Here’s what’s happening in South Africa today: 👇🏼
◼️ What SASSA’s biometric checks mean for your social grant: “Longstanding social grants for children, older persons, and people with disabilities are also under threat. New verification and biometric systems risk excluding the most vulnerable while addressing only a tiny fraction of fraud cases. At the same time, funding for the Presidential Employment Stimulus, which has provided over 2.5 million work and livelihood opportunities since 2020, is being reduced,” Black Sash said.
https://iol.co.za/business/2026-02-16-what-sassas-biometric-checks-mean-for-your-social-grant/
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◼️ Trump’s man on the ground is here: Bozell began his political career at the National Conservative Political Action Committee, where in the 1980s he opposed US engagement with the African National Congress (ANC) as it fought to end white minority rule. He told the Senate hearing his stance at the time was due to the fact that the ANC was aligned with the Soviet Union, an enemy of the United States. Nevertheless, he said he had deep respect for South Africa’s first post-apartheid president and former ANC leader, Nelson Mandela.
https://newsday.co.za/south-africa/17897/donald-trumps-man-on-the-ground-is-here/
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◼️ Freedom Front Plus set to make the DA bleed: FF+ leader Corné Mulder announced two mayoral candidates for Tshwane over the weekend: seasoned lawyer Willie Spies and Grandi Theunissen, an experienced councillor and expert on local government, to lead the party’s campaign for the 2026 local government elections. Political analyst Piet Croucamp said there are good reasons why the FF+ should do well in Pretoria and other areas.
https://www.citizen.co.za/news/freedom-front-plus-set-to-make-the-da-bleed/
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◼️ E-hailing services could soon be deemed illegal in SA: But due to the snail’s pace at which the process is unfolding, it’s likely that services like Bolt and Uber will not be registered before the 11 March deadline. That could mean thousands of e-hailing drivers will be operating illegally according to the law. E-hailing companies would first need to register with the National Public Transport Regulator, before drivers are able to do the same.
https://www.ewn.co.za/2026/02/16/e-hailing-services-could-soon-be-deemed-illegal-in-sa-due-to-registration-issues
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◼️ Free Wi-Fi from Telkom: Telkom intends to install free Wi-Fi hotspots at South African community centres rather than comply with outdated licensing requirements for services like public payphones. The company has asked the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) to update its licensing conditions.
https://mybroadband.co.za/news/broadband/629147-telkom-wants-to-roll-out-free-wi-fi.html
