March,24 2017.
For Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I’m Thabi Madiba.

Making headlines:
Zuma considers designating 3 new JSC members
Gambia to set up truth and reconciliation commission
And, Sassa officials nabbed for R5.5-million fraudulent grant payouts

President Jacob Zuma is considering designating three new members of the Judicial Service Commission, the Presidency said today.

His spokesperson Bongani Ngqulunga said the Constitution allows for the president to designate four members of the JSC after consulting with party leaders represented in the National Assembly.

He had therefore written to political party leaders requesting that they provide their input.

The new members will fill the three vacancies occasioned by the president's decision to replace members that he had previously designated to the JSC.

Gambia said yesterday it would set up a Truth and Reconciliation Commission and offer reparations to victims of former President Yahya Jammeh's government, which is accused of the torture and killing of perceived opponents.

Justice Minister Abubacarr Tambadou said in a statement the government will also probe the finances of Jammeh, who fled into exile in January to Equatorial Guinea after a rule that began in 1994 when he seized power in a coup.

Jammeh lost an election in December to the now President Adama Barrow but refused to accept the result. He only stepped down after pressure from regional leaders who sent troops to Gambia to force him to leave.

Eight officials from South African Social Security Agency have been arrested in Mpumalanga for fraud after they allegedly manipulated the system to payout grants – that add up to more than R5.5-million – to people who did not qualify.

The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation today said its members in Mpumalanga working with crime intelligence officers arrested the Sassa officials on suspicion of fraud and corruption.

To advertise on Polity email advertising@creamermedia.co.za
That’s a roundup of news making headlines today