August 08, 2024.

For Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I’m Halima Frost.

Making headlines:

ActionSA demands comprehensive citizenship audit

DA hopeful of R280m Estina case reinstatement

And, Egypt's inflation slows to 25.7% in July

ActionSA demands comprehensive citizenship audit

ActionSA wants a comprehensive citizenship audit in South Africa following the Department of Home Affairs’ announcement that it has established prima facie evidence of fraud committed by Miss South Africa contestant Chidimma Adetshina’s mother.

Yesterday the Department of Home Affairs said it uncovered that Adetshina’s mother might have committed identity theft, as it delved into the Miss South Africa contestant’s citizenship status following public outcry.

Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber pointed out that a South African had her identity stolen as part of the alleged fraud committed by Adetshina’s mother.

She said ActionSA would actively monitor the progress of the investigation, urging the DHA to demonstrate its intolerance of corruption, fraud and violations of the country’s immigration laws.

DA hopeful of R280m Estina case reinstatement

Despite the Estina Vrede Dairy case being struck off the roll by the Bloemfontein High Court, the Democratic Alliance said it is hopeful that the reinstatement of the case will have a better outcome the third time around.

The party expressed dismay at the Bloemfontein High Court’s decision yesterday, saying incidents like this contribute to the public's loss of confidence in the criminal justice system's ability to fight the scourge of corruption and other crimes.

The National Prosecuting Authority Investigating Directorate has said it will reinstate the R280-million Estina dairy farm fraud and corruption case as soon as possible.

The case arose from the alleged looting of the Free State Department of Agriculture and Rural Development between July 2012 and April 2014, with former and current officials of the department, former department MEC Mosebenzi Zwane, Gupta Associates and linked companies accused of corrupt activities.

DA Free State leader Roy Jankielsohn noted that the court’s decision marked a significant setback in the quest for justice for the people of Free State and the beneficiaries who were affected by corruption and State capture.

Egypt's inflation slows to 25.7% in July

Egypt's annual urban consumer price inflation slid to 25.7% in July from 27.5% in June, a rate of decline faster than analysts had forecast, the country's statistics agency CAPMAS revealed.

Month-on-month, prices fell by 0.4% in July, down from 1.6% in June. Food prices declined by 0.3% in July, though they were still 28.5% higher than a year ago.

A poll of 18 analysts had expected inflation to have slowed to a median of 26.6% in July, extending a deceleration that began in September, when inflation reached a peak of 38.0%.

Egypt has tightened its monetary policy under an $8-billion International Monetary Fund financial support package it signed in March, although that programme has also required it to increase many domestic prices and let its currency plunge.

The central bank hiked interest rates by 600 basis points on March 6, bringing total increases in 2024 to 800 bps.

That’s a roundup of news making headlines today

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