For Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I’m Sane Dhlamini.

Making headlines: Former eThekwini mayor Zandile Gumede's corruption case postponed again,unemployment rate hits new record high at 34.9%, and Ramaphosa tells African countries that imposed travel bans to stop acting like former colonisers

Former eThekwini mayor Zandile Gumede's corruption case postponed again

Supporters of former eThekwini mayor, Zandile Gumede and her 21 co-accused were visibly angry in court when it was announced that her corruption trial would be postponed to 29 March 2022.

The postponement was, in part, as a result of Gumede's legal representative advocate Jay Naidoo having suggested that the high profile corruption, money laundering and racketeering case be set from July to September 2022.

In its docket, the State alleged that Gumede, former city manager Sipho Nzuza and others were involved in a criminal enterprise to fleece the eThekwini metro out of money.

Speaking to the media outside the Durban High Court, staunch Gumede ally, Nkosentsha Shezi, questioned why the public and some media houses were denied entry into the court room.

Unemployment rate hits new record high at 34.9%

South Africa's unemployment rate hit a new record high of 34.9% in the third quarter of 2021 from 34.4% in the second quarter.

Statistics South Africa said the number of unemployed totalled 7.643-million people in the three months to the end of September, compared with 7.826-million people, in the previous three months.

According to an expanded definition of unemployment that includes those discouraged from seeking work, 46.6% of the labour force was without work in the third quarter, from 44.4% in the second quarter.

The Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated South Africa's labour market woes.

Ramaphosa tells African countries that imposed travel bans to stop acting like former colonisers

President Cyril Ramaphosa says African countries should not act like former coloniser countries by imposing unscientific travel bans after the discovery of the Omicron variant of the virus that causes Covid-19.  

He said he wanted to engage with the four African countries – Egypt, Mauritius, Rwanda and Malawi – after the UK, US and much of the developed world imposed travel bans. 

 Ramaphosa began his West Africa tour on Tuesday during which he will visit Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Senegal in an effort to strengthen relations with those countries and to push forward intra-African trade.

Ramaphosa will be accompanied by a delegation of ministers and business leaders in view of growing economic relations and people-to-people interaction between South Africa and these West African countries.

That’s a roundup of news making headlines today
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