more than 32 000 healthcare professionals in the country, say the results of the survey which took place between October and November, are "deplorable" GUEST: Dr Siviwe Mila, freelance doctor and Foun...

A recipient of 150 million Rands in Covid-19 relief fund, appeared in court on charges of bribery of a UIF official. Thabo Abel Simbini, a businessman from Skinkwater, in Hammanskraal near Pretoria, made a brief appearance in Specialised Commercial Crimes Court on charges of corruption. This follows Simbini's arrest when he was caught red-handed trying to bribe an official from the Department of E...

Today marks the deadline for individual taxpayers who are required to file an income return via the online platforms, namely the SARS MobiApp or eFiling. So what this means basically is that walk-in submissions as you may recall closed last month and the online system that allows you to accept or edit and submit your tax returns is expected to close today. Joining us to discuss today’s deadline is...

World News today: Talks between Britain and the European Union resume in Brussels today as the two sides urgently try to agree a post Brexit trade deal. Under the terms of the Brexit transition, a deal has to be not only agreed by the end of December but ratified by parliaments in both Britain and the EU. Guest: Brooks Spector is the Associate Editor at Daily Maverick

Action SA leader Herman Mashaba has finally agreed to change his party's logo. Mashaba says the majority of his members have voted for him to change his party logo as directed by the Independent Electoral Commission. He joins us now to elaborate further Guest: Herman Mashaba, leader of ActionSA

Agri SA is appealing to the broader public to make their voices heard against farm attacks and crime in general. According to them, farm attacks are again on the increase, especially in the Free State and they say this is unacceptable. Guest: Christo van der Rheede, Agri SA Executive Director

ANC secretary-general, Ace Magashule, has been granted bail of 200-thousand-rand by the Bloemfontein Magistrate's Court in the Free State. He will be back in court on February the 19th next year. Magashule is charged with corruption which relates to the irregular awarding of the multi-million-rand asbestos roofing and assessment tender in 2014. Some of you have taken to Twitter to ask if Magashule...

How can we promote positive contact between locals and migrants and reduced anti-migrant sentiment in South Africa? We speak to Dr Steven Gordon, a Senior research specialist, at the Human Sciences Research Council, HSRC about their recent study that Study sheds light on how South Africa can best tackle prejudice against migrants GUEST: Dr Steven Gordon, Senior research specialist, Human Sciences...

About few hours ago, Police Minister Bheki Cele announced the second-quarter crime statistics for South Africa, from 1 July to 30 September. According to him, murder figures have decreased by 6.2%, with a total of 5107 people killed. This is a 339 reduction, compared to the same period last year. Cele also cautioned South Africans against irresponsible consumption of alcohol, saying it was one of...

Still on the Magashule story. Earlier on today, ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule handed himself over to the Hawks ahead of his appearance in the Bloemfontein Magistrate's Court in the Free State where he was expected to face fraud and corruption charges after the Hawks issued an arrest warrant on Tuesday. Magashule's supporters who have converged at the Bloemfontein Magistrate's court have call...

There are currently more than 150 vaccines being developed around the world to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer and their German lab partner BioNTech, this week announced that they will have a vaccine by end-December and manage to produce 1.3 billion doses in early 2021. While it is reported that several countries have already entered into deals with the manufacturers f...

We continue looking at the surge in Covid-19 Infections in the Eastern Cape. The Nelson Mandela Bay Metro in the province has become the epicentre for COVID-19 infections in the country. This is resulting in queues that are kilometres long at testing centres. Over 600 new cases are being recorded daily. Public and private hospitals are filled to capacity. To elaborate further on the situation in t...

According to Stats SA - South Africa’s unemployment rate increased by 7.5% points to 30.8% in the third quarter of the year compared with the second quarter and we are told that this is the highest unemployment rate recorded since 2008. Given the fact that our economy is under a lot of pressure at the moment – what other alternatives and possibilities are there to this situation? Guest: Mike Schus...

Yesterday, Angolan authorities were cautioned by international organizations to allow protesters to exercise their rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. Protestors in Angola are among other things calling for the revision of electoral legislation and reform of the National Commission of Elections, to guarantee free and fair elections. Guest on the line (UK) Dewa Mavhinga, Southern...

We hear from the FF Plus Chief Whip Dr Corné Mulder on why he believes that the Western Cape’s future lies in independence. He argues that the province has never given the ANC a majority and therefore the best option for it moving forward is to work towards an independent Western Cape. But what informs this thinking? Can South Africa afford to have an independent Western Cape? Guest: Dr Corné Muld...

Residents of Naledi in Soweto are adamant that they will not vote in today's by-election, unless electricity is restored in the area. This is despite Gauteng Premier David Makhura explaining that Eskom will only be able to get the mini substation fixed at the end of this month. Roads are still barricaded following this morning's protest. To examine the state of our municipalities, we now speak to...

November is National Diabetes Month in South Africa, with World Diabetes Day taking place on the 14th of November. Diabetes has been in the headlines more in 2020 than previous years, with research still ongoing to establish the link between the condition and Coronavirus deaths all around the world. Bridget McNulty, co-founder of Sweet Life Diabetes Community, a Type 1 diabetic herself together wi...

The ANC says it is seeking legal counsel on the issue of members stepping aside from their duties when charged with corruption or wrongdoing. ANC leaders have said at an online media conference that this is one of the reasons that party Secretary-General Ace Magashule will remain in his position. This is pending legal consultations and a final decision NEC on the matter. Magashule's imminent arres...

The Institute of Race Relations, IRR, are calling for the scrapping of e-voting from the electoral bill. The IRR says the introduction of an electronic voting system will be vulnerable to overt penetrations by actors wanting to discredit an election. They say traditional voting systems are far more transparent because they provide a paper trail and can be observed at every stage. To elaborate furt...

Students across the country are calling on Minister of Higher Education, Dr Blade Nzimande to extend the National Student Financial Aid Scheme allowances to February next year. You may recall that recently, Nzimande announced that the November allowance payment was the last one and he implored students not to be impulsive spenders. Guest: Misheck Mugabe, President of the South African Union of Stu...

About two hours ago, the African National Congress Deputy Secretary General, Jessie Duarte and Treasurer General Paul Mashatile briefed the media on the outcomes of the meeting of national officials around the latest developments within the party. As expected, most journalists who attended the briefing wanted to know if the ANC has taken any decision in relation to its Secretary General Ace Magash...

The IEC has rejected Action SA's appeal to register as a political party. In September, the commission rejected the party's application because of similarities with the Party of Action and the use of the South African flag on its logo. Former Johannesburg mayor Herman Mashaba is the founder of Action SA which was officially launched last month. Mashaba left the DA over a leadership disagreement at...

The National Lotteries Commission says there was no conflict of interest in granting funds to former Hawk spokesperson Hangwani Mulaudzi's Foundation. Mulaudzi resigned on Monday after the DA lodged a complaint with Police Minister Bheki Cele related to R3million he allegedly received from the Commission to establish a sports centre in Limpopo. We now speak to Raymond Joseph, an Investigative Jour...