5 important things happening in South Africa today
·8 Feb 2018
Here’s what is happening in and affecting South Africa today:
- Leaked audio from an investor meeting has revealed that the party was ready to dump president Jacob Zuma on Wednesday evening, at the now-postponed NEC meeting. Newly elected treasurer general Paul Mashatile told investors that the ANC’s top 6 were very clear that they were going to remove Zuma if he did not step down voluntarily. Zuma refused.
- Public Investment Corporation (PIC) CEO Dan Matjila has apologised for advancing a R5 billion loan to Eskom without properly consulting public servants about the move. The PIC expects the loan to be repaid at the end of February, and insisted on it being guaranteed by government. Eskom needs R20 billion to stay above water until the end of March.
- Not everyone lost big with the Steinhoff accounting scandal, with hedge funds who shorted the company’s stock making over R1.5 billion from the alleged fraud. The funds, in the UK and the USA, did not buy into the reassurances the furniture retailer gave when German authorities first started probing the group’s finances.
- While Cape Town slowly approaches day zero, and the Eastern Cape faces a similar future, a water expert has warned that Johannesburg and surrounds are also at risk. There is supposed to be a 24 hour assurance of supply, but certain parts of Johannesburg are at only 16 to 18 hours. The expert warned that water in the dams today does not guarantee supply in the future.
- South Africa’s rand weakened on Wednesday in volatile trade as markets awaited the outcome of talks between the ruling African National Congress leader Cyril Ramaphosa and President Jacob Zuma over a transition of power. On Thursday the rand was at R12.06 to the dollar, R16.77 to the pound and R14.80 to the euro.
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