For Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I’m Halima Frost.

Making headlines: ActionSA files court bid to overturn Phala Phala ‘police whitewash'; MKP wants IDAC head suspended over interference allegations; And, UN agency warns transport of dead bodies within Congo risks further Ebola spread

ActionSA files court bid to overturn Phala Phala ‘police whitewash'

ActionSA has initiated legal proceedings in the Pretoria High Court to review and set aside the South African Police Service's disciplinary findings clearing Major-General Wally Rhoode and Brigadier Hennie Rekhoto in the Phala Phala matter.

The party announced its legal challenge today, following an analysis of the Record of Decision obtained through a Promotion of Access to Information Act request.

ActionSA has fiercely condemned the internal disciplinary process, labelling it a "poorly constructed whitewash" that lacks rationality and what it says are stark contradictions between the SAPS internal findings and the previous conclusions of the Independent Police Investigative Directorate and the Public Protector.

Both IPID and the Public Protector concluded that Rhoode breached Section 13 of the SAPS Act when he failed to report the Phala Phala burglary through the prescribed chain of command and did not ensure a criminal case was officially registered.

The internal process effectively absolved Rhoode, shifting the responsibility to external individuals, including the Phala Phala farm manager.

MKP wants IDAC head suspended over interference allegations

The MKP has given the National Director of Public Prosecutions Advocate Andy Mothibi seven days to provide written confirmation of steps taken in the suspension of Investigating Directorate Against Corruption head Advocate Andrea Johnson, warning that it will take further action if the NDPP fails to do so.

This follows testimony at the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry, where witnesses have accused Johnson of interfering with a criminal investigation concerning suspended Crime Intelligence's Major General Feroz Khan.

The allegations suggest she improperly obtained information about a police assault docket and forwarded it to Khan.

Johnson’s repeated failure to appear before the commission, most recently excused owing to an urgent hospital visit on the day of her scheduled testimony, has drawn heavy criticism from the commission chairperson and political observers.

And, UN agency warns transport of dead bodies within Congo risks further Ebola spread

The transport of Ebola victims' bodies between different areas of the Democratic Republic of Congo, often for funerals in their home communities, risks further spreading the virus, the UN migration agency said today.

More than 2 000 Ebola cases and 700 deaths have been recorded in Congo and neighbouring Uganda as of July 14, and around two-thirds of the deaths occurred outside clinics or hospitals, said the International Organization for Migration.

The often ​fatal viral disease spreads through direct contact with bodily fluids from infected people ​or animals, and causes symptoms that can include high fever, vomiting and internal and external bleeding. This particular epidemic is caused by the Bundibugyo strain of the virus.

Ebola remains highly infectious after death, making funeral practices a critical component of outbreak control.

That’s a roundup of news making headlines today

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