For Creamer Media in Johannesburg, this is Polity’s daily podcast.

Making headlines: Solly Malatsi refers KPMG’s Postbank report to the Hawks; Survey shows South African business confidence gets boost from coalition government; And, Govt says economic growth is a clear indication that SA is on a solid path to recovery

Solly Malatsi refers KPMG’s Postbank report to the Hawks

The Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies Solly Malatsi has instructed the Postbank board to ensure that the recommendations contained in the KPMG report are implemented, and he has referred the report to the Directorate of Priority Crime Investigation, also known as the Hawks, to ensure prosecutions.

The KPMG investigation was instituted following confirmation by the Auditor General of South Africa in the 2021 report detailing fraudulent activities at Postbank.

The forensic report on governance and financial breaches at Postbank shows that the institution was compromised, which resulted in financial losses to the value of about R89.5-million, between 2021 and 2022.

The report was presented to the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Communications and Digital Technologies by a delegation led by Deputy Minister Mondli Gungubele today.

Malatsi said his department would use the full might of the law to fight anyone who “dares rob citizens”.

Survey shows South African business confidence gets boost from coalition government

South African business confidence rose in the third quarter, helped by improving optimism about the business climate after the formation of a coalition government and stable electricity supply, a survey showed today.

The business confidence index rose to 38 points in the third quarter from 35 points in the prior quarter, according to the survey by the Rand Merchant Bank and compiled by the Bureau for Economic Research.

The South African Reserve Bank is expected to start cutting interest rates from this month for the first time in four years.

The African National Congress lost its parliamentary majority for the first time in 30 years in May, and later formed a broad coalition with several parties including the market-friendly Democratic Alliance.

Additionally, State-owned power utility Eskom managed to keep the lights on for over five months without scheduled blackouts in the country where power cuts have hampered economic growth for over a decade.

And, Govt says economic growth is a clear indication that SA is on a solid path to recovery

The Government Communication and Information System said today South Africa’s economic growth in the second quarter shows that the economy is on a solid path to recovery, highlighting government’s commitment to implementing policies to sustain and accelerate growths.

Statistics South Africa released data recently, which indicated the country’s GDP increased by 0.4% in the second quarter of 2024, following a 0.0% growth in the first quarter.

On expenditure, real GDP rose by 0.5% in the second quarter, an improvement from the 0.1% decrease in the first quarter of 2024.

Government attributed this to the “effectiveness of the measures that have been implemented to support recovery and growth”, also noting that a lack of loadshedding has played a crucial role in revitalising key sectors, such as electricity, gas, and water.

The GCIS noted that household consumption was the largest positive contributor to overall growth, which it said demonstrated the renewed confidence and spending power of South African households.

That’s a roundup of news making headlines today

Don’t forget to follow us on the X platform, at the handle @PolityZA