July 23, 2012
From Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I’m Motshabi Hoaeane.

Making headlines:

Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe says Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project solutions need more exploration.

Somalia's al Shabaab executes three of its own members for treason.

And, Zimbabwe drafts a new constitution that clips the president's power.

Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe said that the best possible solutions needed to be explored for the implementation of the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (or GFIP).

Speaking at a meeting between the inter-ministerial committee on the GFIP and the Congress of South African Trade Unions, he remarked that there should be no overburdening of poor people with added costs.

The South African National Roads Agency Limited, which oversees the project, needs capital to fund its operation. However, the deputy president said there were grey areas requiring attention and a solution needs to be found that is acceptable to the citizens of Gauteng.

Somalia's Islamist al Shabaab militants said on Sunday they had executed three of their own members for treason. Two of them were executed for guiding US missiles to kill fellow militants.

It was the first time al Shabaab, had admitted to killing its own fighters for betrayals. It did so, under pressure from African Union, Kenyan and Ethiopian troops as well as US drone strikes.

The Somali government says hundreds of foreign fighters have joined the Islamist insurgency from Afghanistan, Pakistan and the Gulf region as well as the US and Britain. It further says that some even have senior positions within al Shabaab.

A legislative committee said on Friday that Zimbabwe has finished drafting a new constitution that limits the powers of the president while strengthening those of parliament. Thus is a key, but much-delayed, precursor to elections in that country.

The draft imposes two five-year terms on the presidency, which currently has no term limit. It also curbs the sweeping powers of the president by requiring lawmakers' approval for the dissolution of parliament, the declaration of war and public emergencies. The president, however, retains authority over senior appointments.

A referendum on the charter is expected at the end of this year, ahead of an election expected in 2013.

Also making headlines:

The United Nations’ food agency says world markets are not yet facing a crisis, although soaring grain prices are a cause for concern.

The South African Reserve Bank says growth in South Africa's economy remains "pedestrian".

And, Madagascar's army defeats mutiny.

That’s a roundup of news making headlines today.