The who's who of South African horse racing, fashion, food and music are converged in eThekwini for the Durban July taking place this weekend.  On the first Saturday of every July nearly 40 thousand people head towards Greyville to experience "July Fever". It is a fashion and entertainment extravaganza where everybody wants to be seen. Sebenzile Nkambule spoke to Fundi Sithebe,  CEO of 4racing

June is pride month globally and the LGBTQI+ community continues to focus on the to advocate for their rights in all spaces.The purpose of the LGBTIAQ+ Pride month commemoration is to highlight and recognise the impact and continuous advocacy and advancement of rights and protection of the community, as well as eradicating uncalled for violence against any human being based on their personal sexuality choices. We spoke to Sisanda Mavimbela, Human Rights Activist from the Kingdom of Eswatini.  

Today is International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. Here at home the South African Depression and Anxiety Group - SADAG -  is commemorating the day as Substance Abuse Awareness Day. Age and peer pressure combined with the low cost and easy accessibility of drugs and alcohol in South Africa are increasing the risk factors leading to abuse among young adults. The average age for drug dependency in South Africa is just 12 years and 50% of South African teenagers are already drinking alcohol. We spoke to SADAG spokesperson, Senzekile Shongwe.

A plane that was earlier this week scheduled to carry asylum seekers from the UK to Rwanda, failed to depart after a last minute challenge from the European Court of Human Rights. The flight would have been the first to take off under a new policy set out by the UK government, that would see those who arrive in the UK illegally, sent thousands of kilometres to East Africa. Despite the block, the UK government says it's still committed to the plan. We spoke to Dr Emmanuel Matambo, Research Director at the University of Johannesburg's Centre for Africa - China Studies  .....

As we commemorate Youth Month, many of the challenges that youth of South Africa have expressed are centered around unemployment, lack of  support or funding resources that may young entrepreneurial dreams. Related to that are the mental health issues associated with unemployment. In his Youth Day speech, President Ramaphosa encouraged the young people to use available resources to access jobs and funding for businesses. Ramaphosa also says young South Africans must strive  to be entrepreneurs, rather than relying on being employed. 

We spoke to Nyimpini Mabunda, interestingly born in 1976. He has dedicated some of his work to helping young South Africans navigate their lives, goals and career aspirations by mentoring them.

Transport Minister, Fikile Mbalula, is this weekend expected to meet with stakeholders in the logistics and trucking industry to help find solutions to the recent blockages of key cargo routes. Motorists experienced a major traffic backlog on parts of the N3 in KwaZulu Natal and N12 in the North West this week, due to truck drivers protesting over the employment of foreign nationals in the sector. The All Truck Drivers Forum is among those accusing truck owners of employing foreign nationals. We spoke to National Employers Association of South Africa - NEASA - CEO Gerhard Papenfus.

Various political figures have given mixed reaction to the suspension of Public Protector Advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane. On Thursday, President Cyril Ramaphosa suspended Mkhwebane pending the outcome of the inquiry into her fitness to hold office. The Public Protector was dealt a further blow on Friday;10 June when the Western Cape High Court dismissed her application to prevent Parliament from proceeding with her impeachment proceedings, and President Ramaphosa from suspending her. Ntebo Mokobo has more. We also  spoke to Vuyo Zungula,  Leader of the African Transformation Movement AND retired judge, Johann Kriegler from Freedom Under Law

The United Nations is again warning that Somalia is on the brink of devastating and widespread starvation, exacerbated by a severe drought and rising global food prices. The drought has reportedly forced over 800-thousand people from their homes while an astonishing 50% of the population is affected by the drought situation. Recent rains have been moderate, poorly distributed, and insufficient to alleviate current drought conditions, said to be the worst in 40 years. We spoke to Petrok Wilton, spokesperson for the World Food Programme in Somalia.

President Cyril Ramaphosa  sidestepped the controversy involving the robbery on his Phala Phala farm when he delivered his reply to the debate on his office's budget vote in parliament. However, his reply was delayed by more than three hours after EFF MPs demanded  that he should not be allowed to address parliament due to the allegations he is facing over the heist on his farm in 2020.

For more clarity, we spoke to  Dr Sthembile Mbete, Senior Political Science lecturer at the University of Pretoria 

The National Consumer Commission is urging the over 13 000  South African drivers who are in possession of Mercedes-Benz ML, GL, (model series 164) and R-Class (model series 251) to stop driving these vehicles immediately and contact Mercedes-Benz for further assistance. Mercedes-Benz South Africa says the global recall of these models was initiated due to a possible brake failure caused by advanced corrosion on the housing joining points which may lead to accidents and injuries. Currently there are 13 159 affected vehicles in South Africa. The Acting National Consumer Commissioner Thezi Mabuza says the supplier informed the Commission of this recall following a global recall by Mercedes-Benz. Commissioner Mabuza has more details