South Africa is officially in the fourth wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. Health Minister Joe Phaahla made the announcement this morning. He says, while they are still trying to understand the newly discovered Omicron variant, what they have discovered so far is that the variant is highly infectious. Phaahla has raised concern over the sharp increase in the number of positive cases in Gauteng and he fears that the holiday season may accelerate the variant to spread to other provinces. To tell us more on this, we are joined on the line by….

Guest: DR SBONGISENI DLOMO - DEPUTY HEALTH MINISTER

Brazil has entered recession and some experts believe that a variety of factors contributed to its economic bust, but politically speaking – what’s gone wrong with Latin America’s largest economy? To better understand what happened, we speak to Professor Siphamandla Zondi who will give us a summation of the country’s current state of politics.  

Guest: Professor Siphamandla Zondi, UJ’s International Relations Professor

Truck drivers in KwaZulu-Natal have created a massive backlog on the N3 at Van Reenen Pass which the South African Police Service is trying to clear. The Tugela Toll Plaza has also been forced to close due to the truck roadblock. It is currently unclear what is the reason behind the blockade is. For more on this, we are joined by….

Guest: Kwanele Ncalane, Spokesperson for the Department of Transport, Community Safety and Liaison in KwaZulu-Natal

Guest: President of the South African Cargo Transport Drivers Association, Daniel Mofokeng

Assisted suicide or euthanasia remains highly controversial and divided topical debated, both in the public and medical arena. Proponents of euthanasia believe terminally ill people should have the right to end their suffering with a quick and dignified compassionate death. But religious opponents to euthanasia believe that right belongs to God. So should people have the right to die? Is assisted suicide/euthanasia an answer to end suffering? And under what circumstances can it be justified? On the Nameless debate, we will explore these questions, In light of Italy approving the country's first assisted death...

GUEST: Bongani Khanyile-Luthuli, NEC Member of the African Christian Democratic Party, ACDP

GUEST: Vuyolethu Mntonintshi, a Lawyer from the Centre for Applied Legal Studies, CALS, at the Wits School of Law

How ward is it to get security clearance - how is it granted and what disqualifies one from obtaining it? We examine this in light of the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) terminating the employment contract of group chief executive Zolani Matthews with immediate effect over his failure to disclose that he held British citizenship

Guest: Paul O’Sullivan – Private Forensic Investigator

The Supreme Court of Appeal, SCA has ordered National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Ngqakula take a fresh decision on how to run a vote of no confidence against President Cyril Ramaphosa. Mapisa-Ngqakula must now decide whether the motion of no confidence in President Ramaphosa should be held via secret ballot or not…

GUEST: Sibusiso Mncwabe, Spokesperson for the African Transformation Movement (ATM)

World News: Canada has introduced a new legislation to ban so-called conversion therapy practices. This new bill will make Canada’s criminal laws on conversion therapy practices among the most comprehensive in the world. The proposed legislation would also authorize courts to order the seizure of conversion therapy advertisements or to order their removal from computer systems or the Internet. To react to this is…..

Guest: Jabu Pereira, Iranti Executive Director

We look at Azapo’s historical significance and its current and future role in South African politics. This as the party is preparing to hold its 25th National Congress that is scheduled to take place this coming weekend? Most of you would recall that AZAPO is regarded as heir to the Black Consciousness tradition founded by Steve Biko. But what happened to Azapo’s political influence - how did the party lose its mojo?

Guest: Pat Moyaha, AZAPO Central Committee Member

A spike in the number of positive coronavirus cases has been noted in Gauteng over the past few days. According to health authorities in the province, there is an increase in people aged 20 to 39 who were being hospitalised, in contrast to previous waves where most hospitalised people were  older than 40.

Guest: Dr Marry Kawonga, Head of Gauteng Premier’s Advisory Council for Covid-19 

Non-governmental organizations helping people living with HIV/Aids say they are in dire straits without funding. This as funds have been allocated more towards the fight against Covid-19. Gail Johnson, the foster mother of South Africa's famous child Aids activist, Nkosi Johnson and founding director of Nkosi's Haven says the economic impact of the pandemic was extremely high. The pandemic has also seen ppatients defaulting on ARVs, especially during lockdown.

GUEST: Gail Johnson, the foster mother of South Africa's famous child Aids activist, Nkosi Johnson and founding director of Nkosi's Haven