Daily news update: Mkhwebane wants unlimited funds, King Charles coronation, load shedding woes

Here’s your morning news update: An easy-to-read selection of our top stories. Stay up to date with The Citizen – More News, Your Way.

Daily news update: 7 May

Mkhwebane wants ConCourt to award her unlimited money – report

On Wednesday, the Public Protector’s office told Parliament it would make an extra R4 million available for Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s defence in her impeachment hearing. She, however, wants unlimited funds.

Mkhwebane approached the Constitutional Court (ConCourt) on Friday to force the Public Protector’s office to supply more money to pay for her team of lawyers.

In February, Mkhwebane’s lawyers did not appear at her Section 194 hearing because of non-payment of fees.

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Princes Harry, Andrew benched on third row at King Charles’s coronation

Princes Harry and Andrew attended the coronation of King Charles III on Saturday but were relegated to the third row of the royal family seating, with no formal role in proceedings.

Charles’s younger son Harry and his American wife Meghan quit royal duties in 2020 and have since unleashed a string of barbed attacks on the monarchy.

Andrew, the king’s eldest brother, has been frozen out over his past association with the disgraced late US financier Jeffrey Epstein and a related sexual abuse allegation which was settled out of court.

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Eskom ramps up load shedding to stage 5

Battling state power utility Eskom has ramped up load shedding to stage 5 until further notice, despite previous assurances that stage 3 and 4 rolling blackouts would be in place over the weekend.

But early on Saturday morning Eskom said it would increase the stage of load shedding “due to further breakdowns of generating units”.

Eskom then announced just before 2pm on Saturday that due to a shortage of generating capacity, stage 5 load shedding will be implemented until further notice.

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Mthethwa header helps Pirates beat Chiefs to reach Nedbank Cup final

A Sandile Mthethwa extra-time header earned Orlando Pirates a place in the final of the Nedbank Cup as they edged Kaizer Chiefs 2-1 at the FNB Stadium on Saturday.

This was the first time Bucs got a victory against Chiefs this season, with the Naturena based team having beaten their neighbours twice in the DStv Premiership.

The winning goal by Mthethwa was probably the most important in the teams’ three meetings.

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WATCH: Scary footage shows helicopter rescue truck driver trapped in floodwater

Hair-raising video footage shows how a man was rescued from floodwaters by a helicopter, after his truck was swept off the road.

The scary incident occurred at the Galana-Kulalu causeway in Kenya on Wednesday, 3 May 2023.

The man was driving the tanker across the Galana-Kulalu causeway when the river suddenly flooded and surrounded it.

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Mpumalanga man sentenced to life for raping 9-year-old girl

A Mpumalanga man thought he had got away with raping a nine-year-old relative in 2017 until the girl broke her silence during a school sexual abuse awareness campaign in 2019, detailing her ordeal to social workers.

On the day of the rape incident, the man, a family friend, invited the girl and her younger brother under the pretext that they were going to attend his child’s party at his residence.

According to SA Police Service, the accused picked up the children from their homestead and on arrival at his house; he dropped off the brother and drove with the girl.

“Along the way, the accused took a different direction where he drove with the victim and stopped the vehicle next to a shack near the bushes. He went inside with the victim and, after locking the door, he raped her,” Mpumalanga provincial police spokesperson Brigadier Selvy Mohlala said.

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PICS: King Charles III crowned in UK’s first coronation in 7 decades

On Saturday, King Charles III was officially crowned king of the United Kingdom, in the coronation ceremony held at Westminster Abbey.

This follows after a lifetime as the heir apparent to his late mother, Queen Elizabeth II, who passed away on 8 September 2022.

With Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby presiding over the ceremony, the 74-year-old monarch was greeted by cheers of ‘God save the king’.

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Covid-19: SA urged to remain vigilant following WHO’s global emergency lift

On Friday, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Covid-19 is no longer considered a global health emergency.

However, he emphasised the virus remains a global health threat and is here to stay.

The national department of health has welcomed this announcement but is cautioning South Africans that the pandemic is far from over.

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