Hawks uncover R100 million education scandal, and Ramaphosa faces heat from Parliament Ad Hoc Committee

Today, 23 February, the rand is trading at R16.03 to the dollar, down from R16.17 on Friday.

Six people arrested in connection with the murder of an e-hailing driver are expected to appear in the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court this morning. 

The six are alleged to have killed twenty-two-year-old Isaac Satlat in his vehicle in Atteridgeville, Pretoria, earlier this month.

Three of the six suspects were arrested on Monday last week after police investigations linked them to the incident, and they will still have the opportunity to apply for bail. The other three individuals originally arrested abandoned their bail applications. 

Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi is set to deliver the State of the Province Address (SOPA) today. The annual event will look back on government performance over the past year and outline priorities for the year ahead. 

This year’s SOPA will be held at the Nasrec Expo Centre in Johannesburg around 18:00. Lesufi faces pressure to address problems such as illegal mining and youth unemployment. 

The uMkhonto weSizwe Party is planning to march from Soweto to the Nasrec expo centre to demonstrate against the event, which it says is a platform for empty promises. 

Bellarmine Mugabe, the son of former Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, is expected to appear in the Alexandra Magistrate’s Court today. 

This is after the former president’s son was arrested last week on connection with a shooting at his Hyde Park home. 

Here are five other big things happening in South Africa today:

Ramaphosa’s testimony for Ad Hoc Committee under question – EWN

Parliament’s Ad hoc Committee investigating allegations of corruption in the criminal justice system will meet today to discuss the questions they submitted to the president and the correspondence received so far. Some members are calling for Ramaphosa to testify in person. 

DA blocks ANC plan to give municipal mayors less power – City Press

The Democratic Alliance (DA) is opposing the African National Congress’s (ANC’s) proposal that municipalities where no party has a majority should adopt an executive committee system with proportional representation, instead of a mayor being elected by all councillors. 

Hawks uncover R100 million fraud in Education Department – eNCA

The Hawks have arrested 27 suspects, including nine senior government officials, who have been linked to a R100 million fraud investigation in the Mpumalanga Education Department. Investigators say the accused benefited from inflated contracts and payments for substandard work. 

Big turn coming for South African economy this week – BusinessTech

Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana will this week outline improvements in South Africa’s public finances that pave the way for a sovereign credit-rating outlook upgrade, according to a Bloomberg survey. 

New trade ban on South African livestock – Newsday

The spokesperson for Zambia’s Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock, Benny Munyama, recently announced that all import permits for South African livestock-related products have been suspended due to the ongoing foot-and-mouth disease outbreak.