The National Pulse

Nine Eastern Cape healthcare workers, including five nurses, have been suspended for allegedly refusing to attend a Covid-19 patient. The health workers claim they did not have personal protective equipment to attend to the patient Guest: Eastern Cape health department spokesperson, Sizwe Kupelo

We are now in conversation with Political analyst, Moeletsi Mbeki, who was part of a panel that was discussing the relevance of BBB-EE during the lock down. The development of an inclusive economy that benefits all South Africans is an imperative that cannot be overestimated. However there are some who think that some of the measures required for the implementation of BBB-EE are onerous and may fo...

Professor Jonathan Jansen shares thoughts on the reopening of SA schools. He says the biggest problem faced by Minister Angie Motshekga with the reopening decision is one of trust and he is predicting that there will be spikes of infections in school hot spots around the country. Several schools will be closed and the academic year lost for many children. He joins us now to elaborate further Guest...

We hear from trade union Samwu on why they want their members to be paid a Covid-19 allowance for working under the threat of contracting the virus. The union wants all the workers at the forefront of rendering essential services to be paid for the risk they take every day Guest: Koena Ramatlou, General Secretary of the South African Municipal Workers Union

The Reserve Bank has cut the repo rate by 50 basis points. Post the Reserve Bank Governor’s announcement on repo rates - we get the economist’s view and in this case we speak to Mike Schussler” Guest: Mike Schussler, Economist

Teacher union SADTU says only two of the nine provinces are ready for the reopening of schools on the first of next month. SADTU says they, together with other unions including NAPTOSA, conducted a survey with principals at the weekend to determine the readiness of schools. Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga announced last night that Grades 12 and Seven will return to class as part of a phas...

BSS: Equal Education has raised concern over the state of readiness of rural and township schools for the phased reopening of schools next month. NGOs and teacher unions have called on the Department to ensure that learners are not at risk when going back to school. Some of the issues raised centre around poor Infrastructure, the lack of water and sanitation in schools Guest: Athenkosi Sopitshi, H...

Cash-strapped Land Bank is seeking a R3 billion urgent loan from some of its creditors to cover its operational expenses and to also pay out some of the loans it had approved to farmers amid the Covid-19 pandemic. So how will the Land Bank's financial woes affect some of the country's farmers? And will the ripple effects move towards our food security? Guest: Omri van Zyl, the CEO at Agri SA

The Municipal Demarcation Board will commence with the ward delimitation public consultation process which was postponed due to Covid-19. The process was to conclude in April. The Demarcation Board is encouraging members of the public to make inputs on how their wards should be configured ahead of next year's local government election Guest: Aluwani Ramagadza, Chief Operating officer of the Munici...

President Cyril Ramaphosa has met with leaders of political parties represented in Parliament today, to discuss the national response to the COVID-19 pandemic and matters relating to the lockdown. The virtual meeting was the President's third consultative meeting with leaders of political parties to discuss the pandemic. Guest: Dr Pieter Groenewald, Leader of the Freedom Front Plus Guest: Vuyo Zun...

The new US export controls – what do they hope to achieve and why is Huawei in the middle of it? On Monday, the United States announced that they will impose new restrictions on exports to China to keep semiconductor production equipment and other technology away from Beijing’s military. On the other hand, China’s largest tech firm Huawei has warned that the latest US curbs will inflict a terrible...

On World News today we ask, How will Burundi look like post Pierre Nkurunziza era? Voting in Burundi is currently underway where more than five million people are eligible to cast ballots in race to succeed long-time President Pierre Nkurunziza. Seven candidates are vying to succeed Nkurunziza who is stepping down after 15 years in power. Guest: Liesl Louw-Vraudan, Senior Researcher at the Institu...

The South African Cabin Crew Association (Sacca), says majority unions at SAA have decided to take a pay cut to mitigate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic which has seen all flights grounded. However SACCA Deputy President, Christopher Shabangu, says SAA Executives and the Business Rescue Practitioners have refused to take a pay cut. Unions have since called for a forensic audit and investiga...

A wedding venue in the Western Cape has told the Equality Court that they were unfairly discriminated against by the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC). This after Beloftebos refused to host a same-sex couple for their wedding. Yesterday Beloftebos filed opposing papers with the Equality Court, arguing their policy not to host the same-sex couple did not amount to discrimination against...

We continue our daily feature of examining the Impact of the Covid-19 outbreak on political parties in South Africa. The pandemic globally has forced several political parties to postpone various political activities, events and even elections. Gracing our feature this afternoon is the United Democratic Movement (UDM) Guest: General Bantu Holomisa, Leader of the United Democratic Movement (UDM)

Economists are suggesting that interest rates may drop further this week to levels close to those last seen in the 1970s as the Reserve Bank seeks to bolster South Africa's ailing economy. Reserve Bank Governor, Lesetja Kganyago has previously indicated that the bank would use its monetary policy tools appropriately, and within the bank's mandate, to support SA's economy. Guest: Dr Azar Jammine, D...

Why was Reverend Meshoe encouraged to lie about his Covid19 test results? The African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP) leader, Reverend Kenneth Meshoe has denied ever testing positive for Covid-19, as was widely reported by a number of media houses in the country. Meshoe claims that a certain politician cooked his Covid-19 results to drive message to black people. Guest: Reverend Kenneth Meshoe,...

BSS: There has been mixed opposing views from Political parties, Health experts and Economists on whether or not South Africa should fully reopen its economy. Parties and lobby groups such as the DA, FF Plus, and AfriForum have approached the courts to challenge lockdown regulations and called for the reopening of the economy. Meanwhile, the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) says prematurely lifting the...

A wedding venue in the Western Cape Beloftebos has filed opposing papers with the Cape Equality Court; this after the South African Human Rights Commission opened a case against them for refusing to host a same-sex couple for their wedding. Beloftebos is asking the Equality Court to find that the SAHRC unfairly discriminated against them on grounds of conscience, religion and belief, and that the...

The Covid-19 outbreak has forced several political parties here and around the world to postpone political activities, events and national elections. This afternoon we will look at how the pandemic has affected activities within the Freedom Front Plus... Guest: Freedom Front Plus MP, Wouter Wessels

Researchers have discovered a strong link between severe vitamin D deficiency and mortality rates among Covid-19 patients. According to a new study that was conducted by the North-western University which is based in Chicago in the U.S, patients from countries with high COVID-19 mortality rates, such as Italy, Spain and the UK, had lower levels of vitamin D compared to patients in countries that w...

In a first for South Africa, a Durban businessman has created a pioneering mobile application to manage social distancing in public spaces such as malls as the country carefully prepares itself to open up the economy, amid rising fears of an upsurge in COVID-19 infections Guest: Mfundo Dzanibe, MD of Mzansi Digital Partners

On World News today, we tell you more about Félicien Kabuga, Rwandan genocide suspect who got arrested this past weekend after 25 years on the run. Kabuga is accused of playing a leading role in one of the worst massacres of the 20th century. In the past Rwandan prosecutors revealed that financial documents found in the capital, Kigali, after the genocide indicated that Kabuga used his companies t...

We examine the ongoing public spats between the ministry of health and some of the country’s top scientists – asking, what’s behind this lockdown fallout and how damaging is it in the fight against Covid19? Dr Kgosi Letlape, Co-founder of Africa Harm Reduction Alliance

“Innovate: Outlining the objectives of the feature” This as the world is moving towards the 4th Industrial Revolution. Guest: Ayanda Noma, Director of Innovation Technology and Commercialization At Unisa Guest: Precious Ncayiyana, Who Is a Pharmacists