First Take SA

A group of local NGO’s have joined the global Break Free campaign aimed to disrupt the fossil-fuel industry by targeting the world’s most dangerous and unnecessary fossil fuel projects. In South Africa corruption is said to be aggravating the coal sector. Local communities are speaking out against the so called dirty sector. Blocking the increased use of coal isn’t just about safeguarding the environment and human health, it’s also about putting an end to corruption. Climate change activists believe that the use of fossil fuels affects people, agriculture and violates human rights. The struggles against carbon emissions and coal mining are also impacting food security. The drought has disrupted food production which has forced the increase food prices. When this happens, the poor are the first to suffer.

The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has proposed to Justice Minister Michael Masutha that Judge Mabel Jansen be placed on special leave, following the outcry over alleged racial comments she made on social media. In a Facebook conversation with social justice activist Gillian Schutte, Judge Jansen posted messages with racial undertones, seemingly suggesting that rape is an ingrained part of black people's culture. The commission has confirmed that a complaint about the Facebook post was lodged with it by Advocate Vuyani Ngalwana in his capacity as chairperson of Advocates for Transformation in Johannesburg, and also in his personal capacity.

Rioting residents of Grabouw in the Western Cape have now set alight an open field surrounding an informal settlement in the area. The protestors earlier set a traffic licencing centre alight in dispute over housing issues. Community members are allegedly in dispute over a local housing project and who the beneficiaries should be.

Government says it will set up camps and provide mobile classrooms to cater for over two thousand grade 12 learners in Vuwani and its surrounding villages. Co-operative Governance minister, Des Van Rooyen briefed the media outside Polokwane after a meeting between the inter-ministerial team and Vuwani traditional leaders

355 thousand people lost their jobs in the first quarter of 2016. This is the highest rate since 2008. Statistics South Africa says there were already 521 thousand unemployment people before these new figures were released in Pretoria today. This means unemployment currently stands at 26.7 percent, a figure higher than last year's 24.5 percent. For more on this we are joined on the line by Statistician-General at Statistics South Africa Phali Lehohla.

The Basic Education department says it will cost more than half a billion rand to rebuild 24 schools that were burnt down or vandalised by residents at Vuwani* in Limpopo. Minister Angie Motshekga says valuable school records that cannot be easily replaced have also been destroyed. Motshekga says a full assessment on the extent of the damage is still to be completed. A meeting between senior government officials, concerned traditional leaders from Vuwani and the Vha-Venda* King Toni Mphephu Ramabulana resolved to work towards the restoration of calm in Vuwani.

Multichoice lawyers have told the Competition Appeal Court in Cape Town that there's nothing unusual about its deal with the SABC. Media Monitoring Africa and Caxton Publishers are challenging a ruling by a tribunal in February giving the go-ahead for the deal. They say the five-year contract is problematic as it gives one competitor exclusive control of a portion of entertainment archive material. Senior counsel for Multichoice David Unterhalter told the court that the SABC has a commercial choice to have an exclusive deal with Multichoice. Unterhalter says the public broadcaster has the right to sell to Multichoice.

Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga says valuable school records that cannot be easily replaced have been destroyed by protesters setting fire to at least 24 schools at Vuwani in Limpopo. She says it will cost more than half a billion rand to rebuild the schools that were burned down or vandalised by rampaging mobs at Vuwani in Limpopo. Motshekga says a full assessment on the extent of the damage is still to be completed..

A month ago we reported on Frans Motupa’s story who said that the retail store Edgars had failed to update his information on the credit bureau after he fully paid his account. This, after he had made an arrangement with a debt collecting firm. He told us that even though it has been a while since he paid he has been unable to secure credit because of this. There are developments but let’s first recap

President Jacob Zuma says the behaviour of opposition MPs in parliament is embarrassing. He has called on the Speaker to bring order to the house in order to restore its dignity and for people to continue respecting it. Zuma was replying to the debate on the Presidency debate that took place in the National Assembly on Wednesday. He says some leaders are worried about what their people see in the South African parliament. Meanwhile, The Democratic Alliance says the sitting of the National Assembly - which most opposition parties are boycotting - is a farce. The DA and seven other parties such as EFF, ACDP and UDM have decided not to attend the sitting saying attending the sitting would mean legitimising the President