Daily Podcast - October 20, 2016

20th October 2016 By: Thabi Shomolekae - Creamer Media Senior Writer

Daily Podcast - October 20, 2016

Photo by: Reuters

October, 20 2016.
For Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I’m Thabi Madiba.

Making headlines:
Huge student march planned for Union Buildings
Third of Chibok girls 'unwilling to leave Boko Haram'
And, MPs slam international relations minister for no-show


Hundreds of students are expected to march on the Union Buildings in Pretoria today to call for free tertiary education.

The Tshwane Metro Police was informed of a possible Fees Must Fall march between 8am and 1pm, Senior Superintendent Isaac Mahamba said.

They were expected to start their walk from Church Square. About 3 000 students were expected to take part and most streets in the CBD would be affected.

Motorists and residents were advised to “take extra precautionary measures”.

 

Nigeria's government is negotiating the release of another 83 of the Chibok schoolgirls taken in a mass abduction two-and-a-half years ago, but more than 100 others appear unwilling to leave their Boko Haram captors, a community leader said yesterday.

The unwilling girls may have been radicalised by Boko Haram or are ashamed to return home because they were forced to marry the fighters and have babies, chairperson Pogu Bitrus of the Chibok Development said.

Bitrus said the 21 Chibok girls freed last week in the first negotiated release between Nigeria's government and Boko Haram should be educated abroad, because they would probably face stigma in Nigeria.

The girls and their parents were reunited on Sunday and are expected to meet with Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari this week, Bitrus said.

 

Members of Parliament have slammed International Relations Minister Maite Nkoane-Mashabane for not pitching up at a portfolio committee meeting to account for the department's third straight problematic audit.

The committee met in Parliament on Wednesday to hear the department present its annual report for 2015/16, but were left dismayed after the minister failed to show up along with the department's delegation.

The African National Congress, Democratic Alliance and smaller party MPs were unanimous in their disapproval, saying dates had been predetermined beforehand.


Also making headlines:
SABC board inquiry postponed to later this year


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That’s a roundup of news making headlines today