First Take SA

President Cyril Ramaphosa will visit Mangaung, a metro that is currently under administration, this coming weekend. He will hold a Presidential Imbizo at Dr. Petrus Molemela Stadium in Bloemfontein on Saturday. For more on this, Jon Gericke spoke to SABC senior reporter in the Free State, Ishmael Modiba

National Treasury director-general, Dondo Mogajane is leaving the department after 23 years of service. Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana says Mogajane has decided not to extend his contract which expires in June this year. Instead, he will pursue new opportunities outside of the public sector. Jon Gericke caught up with Mr. Mogajane...

Time to take a look at the current top African economic stories.....Jon Gericke spoke to 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...

Eastern Cape Premier, Oscar Mabuyane has suspended the Provincial Superintendent General of the Department of Education, Dr. Naledi Mbude. The Department came under fire for failing to obey a court order to supply learner support material on time, the non-payment of education assistants last year -- and the loss of a 205-million rand conditional infrastructure grant from the national department, due to underspending. Mbude is challenging her suspension in the courts.  She was appointed in the post last year June, after the death of then HOD Themba Kojana. SADTU's provincial secretary in the province, Chris Mdingi

Disgruntled Diepsloot residents, north of Johannesburg have attributed the high level of crime and murders to the influx of undocumented foreign nationals in the area. Yesterday scores of residents took to the streets to protest, blockading several roads with rocks and burning tyres to voice their concerns about police visibility. Addressing Diepsloot residents yesterday, Police Minister Bheki Cele says he will deploy more police officers to Diepsloot. For the latest, Jon Gericke spoke to Diepsloot Community Leader Mr. Sicelo Shezi...

The City of Cape Town is expected to launch its Land Release Programme on Friday which is aimed at building affordable housing within the inner city. The programme is aimed at bridging the gap between well located vacant land within the City centre and the need for affordable housing. The initiative will be targeting private developers together with housing financiers and social housing institutions in order to partner with the provincial government of the Western Cape to best deliver on the housing backlog. For more on this Jon Gericke spoke to Mayoral Committee Member for Human Settlement in the City of Cape Town, Malusi Booi

The wife of Burkina Faso's assassinated revolutionary leader, Thomas Sankara, says she is relieved after his successor was sentenced to life imprisonment for his role in the 37-year-old's murder. In reacting to the sentence, Mariam Sankara told members of the media that the people of Burkina Faso and the public would now know who her husband was and the values he stood for. Sankara was gunned down in the capital Ouagadougou on 15 October 1987, four years after he took power in a previous coup. His successor, Blaise Compaore went on to rule for 27 years before being ousted in another coup in 2014 and fleeing to Ivory Coast, where he is still believed to live. News of the sentence has sent shock waves across the continent and for a look at the implications, First Take SA producer, Sithakazelo Dlamini spoke to Political analyst, Bheki Mngomezulu about the legacy of Thomas Sankara

The formal bail application of 27 people implicated in alleged passport fraud has been postponed to Friday this week by the Krugersdorp Magistrate's Court. The group was arrested during an early morning sting operation last week through a collaborative raid led by the Hawks working together with the Home Affairs Department and the Johannesburg Central Tactical Response Team. The suspects are believed to be part of a syndicate that is working with Home Affairs officials to fraudulently issue South African passports to foreign nationals at a cost of R40 000 each. For further details Jon Gericke spoke to our reporter, Horisani Sithole

City of Johannesburg's Group Forensic and Investigation Services says it has successfully returned 51 buildings to their lawful owners in the past 5 years. This comes as the unit says it returned a building to its owner in Denver, in the East of Johannesburg. This week, the civil movement Operation Dudula said it will be approaching the Public Protector to investigate the government's role in the number of buildings that have been hijacked in city centers - allegedly by foreign nationals. For more on this Jon Gericke spoke to the Spokesperson for the City of Johannesburg's Group Forensic and Investigation Services, Lucky Sindane

Security Officers and Cleaners have been camping outside Edenvale Hospital in Johannesburg, for over a month in makeshift tents due to unpaid salaries. The employer Jack Cliffy Trading has reportedly not paid 3 months' salaries to over 40 workers who were assigned to the hospital. JackCliffy Trading has since terminated its contract with the provincial Department. ActionSA is considering taking legal action against the service provider for non-payment of salaries. Jon Gericke spoke to LincoIn Machaba, ActionSA's Provincial Executive member and Councillor in the City of Johannesburg