The Weekend View

Wanted fugitive Michael Lomas, was YESTERDAY successfully extradited back to South Africa and was formally charged for his alleged crimes. A former Eskom employee Lomas was wanted for fraud and corruption in-excess of 1.5 billion-rand, that happened between 2008 and 2018 at the Kusile Power station. He was previously arrested and was granted bail, before fleeing to the UK. He was arrested in London in 2021 and in August this year, when his extradition was approved. 
Bongiwe  Zwane spoke to Advocate Paul Hoffman, Executive Director at Accountability Now 

INTRO:  It's a  'Super Saturday' of rugby TODAY as the Springboks play their penultimate Castle Lager Rugby Championship clash against Los Pumas in Santiago del Estero, Argentina TONIGHT. Boks Coach Rassie Erasmus has made 10 changes to his starting team. A win would be the sixth in succession in the Rugby Championship, which would be the Boks' longest winning run in the competition. The game kicks off at 11pm (SA time). For mor Bongiwe Zwane spoke to SAfm Sports anchor, Janet Whitton...

There's been mixed reaction to the South African Reserve Bank decision to cut its repo rate by 25 basis points with some welcoming the relief but expressing disappointment at the modest scale. This is the first cut since the Covid-19 global economic fallout four-and-a-half years ago. The repo rate will now be at 8% while the prime lending rate will come down to 11.50%. Meanwhile the automobile industry sees this as an opportunity to boost sales. . For more we are now joined on the line by the National Automobile Dealers' Association vice chairperson Thembinkosi Pantsi.

To explore how best should South Africa remember and honour Pravin Gordhan Bongiwe Zwane spoke to political analyst Professor Ntsikelelo Breakfast AND  Neeshan Balton, Executive Director at the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation 

Russian President Vladimir Putin THIS WEEK warned that  any attack on his country by Ukraine using missiles supplied by Western nations is tantamount to NATO directly entering the war.  He said any such move will receive the appropriate response. Ukraine's western allies have long resisted giving Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy the green light to use their long-range ballistics against forces inside Russia, fearing Moscow could then escalate the war by retaliating against targets inside NATO countries. On Friday Britain and the U.S. discussed plans to allow Kyiv to strike targets inside Russia with Western-supplied missiles but nothing concrete has emerged from the talks. But could this signal a dangerous escalation of the Russia/Ukraine war? To help us answer that question Bongiwe Zwane spoke to  Denys Reeva, senior researcher at the Institute for Security Studies 

A recent global survey conducted by Theirworld , a global children's charity organisation, has revealed that South Africa faces an urgent crisis in early childhood development. According to the report , 38% of South African primary school teachers believe most children are not developmentally ready when they start school and this places South Africa's children at a significant disadvantage compared to their international peers. Their world says the findings highlight the urgent need for investment in early childhood education to prepare children for the demands of the education system and future job market. For more Bongiwe Zwane spoke to  Justin van Fleet, President of Theirworld

President Cyril Ramaphosa YESTERDAY officially signed the Basic Education Laws Amendment (BELA) policy into law. The BELA Bill, as it was previously known, makes changes to the South African Schools Act of 1996.  The  act introduces new regulations around schools in South Africa, most notably in relation to compulsory schooling from Grade R, language policies and curriculums, and prohibition of corporal punishment and initiation practices, to mention a few. The changes include making the provincial education department responsible for school language policies, criminalising parental negligence in school attendance, and accommodating religion in school codes of conduct. Critics of the new law argue that the BELA undermines the authority of school governing bodies (SGBs) and centralises decision-making power. For their reaction, Bongiwe Zwane spoke to the CEO of the Federation of School Governing Bodies, Dr Jaco Deacon and Cathrine Sutherland, Legal Researcher at Equal Education j

The ANC, PAC, Rise Mzansi and Action SA have lauded Gordhan's fight against corruption while at the helm of the department of public enterprises. During his tenure at the department, Gordhan was responsible for overseeing entities such as Eskom, Transnet, Denel and SAA, amongst others. However, the EFF says that the former Minister's legacy was one filled with the destruction of state owned enterprises. Sibahle Motha has the details 

Black Sash in partnership with the London School of Economics, Stellenbosch University Law Clinic, and the National Financial Ombud Scheme South Africa THIS WEEK launched the "Collaborations to curb indebtedness" report in Johannesburg. The report seeks to highlight the issue of indebtedness and makes recommendations to curb involuntary indebtedness, especially among social grant recipients. For more Bongiwe Zwane spoke to  Professor Deborah James from the London School of Economics

Early this year , the Mexican Council for Public Security and Criminal Justice published its annual ranking report of the 50 most violent cities in the world. The report ranked Nelson Mandela Bay (Gqeberha) as the most dangerous city in South Africa,  leaping past Cape Town and Durban.   Meanwhile, announcing the quarterly crime statistics last Friday,  National Police Commissioner Fannie Masemola said that Mthatha and Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape have been identified as problem areas for extortion-related rackets. According to  community activists and leaders people no longer feel safe , criminals now target bereaved families demanding the insurance money. They say development is at a standstill in townships across the metro because criminals are demanding protection fees from developers. Clinics and schools are also not safe. 

To discuss this further Udo Carelse spoke to Nelson Mandela Bay Mayor Gary van Niekerk, Pamela Mabini, community activist based in Gqeberha and  Prof Kholofelo Rakubu, HOD for safety and security management  at he Tshwane University of Technology