November 4, 2013
From Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I’m Motshabi Hoaeane.
Making headlines:
 

Deputy Justice Minister John Jeffery says the Nkandla report can go to Parliament.

Egypt's first freely elected president, Mohamed Mursi, goes on trial as Egypt struggles for democracy.

And, Uganda calls for a DRC ceasefire as peace talks progress.

 

Deputy Justice Minister John Jeffery said on Sunday that nothing prevented Public Protector Thuli Madonsela from handing her final report into alleged misspending of state funds on President Jacob Zuma's home in Nkandla to Parliament.

"The public protector accounts to the National Assembly of Parliament so all reports can be submitted there," Jeffery told a media briefing of Cabinet's justice and security cluster in Pretoria. He added that the president also accounted to Parliament as a whole "but more specifically to the National Assembly."

The opposition has expressed concern that if the report was handed to the legislature, the findings could be covered-up by delegating it to a committee that meets behind closed doors.

However, Madonsela has vowed that the report would be made public, but suggested this would take another month. Her provisional report was this week given to ministries in the security cluster for comment.
 

Egypt's first freely elected president, Mohamed Mursi, goes on trial today under a security crackdown that has devastated his Muslim Brotherhood movement and raised concerns that the army-backed government is reimposing a police state.

Mursi, who was ousted by the army on July 3 after mass protests against his rule, is due to appear in court along with 14 other senior Muslim Brotherhood figures on charges of inciting violence.

But the world's most populous Arab nation has faltered in its political transition, and the generals are back in charge, to the dismay of Cairo's Western allies who were hoping Egypt's experiment with democracy would be smooth.

However, US Secretary of State John Kerry said there were indications Egypt's generals would restore democracy, after the military overthrew Islamist President Mohamed Mursi in July following mass protests against his rule.

Uganda called on the Congolese army and M23 rebels to cease-fire on Friday as peace talks progressed in Kampala to end a 20-month conflict.

However, while the rebels said they were ready for a peace deal, government forces vowed to pursue their military advantage and crush the rebellion in Democratic Republic of Congo's mineral-rich east.

Peace talks resumed in the Ugandan capital Kampala last week, 10 days after they collapsed over rebel demands for amnesty, triggering renewed hostilities. A week-long army offensive has driven the rebels back to mountain bases.

Ugandan Lieutenant Colonel Paddy Ankunda, the chief facilitator, and Uganda's Defence Minister Chrispus Kiyonga had requested the warring parties to stop the fight. The fight stopped from yesterday and up until this morning there has been no fighting.

Also making headlines:

Senior UN officials told the Security Council that Central African Republic is at risk of spiraling into genocide as armed groups incite Christians and Muslims against each other in the virtually lawless country.

Central bank Deputy Governor Daniel Mminele says South Africa’s inflation expectations are 'uncomfortably close' to the upper end of the target range.

And, Zimbabwe’s Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa has postponed the announcement of his 2014 budget, tentatively scheduled for this month, to allow more time for consultation.

That's a roundup of news making headlines today.