First Take SA

The passing of the National Health Insurance, NHI Bill by the National Council of Provinces, NCOP has been moved to next week. The NHI Bill seeks to achieve universal health coverage for all South Africans. However, those opposed to the Bill in its current form feel its not in the best interest of patients and the role of private medical schemes. The debate and vote on the NHI Bill was deferred to...

Cabinet members were in discussions last night to consider the approval of the National Logistics Roadmap. The roadmap seeks to address challenges facing the freight and logistics sector. This as state-owned enterprise Transnet struggles with increased congestion and delays at its ports. To discuss this matter further, Elvis Presslin spoke to DA Shadow Minister of Public Enterprise, Dr. Mimmy Gond...

The Democratic Alliance will by challenging Floyd Brink reappoint as Johannesburg's City manager. Brink was reappointed yesterday after an in-committee report was tabled at a council meeting. This after a court found his appointment as city manager unconstitutional, unlawful and invalid. DA caucus leader Belinda Echeozonjoku told our Senior Producer Ronald Phiri the party will challenge Brink's re...

Civil rights organisation AfriForum is demanding the removal of a BBBEE status as a condition for water use licence applications. The Department of Water and Sanitation's new transformation water license regulations requires new applicants to allocate shares of up to 75% to Black South Africans for such a licences to be granted. Afriforum says new applications online are not able to be processed i...

Gauteng Finance MEC, Jacob Mamabolo has emphasised that the R13-billion required from the province to settle the e-toll debt presents a major risk to the province's fiscus. Mamabolo says the province will be approaching the national government to discuss a possible long-term payment arrangement to bring the matter to finality.  He says an agreement with the national government should result in the...

Thousands of jobs are at risk in the mining, metal and engineering sector as companies struggle to stay afloat. The National Union of Mineworkers, NUM estimates 10,000 job losses to the industry by January next year. While steel producer ArcelorMittal South Africa is set to shed 3 500 jobs at its Newcastle and Vereeniging operations. To examine the knock-on economic effect of retrenchments, Elvis...

The National Union of Mineworkers, NUM say there is a possibility of 10 000 mineworkers being retrenched by January next year. The union says mining companies have issued retrenchments notices in recent months in the gold and platinum sectors. For more on this, Elvis Presslin spoke to NUM's Media Officer, Luphert Chilwane

Different organisations are today expected to participate in pro-Palestinian marches as part of International Solidarity Day with Palestine. The organisations are calling for a permanent ceasefire between Israel and Hamas citing the violation of human rights in the ongoing conflict. Last week Parliament voted in favour of a motion to close the Israeli embassy in Pretoria and to suspended all diplo...

Police in KwaZulu-Natal have launched a manhunt for at least five suspects who shot and killed four family members and injured another in Mfume, Amanzimtoti the early hours of Monday. This is a second incident at the same household in a space of a year. In 2022 the mother of house sustained gunshot wounds during a shooting, and the matter is still under investigation. Police are appealing to anyon...

Over 100 miners are reportedly trapped underground at an Impala Platinum mine in the North West. The Incident allegedly occurred last night. Emergency personnel are currently at the scene trying to rescue the trapped workers. For the latest Elvis Presslin spoke to Johan Theron, Spokesperson for Impala Platinum (Implats)

The National Assembly will today vote on whether to suspend former Transport Minister Dipuo Peters for her alleged role in state capture at Prasa. This after Parliament's Joint Committee on Ethics and Members Interest found she breached the ethics code and recommended the sanction. United Behind lodged a complaint last year alleging Peters dismissed the Prasa board after it uncovered R14 billion i...

The South African Jewish Board of Deputies have welcomed the release of two South Africans who were held hostage by Hamas. Sixty-four-year-old Aviva Siegel and 79-year-old Channah Peri were taken hostage when Palestinian militant group launched a surprise attack on Israel in October. Both women were released during a truce between Israel and Hamas in the ongoing conflict. For more on this Elvis Pr...

