The Daily Discourse

A Johannesburg workshop on Obesity Prevention has heard how non communicable diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure are killing more South Africans than HIV. These diseases are as a result of a poor diet and lack of exercises and have been linked to obesity. This comes as the world observed Obesity Day last week Thursday. The workshop has also heard that one in five children are overweight and obese. The World Obesity Forum however estimates that nearly 4 million South African school children will be overweight or obese by 2025. The 2016 Global Burden of Disease study published last year in The Lancet medical journal, reports that South Africans are spending a greater proportion of their lives suffering from chronic diseases.

GUEST: Rebone Ntsie, Director of Nutrition of the National Department of Health

We are now in conversation with #FeesMustFall movement activist‚ Fasiha Hassan. Fasiha has won the Student Peace Prize for her non-violent efforts towards gaining equal access to higher education for students. She now joins me on the line…

GUEST: Hashtag FeesMustFall movement activist‚ Fasiha Hassan..

We continue our conversation on the latest Sunday Times saga. The newspaper yesterday acknowledged publishing false reports on allegations into police killings in Cato Manor in Durban; the SARS rogue unit and the illegal deportation of Zimbabweans. The stories were written by a team of senior journalists and published in the newspaper in 2011. The newspaper has apologised and agreed to return all prize money and awards won for the stories. For more on this we now speak to Paul O'Sullivan, who is a Certified Fraud Examiner

GUEST: Paul O'Sullivan, who is a Certified Fraud Examiner

Mr Mbhazima Shilowa has taken to Twitter and asked why nobody says white people are corrupt when it comes to theft such as that of Steinhoff. Shilowa says why is it that black people are responsible for the corruption of a few black guys. His tweet is in reaction to the VBS mutual bank scandal. Several individuals have been implicated in the looting of almost two-billion-rand from VBS Mutual Bank. Other social media users also took to twitter to ask if anyone has compared the damage of VBS Mutual Bank and Steinhoff? Some asked why the Steinhoff scandal was referred to as "irregular transactions" but VBS a “heist”.

GUEST: Mr Mbhazima Shilowa

The Sunday Times newspaper has acknowledged publishing false reports on allegations into police killings in Cato Manor in Durban; the SARS rogue unit and the illegal deportation of Zimbabweans. The stories were written by a team of senior journalists and published in the newspaper in 2011. The newspaper has apologized and agreed to return all prize money and awards won for the stories. On the Talking Point this morning we will speak to two guests who have been discredited by these false reports....

GUEST: Former head of the Hawks in KwaZulu-Natal, Johan Booysen

GUEST: Political analyst, Aubrey Matshiqi

Time now for our regular Friday feature the Friday Music Wind Down, today we have the honour of speaking to South African, Grammy award-winning flautist, Wouter Kellerman. Kellerman is recognized as one of South Africa's foremost musicians, with an extensive, and growing, global following. Wouter's passion for music started with a visit to the orchestra at the age of 10. For more on the remarkable man, he now joins me on the line...

GUEST: Grammy award-winning flautist, Wouter Kellerman

So yesterday we spoke to a South African man Robert J. Traydon, who will undergo a vasectomy next week Monday, in what he says is his contribution towards the fight against climate change and the soaring global population. The conversation was centered on population control but the issue of vasectomy shifted the focus as listeners wanted to know more about this procedure. So this morning we will be speaking to an urologist to shed more light on this medical procedure...

GUEST: Dr Lance Coetzee, from the Urology Hospital, Pretoria

The issue of diversity in the engineering sector is still a burning issue, and one in which the South African Institution of Civil Engineering (SAICE) is taking a critical look. Research from late last year indicated that diversity helps businesses to become more innovative and more successful. According to Steven Kaplan, COO of SAICE, while the research was conducted in the USA, there are parallels of which South African companies should be cognisant.
Guest: Steven Kaplan-COO of The South African Institution Of Civil Engineering (SAICE)

You may be comfortable in your own skin - but did you know there are billions of viruses sharing it, too? Researchers from University of Western Cape’s Institute for Microbial Biotechnology and Metagenomics and identified over 130 of these viruses.

Guest: Prof. Maria Trinidad- From the University of Western Cape

Workers Union mother body, Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU), called for a national shutdown on Thursday against new financial reforms, as the country plunges into an economic crisis. This comes on the back of President Emmerson Mnangagwa's call that people should brace for pain as the government seeks a new economic path driven on neoliberalism.

guest: Maynard Manyowa-Zimbabwean Expert