First Take SA

The South African Reserve Bank is expected to raise interest rates even further. The Bank's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is expected to announce its decision on the interest rates later this afternoon. To discuss this further Elvis Presslin spoke to UKZN School of Economics Senior Lecturer, Dr. Sanele Gumede

The latest statistics released by Police Minister Bheki Cele have painted a horrifying picture of violent crimes in South Africa. More than seven thousand people have been murdered between July and September 2022, with over eight hundred more people murdered, compared to the same period last year. More than ten thousand women, men, and children were raped, with the majority of rape survivors being women. For some analysis, Elvis Presslin spoke to Independent Crime Analyst Dr. Chris de Kock

Labor analyst Terry Bell says the government can afford a lot more than a 3% wage hike. This is as public service workers continue the strike across all provinces, demanding a 10% wage increase. Speaking to our Senior producer Ronald Phiri, Bell says the government is prolonging wage negotiations to buy time to force workers to accept their 3% wage offer

The Democratic Alliance has given the acting national Commissioner of Correctional Services, Makgothi Thobakgale a deadline of Friday to ensure former President Jacob Zuma returns to prison. The party's lawyers wrote to Thobakgale demanding that Zuma be returned back to Estcourt Correctional Centre to serve out the remainder of his sentence. This follows Monday's ruling by the Supreme Court of Appeal that Zuma's medical parole was illegal. For more on this, Elvis Presslin spoke to Cilliers Brink, National spokesperson for the DA.

ANC President Cyril Ramaphosa is leading the pack in the race for the party's presidency. President Ramaphosa is way ahead of his opponent, former Health Minister Dr. Zweli Mkhize by 2 037 nominations from branches while 916 branches nominated Mkhize. For political analysis on the latest branch nominations for the top six ANC positions ahead of the party's 55th National Conference, Elvis Presslin spoke to Political Analyst Mr. Sandile Swana

More than 800 000 public sector servants will embark on an indefinite strike from today. The strike comes after the government unilaterally implemented a 3% wage increase in the public sector. Meanwhile, Public Service Administration Minister Thulas Nxesi has called on the labor unions to return to the negotiation table. To further discuss this Elvis Presslin spoke to Public Servants Association National Spokesperson, Claude Naiker

The lawyer representing Janusz Walus has welcomed the Constitutional Court's ruling for Chris Hani's killer to be released on parole within 10 days. Handing down his ruling yesterday Chief Justice Raymond Zondo said Minister Ronald Lamola's decision not to grant Janusz Walus parole was irrational and must be set aside. For more on this Elvis Presslin spoke to Chrispin Phiri, Spokesperson for the Ministry of Justice and Correctional Services

The ANC in KwaZulu-Natal says former President Jacob Zuma will not be going back to prison. This is despite the Supreme Court of Appeal in Bloemfontein ruling which has ordered that Zuma must return to the Estcourt Correctional Centre to finish serving his sentence. In a unanimous judgment, the Appeals court declared that Zuma did not lawfully complete his prison sentence. The ANC KZN says the former president will remain a free man, as this is good for the KZN province and the country's stability. For more on this, Elvis Presslin spoke to ANC KZN Provincial Secretary Bheki Mtolo

Time to take a look at the current top African economic stories with Victor Kgomoeswana, 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

Janusz Walus will today find out if he is staying in jail or being released on parole. Walus approached the Constitutional Court to review Justice Minister Ronald Lamola's 2020 decision not to approve his release on parole. Walus has been serving time in prison for the 1993 murder of SACP leader Chris Hani. To look at the legal prospects of the case Elvis Presslin spoke to Public interest Lawyer, Richard Spoor