Last week, NGO, mining affected communities united in action filed an urgent application in the Pretoria high court in a bid to force the state to provide humanitarian aid, including medication, food and water to miners still underground in a Stilfontein mine. To share more details about this application as well as a way forward, I am joined on the line by…

GUEST: Christopher Rutledge, Executive Director of Mining Affected Communities United in Action

The National Student Financial Aid Scheme is calling for students who have applied for a bursary or a loan for the 2025 academic year to urgently submit outstanding documents. To give us more details on this, I am joined on the line by…

GUEST: Ishmael Mnisi – NSFAS spokesperson

Earlier on today, Dobsonville community members picked outside Eskom offices to demand answers from the power utility as they are tired of living in darkness. They are saying it’s now over 7 months since a segment of Dobsonville community has been without electricity. We understand that a transformer in the area exploded last year and has since been replaced, however though, some community members still haven’t been reconnected. To give us an update on today’s protest is…

GUEST: Stephen Mogoai, Dobsonville community leader

We analyse the results of Debt Rescue’s latest Festive Season Survey. According to the latest results, 71% of people polled say they may have to give up on any gifting purchases due to their financial troubles, and 68% say they won’t be able to travel due to the high fuel costs.

GUEST: Annaline van der Poel, COO of Debt Rescue

Former Statistician General of South Africa, Dr Pali Lehohla joins us to share his thoughts on the country’s state of affairs economically wise and what needs to be done to arrest South Africa’s stubbornly high unemployment rate.

GUEST: Dr Pali Lehohla, former Statistician General of South Africa

This being our last Fireside Chat edition of the year. Today, we are joined by a multiple global award winning educator who is very passionate about his work, and that is Dr Khangelani Sibiya. His unique and adorable style of teaching is largely infused with social trends such as sport and music, all in the name of simplifying mathematics and science. I hope his story will inspire you in so many ways.

GUEST: Dr Khangelani Sibiya, co-founder of ‘Where To Start’ Maths and Science Tutor

We hear from Dr Mamphela Ramphele who argues that Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe is not being celebrated enough even though we are now living in a democratic country. According to her, the reluctance to celebrate this late Pan Africanist icon is perhaps informed by the fact that Sobukwe’s ideas are as troublesome to today’s democratically elected leaders as they were to yesterday’s government of apartheid.

GUEST: Dr Mamphela Ramphele, Chairperson of the Archbishop Tutu IP Trust

The Constitutional court handed down a number of jugdments today and one of those was on the Ingwana John Mohlaba and Others v The Minister of Cooperative case. The highest court in the land confirmed the High Court’s order declaring section 25 of the Limpopo Traditional Leadership and Institutions Act unconstitutional and invalid to the extent that it bestows the power to impose tax on Traditional Councils. This judgment has been seen as a big win for rural communities in South Africa. To give us more details about the case, I am joined on the line by…

GUEST: Motlanalo Lebepe, Director of Nkunzi, the organisation that was an applicant in this matter

As many holidaymakers will be travelling to their respective holiday destinations, some people will be driving up the N4 Highway heading to Mozambique through the Lebombo Border. With everything that has been happening at that point of entry over the past few weeks, we asked SABC News reporter, Motsebi Monareng to join us on the show to give us an update on the traffic flow…

GUEST: Motsebi Monareng, SABC News Reporter

Earlier on I spoke to Action SA’s Free State chairperson, Patricia Kopane, about her party’s call to have Jabu Mbalula removed from the Free State legislature and also be compelled to repay the salaries he unlawfully received while holding public office. This comes after Jabu Mbalula was appointed as Acting Premier of the Free State.

GUEST: Tshidi Setai, Free State Premier’s spokesperson