Elvis Presslin takes a look at the current top African economic stories with Victor Kgomoesoana, author of  "Africa Is Open For Business" and "Africa Bounces Back". Victor is also the Executive Director for Marketing and Communication at the University of Limpopo

Human Rights Watch say there is no political will to address the surge in alleged ethnically-driven killings in the Darfur region of Sudan. Hundreds of Masalit civilians were reportedly targeted, tortured, raped and killed earlier this month in Ardamata town, West Darfur by the Rapid Support Forces. The paramilitary group which is at war with the Sudanese army, has been accused of committing human...

Deputy President Paul Mashatile has over the weekend launched the 16-days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children campaign in Mpumalanga. Meanwhile, the mental health of South African men needs attention, says Limpopo Health MEC Phophi Ramathuba.  Ramathuba says she believes the mental health of the country's men is an important aspect of the battle against gender-based violence. El...

The ANC could lose its assets after another court defeat in a multi-million-rand elections campaign dispute. This after the Supreme Court of Appeal upheld a decision by the Gauteng High Court which found the ANC liable for over R100 million for election banners. KwaZulu-Natal branding company Ezulweni Investments applied to seize assets worth more than R102m from the ANC after the party failed to...

DA Leader John Steenhuisen will today conduct an aerial oversight inspection of the Durban port, In KwaZulu Natal to assess the logistics crisis. The visit comes after Transnet experienced a backlog of over 70,000 containers that needed to be offloaded. At Richards Bay, the port terminal suspended the receiving of goods due to truck congestion. For more on this, Elvis Presslin spoke to Christopher...

Energy analyst Chris Yelland says loadshedding will play a major factor in next year's general elections if higher stages of power cuts persist. This after Eskom implemented stage 6 load shedding over the weekend due to the heatwave, a shortage of generating capacity and emergency reserve. Speaking to our Senior Producer Ronald Phiri, Yelland outlined how Eskom's challenges will have a political b...

Police in Mpumalanga have urged parents and guardians to be vigilant following a string of rapes against minors in Vosman. The incidents date back from March this year, when a seven year old victim was abducted and raped, according to local authorities. The police say from there on, a number of similar incidents involving victims aged between seven and thirteen were reported. This, as Deputy Presi...

The Department of Social Development will today lead a march against homophobia, biphobia and transphobia in Pretoria. The walk comes right after a Grade 6 pupil Sibusiso Mbatha, at Khahlekile Primary School in Thokoza committed suicide due to being bullied about his sexuality. To discuss more about homophobia and the walk Elvis Presslin spoke to Deputy Chairperson of the South African National Ai...

Parliament's Powers and Privileges Committee will today hold a hearing into former Minister Mosebenzi Zwane's failure to appear before the House to apologize for undeclared state capture and Gupta-related benefits. In May the National Assembly adopted findings of Parliament's Joint Committee on Ethics and Members' Interests that Zwane failed to disclose the benefits he received from the controvers...

Oscar Pistorius will know his fate at his second parole hearing today. The former Paralympic athlete and convicted murderer made an application for parole in March this year but was denied. Pistorius will now appear before the Kgosi Mampuru parole board in Pretoria for his second attempt to be release. He was sentenced to 13 years and five months in prison in 2017 for killing his then girlfriend,...

Elvis Presslin takes a look at the current top African economic stories with Victor Kgomoesoana, author of  "Africa Is Open For Business" and "Africa Bounces Back". Victor is also the Executive Director for Marketing and Communication at the University of Limpopo

The Democratic Alliance has laid a complaint against President Cyril Ramaphosa with the South African Human Rights Commission. The DA says Ramaphosa is responsible for the starvation of almost five million of South Africa's children. 4.8 million of the country's 20 million children are starving, this according to latest statistics from the State of the South African Child Report, by the Nelson Man...

The Reserve bank's monetary policy committee is expected to announce its decision on interest rates this afternoon.  This, as data released by Statistics South Africa shows that consumers continue to buckle under the pressure of high prices as inflation increased on average by 0, 9-percent in October.  The annual consumer price inflation (CPI) increased for the third consecutive month from 5,4-per...