First Take SA

The ANC in Parliament says it is confident that the opposition sponsored vote of no confidence in President Jacob Zuma will be defeated. The party Chief Whip, Jackson Mthembu, says it is inconceivable that a governing party could support an opposition sponsored motion of no confidence to oust its own president. The Speaker of the National Assembly Baleka Mbete has not yet made her decision on how the vote will be conducted in a motion scheduled for Tuesday next week. Mthembu says the ANC has full confidence in its MP's.

The mining industry continues to bleed jobs. The National Union of Mineworkers has expressed shock at the possible retrenchments of more than seven-thousand workers at Sibanye Gold operations. This comes after Sibanye announced that it will restructure operations in its domestic market, a move that could affect its employees at all levels. Tsepiso Makwetla spoke to Kenneth Buda, NUM Mining House Coordinator at Sibanye Gold and Sibanye Gold spokesperson James Wellsted.

South African Policing Union (SAPU) has announced that the strike by the 10111 operators is set to resume with immediate effect. At a media briefing by the union indicated that they had sough intervention from government, however, that yielded no results. The countrywide strike was temporarily suspended, in mid July. Tsepiso Makwetla spoke to Oscar Skommere, General Secretary of the South African Policing Union (SAPU)

It has been reported that this morning Oscar Pistorius was rushed to Kalafong hospital in Pretoria under armed guard. This after the former paralympian reportedly complained of chest pains. Tsepiso Makwetla spoke to the Spokesperson for the Department of Correctional Services, Logan Maistry

A South African man who was held hostage by Al-Qaeda in Mali since 2011 has been freed. This was announced earlier today during a press briefing in Pretoria. Stephen McGown was grabbed in Timbuktu along with Swede Johan Gustafsson and Dutchman Sjaak Rijke, both of whom were subsequently released. McGown has returned to South Africa and been reunited with his family. Tsepiso Makwetla spoke to Imtiaz Sooliman, chairman of the Gift of the Givers. But first take a listen to State Security Minister David Mahlobo explaining how that no ransom was paid to secure McGown's release...

South African Airways has new CEO. The Finance Ministry has confirmed that SAA's new chief executive officer is Vuyani Jarana. Jarana has headed up Vodacom's enterprise division since 2012 and was previously its Chief Operating Officer. The news of the appointment comes amid reports that SAA has run out of cash and is technically insolvent. Tsepiso Makwetla spoke to Mayihlome Tshwete, spokesperson for the Finance department.

Parliament's Standing Committee on Finance has decided to launch its own inquiry into in illicit financial flows. This after Reserve Bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago told the committee that the bank laid charges but prosecutors declined to prosecute. Committee chairperson Yunus Carrim says they want to find out why so few cases are being prosecuted and why no task team's been set up to address the problem. Meanwhile The Hawks and NPA feel that they must be given the time and space to do their work; that pressure should not be placed on them to prosecute. Tsepiso Makwetla spoke to the Committee's Chairperson Yunus Carrim

Public Enterprises Minister, Lynne Brown, has asked her personal assistant, Kim Davids to step down following allegations related to the email leaks this week. The latest Gupta leaks reportedly indicate that a number of key appointments around Minister Brown were Gupta associates. Brown says the continuing allegations against Davids could compromise the legitimacy of her office. Tsepiso Makwetla spoke to amaBhungane managing partner Sam Sole

A new study by the Centre for Competition, Regulation and Economic Development (CCRED) has revealed a worrying low-investment trend among large JSE-listed firms. The research shows the largest 50 companies listed on the JSE expanded their financial reserves to R1.4-trillion by the end of 2016, contradicting arguments that investment in South Africa was being undermined by a lack of savings. Tsepiso Makwetla spoke to Thando Vilakazi, senior economist at the Centre for Competition, Regulation and Economic Development

The injured mineworkers, and the widows of 34 miners who died in the Marikana shootings will be receiving a total pay out of one-billion-rand in compensation from government. Since the shooting five years ago, at least 325 claims have been made. Tsepiso Makwetla spoke to the Lawyer representing the Marikana victims,Andries Nkome and the President of the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU), Joseph Mathunjwa.