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

Making headlines: EFF wants govt to allow political gatherings in lockdown; Ramaphosa pays tribute to Benno Ndulu; And, Sassa stopped Bathabile Dlamini's pension, justice department reveals

EFF wants govt to allow political gatherings in lockdown

The Economic Freedom Fighters has written to president Cyril Ramaphosa requesting that government adjust lockdown level three regulations to allow for public political gatherings.

Local government elections will almost certainly be held in South Africa between August and  November, despite appeals from both the EFF and the ruling African National Congress for the polls to be postponed.

In a letter from its attorneys, the EFF says government must allow the physical attendance of political gatherings, municipal council sittings, office of legislatures, parliament and National Assembly in compliance with Covid-19 protocols.

It called for a response from Ramaphosa by Friday.

Ramaphosa pays tribute to Benno Ndulu

President Cyril Ramaphosa expressed his sadness at the passing of respected Tanzanian economist Professor Benno Ndulu, saying Africa had lost a great thinker and visionary in the infancy of continental free trade. 

Ndulu, aged 71, passed away in a hospital in Dar es Salaam, in Tanzania on Monday.

He served as one of the 18-member Economic Advisory Council, appointed by Ramaphosa in October 2019.

Ramaphosa offered his condolences to Ndulu’s family, Tanzanians and Ndulu’s extensive, global and continental network of associates and partners, as well as to members of the Presidential Economic Advisory Council.

And, Sassa stopped Bathabile Dlamini's pension, justice department reveals

The Department of Justice and Constitutional Development said today that claims that former Social Development Minister Bathabile Dlamini is being deprived of her pension, allegedly due to political instructions, are "without substance and are devoid of any truth”.

Dlamini recently told a news outlet she was strapped for cash because her pension had been blocked. She cited this as a reason for defying a Constitutional Court order to pay part of the legal costs to non-governmental organisations that won a social grants case against her in 2018.

The Constitutional Court found that Dlamini had lied in court papers when she defended an application by Black Sash and Freedom Under Law in relation to the distribution of social grants payments. The court then ordered her to personally pay 20% of the legal costs incurred by Black Sash and the Freedom Under Law.

That’s a roundup of news making headlines today

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