Daily news update: Load shedding is back, Putco to fire 1000 workers and Senzo Meyiwa trial

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 September

Load shedding is back! Stage 2 expected until Saturday night

Eskom has announced that it will be cutting your lights with stage 2 load shedding from 4pm until 10pm from Tuesday night.

The power utility said thereafter stage 2 load shedding will be implemented daily from 5am to 10pm until Saturday night.

The parastatal said the load shedding was necessary due to a shortage of generation capacity after breakdowns and delays in returning some generating units to service.

Eskom spokesperson Sikonathi Mantshantsha has urged all South Africans to continue using electricity sparingly.

Putco to fire 1000 employees for embarking on illegal strike

Putco has confirmed that it will be firing about a 1000 employees after what the bus company called an “illegal strike” by striking workers.

The bus company said it has taken disciplinary action against the employees after they continued with their strike for better wages on Tuesday morning.

The employees parked their buses last week, demanding a 6% wage increase and their back pay.

They claim the bus company has not paid them bonuses since 2020.

Senzo Meyiwa murder trial: Defence abandons special entry application over second docket

Advocate Zandile Mshololo, the defence lawyer for one of the five men standing trial for the murder of former Bafana Bafana captain Senzo Meyiwa, has abandoned her application challenging the non-disclosure of the controversial second docket in court records.

Advocate Mshololo – who represents accused number five, Sifisokuhle Ntuli – on Monday brought a special entry application regarding “irregularities” related to the State’s failure to disclose to her the contents of the second docket.

The docket included photo albums of the crime scene and the affidavit of Brigadier Johan Ndlovu, who passed away before the murder trial could start.

Malema’s firearm discharge case postponed to next year due to unavailability of his lawyer

The East London Regional Court has postponed to January next year the trial against Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema and his bodyguard Adriaan Snyman.

The two men are standing trial for Malema allegedly firing a firearm belonging to Snyman at an EFF rally at a stadium in Mdantsane, Eastern Cape.

The incident allegedly happened in 2018, during the EFF’s 5th birthday anniversary celebrations and was captured on camera.

Malema and Snyman are facing charges of unlawful possession of a firearm, unlawful possession of ammunition, discharge of a firearm in a built-up area and failure to take reasonable precaution to person or property and reckless endangerment to person or property.

WATCH: Khune sending message to his ‘haters’

Could Itumeleng Khune be suggesting that he had haters at Kaizer Chiefs who were happy when he was not playing?

This question has come up after the Amakhosi keeper posted a video that he made with his photo and with a song with suggestive lyrics as the background music.

Khune has played in Amakhosi’s last two games and has looked to be getting back to his best self again.

 He was influential in Amakhosi advancing to the semi finals in the MTN8, saving two kicks in the penalty shootout. 

Royal news: Meghan and Harry back on British soil, again

In this week’s royal update, Meghan Markle delivers her first speech in Britain after making headlines after stepping down from royal duties. The BBC paid £1.4 million to charity over controversial Diana interview and Queen Elizabeth II missed the Highland Games event.

Two years after stepping down from their royal duties, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have returned to the United Kingdom for Meghan Markle’s much-anticipated speech at One World Summit in Manchester.

The couple were in England for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in June. According to Express, the couple arrived in the UK on 3 September and have been staying at Frogmore Cottage on the grounds of Windsor Castle, where they lived before stepping down in 2020.