BizNews Radio

Three JSE stories opened the week, and one theme cut through all of them: cash. Anglo Gold Ashanti confirmed a shareholder vote on a $2 billion share buyback, sending the stock up nearly 9%. Eskom's credit rating was upgraded by Fitch — not on its own merits, but on the back of South Africa's sovereign upgrade, with its standalone profile still deep in junk territory. Matengu flagged the sale of its Blue Ridge Platinum stake for R50 million, tidying the books ahead of a bigger deal. Then the weekend rewrote the macro: a US-Iran ceasefire pushed oil down and put gold bulls on notice.

In his latest interview with Chris Steyn, Grant Abbott the General Secretary of the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) shares evidence collected over years for the criminal complaint lodged against Vice-Chancellor Professor Sakhela Buhlungu who was recently placed on precautionary suspension by the Council and now faces charges of gross misconduct. Allegations in the union’s criminal complaint include the appointment and promotion of individuals outside lawful recruitment processes, the circumvention of governance structures, the approval of substantial financial settlements of millions of rands and remuneration adjustments without proper justification. It also sets out how the Vice Chancellor selectively used disciplinary processes to protect his allies and targeted whistleblowers. Meanwhile, some of those who benefitted from the Vice-Chancellor’s “schemes” are now the accused in corruption and fraud cases. “The problem is that you can't position yourself as a corruption buster and then in the process of doing that create more corruption...”

In today's BizNews Daybreak: Global markets react to a historic US-Iran peace deal halting fighting for 60 days, while the Federal Reserve faces a high-stakes interest rate decision amidst rising inflation.

Closer to home, President Cyril Ramaphosa scrambles to block a politically dangerous parliamentary impeachment inquiry over the Phala Phala scandal.

Plus, Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis explains why he's staying clear of a cabinet seat, and the founders of Stellenbosch sportswear brand Old School SA share how they turned vintage jerseys and national pride into a booming business.

In today’s edition of the NdB Sunday Show with Chris Steyn and Lauren Evanthia, the founder of the Organic Humanity Movement, the hot topic is President Cyril Ramaposa’s urgent court bid to try and stop Parliament from conducting his impeachment inquiry. “And now the president is obviously scrambling. He knows what this means. If anything, this is almost an admission of guilt on his part…(and) how is it gonna hurt the ANC during the elections? I think that is probably at the forefront of his mind…if they want to hold on to that 45.6%, they cannot afford to have this massive scandal with the president.” Evanthia also dissects the testimony of Witness I before the Madlanga Commission. “The whole South African government for me appears to be an entire criminal enterprise.” She further looks at the biggest lack of service delivery horror stories, and gives her take on the defection journey of Neville Delport from the African National Congress (ANC) to the Democratic Alliance (DA) and on to the Patriotic Alliance (PA). Lastly, she examines the likely consequences for South Africa should Nigeria carry out its threat of retaliation over South Africa’s handling of the migrant crisis.

Stef and Daneel Steinmann couldn’t buy the vintage Springbok jerseys they kept seeing around Stellenbosch in 2019, a Rugby World Cup year when green and gold were everywhere, so after roughly 100 emails they found a supplier and started their own brand, Old School SA. Six years on, Old School holds official partnerships and licences with the Springboks, Orlando Pirates, Kaizer Chiefs, Manchester City and the NBA, and operates branded stores across the country. With Bafana Bafana back at the Football World Cup for the first time in 16 years, Old School is now the official supporters’ brand, and their Bafana kit has become so popular that, as Stef Steinmann puts it, “people are sleeping in their jerseys.” In an interview with BizNews, he reflects on their journey and the brother dynamic, how Daneel knocks on doors “making promises” while Stef makes sure those promises are kept, a balance that works. Daneel is already on the ground with Bafana Bafana in Mexico, where they played their first match, while Stef, delayed by a visa issue, is holding the fort in South Africa. What does he attribute their meteoric success to? Uniting people behind the teams they love, because people tend to remember who they were with during the big sporting moments more than the match itself. - Linda van Tilburg