Daily news update: EFF discloses donations, Mkhwebane impeachment and Rosettenville shootout

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Daily news update 23 February

EFF discloses donations for the first time as ANC declares R22 million

The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) has confirmed that a total of nearly R46 million in donations have been declared by political parties.

“This amount is greater than the R30,008,841.74 declared in the first quarter, but short of the R 56,880,644.47 declared in the second quarter,” the IEC said in a statement on Tuesday.

The commission released its third quarterly report, with 11 political parties disclosing donations over R100,000 as required by the Political Party Funding Act (PPFA).

The PPFA regulates the public and private funding of political parties.

Rosettenville shootout: 15 police officers traumatised, Ipid takes over investigation

Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) spokesperson Grace Langa said the 15 police officers involved in the shootout in Rosettenville, south of Johannesburg, on Monday are traumatised by the incident.

Langa added that Ipid has taken over the investigation, as police were involved in the shootout with cash-in-transit (CIT) robbers. The shootout resulted in eight people being killed.

Langa said there were about 15 police officers involved in the shootout.

“There were about 15 officers from different units that were involved in the shootout with criminals and we could not interview them because most of the officers are still traumatised by what happened,” she said.

Mkhwebane’s planned Concourt bid won’t stop impeachment process

Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane‘s application to have the Constitutional Court judgement against her attempt to halt her possible impeachment rescinded won’t stop proceedings from going ahead, said the Committee for Section 194 Inquiry on Tuesday.

Mkhwebane’s lawyers on Monday informed Speaker of parliament Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula that she intended to apply to the Constitutional Court to have parts of its judgment, passed earlier this month, rescinded.

Mkhwebane reportedly indicated that papers would be lodged in the next 10 to 14 days.

Ace Magashule asbestos case: R250m contract ‘no small change’ – state

Former Free State premier Ace Magashule has a case to answer to in the R250 million corruption case as he was the executive authority in the province at the time, the state argued in the Bloemfontein High Court on Tuesday.

Magashule and the other co-accused are questioning the validity of the corruption and fraud charges levelled against them as detailed in the indictment. The former premier insists that the case is politically motivated and wants the charges to be dismissed.

ALSO READ: ‘Charges meant to derail my political career’ – Ace Magashule

On Monday, the court postponed his pre-trial hearing to June to allow the completion of the extradition from the US of his former PA Moroadi Cholota, who is also an accused in the case.

PA joins DA’s multi-party coalition in Johannesburg, Ekurhuleni

The Patriotic Alliance (PA) has joined the multi-party coalition in two Gauteng municipalities.

On Tuesday, former Freedom Front Plus (FF+) MP, Dr Corné Mulder, announced that the PA agreed to join the Democratic Alliance’s (DA’s) multi-party coalition in the City of Ekurhuleni and the City of Johannesburg after “hours and hours” of negotiations.

The coalition agreement will see eight PA councillors join the City of Johannesburg, while four councillors will join the City of Ekurhuleni.

WATCH: Tanks roll through streets as Putin defies West, moves into Ukraine

President Vladimir Putin ordered Russian troops into two Moscow-backed rebel regions of Ukraine on Monday, prompting a furious response from the West with the United States denouncing the move at the UN Security Council as a “pretext for war”.

After weeks of massing troops around Ukraine, Putin recognised the independence of the former Soviet state’s rebel-held Donetsk and Lugansk regions – paving the way for the deployment of a potential invasion force.

In an often angry 65-minute televised national address from his office, Putin railed against Ukraine as a failed state and “puppet” of the West.

Putin said it was necessary to “take a long overdue decision, to immediately recognise the independence” of the two regions.

ALSO READ: Daily news update: Magashule asbestos case, Rosettenville shooting and vaccination programme changes