5 important things happening in South Africa today
·18 Jul 2018
Here’s what is happening in and affecting South Africa today:
- Public officials who were active in government between 2009 and 2019 will undergo lifestyle audits, Public Enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan has said. The audits will follow existing procedures, but aims to hold all public officials who have unduly benefited from public funds accountable. [News24]
- Unions are ready to sign a wage agreement with Eskom, sources say, with the power utility’s offer of a 7.5% increase this year, and 7% next year being the most appealing. Eskom and unions have been negotiating wages for weeks, after workers embarked on an illegal strike that saw power shut down and stations sabotaged. [Reuters]
- The DA has rubbished a new Ipsos poll that shows the party losing a significant chunk of support in the 2019 elections. The party said that the poll understates DA support, and that the only poll that matters is the election itself. Ipsos’ polls in the past have proven to be close to the actual result. [Mail & Guardian]
- Former US president Barack Obama delivered a message of hope at the Nelson Mandela Lecture on Tuesday, calling on people to resist becoming cynical in a world of ‘rising strongmen’ and growing uncertainty. Today marks what would have been Nelson Mandela’s 100th birthday. [City Press]
- South Africa’s rand weakened on Tuesday, giving way to a recovering dollar and the return of bearish positioning ahead of consumer inflation and retail data that precede a central bank decision on lending rates. On Wednesday, the rand was trading at R13.33 to the dollar, R17.45 to the pound and R15.50 to the euro.
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