HERE’S WHAT’S HAPPENING IN SOUTH AFRICA TODAY

Tue 20 October 2026:

Here’s what’s happening in South Africa today: 👇🏼

◼️ Committee hits back at Lex Libertas: Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on International Relations and Cooperation has robustly defended its oversight role amid a growing dispute with advocacy group Lex Libertas, which accuses some organisations of bypassing South Africa’s democratic institutions and seeking to influence foreign governments on how to “punish South Africa.” “To criticise the government because you love South Africa is patriotic. To invite foreign punishment of South Africa because you dislike the government is something else entirely.”
Read more here:
https://www.citizen.co.za/news/committee-hits-back-lex-libertas-parliament-wont-be-intimidated-or-silenced/

————-
◼️ Running on fumes: President Cyril Ramaphosa says the National Treasury is “giving consideration” to potential interventions to ease the heavy cost-of- living burden forced on South Africans, mainly by the geopolitical turmoil and rising global oil prices. Potential interventions that might be announced at the medium-term budget policy statement on Wednesday could include fuel levy options. The price of petrol and diesel has leapt nearly 50% and 72%, respectively, since domestic prices started spiking in response to constrained global oil supply triggered by the US-Iran conflict. South Africa is particularly vulnerable, being a net importer.
Read more here:
https://www.businessday.co.za/news/2026-10-20-ramaphosa-weighs-fuel-relief-as-sas-cost-of-living-soars/

————-
◼️ How criminals are using banking apps to steal billions: According to the South African Banking Risk Information Centre (SABRIC), 110,074 digital banking crime incidents were recorded during the year, with reported losses rising by 29.2% from R1.86 billion in 2024. Banking app-related crime accounted for about 89% of reported cases and 70.5% of the total claim amount, making it the biggest contributor to digital banking crime losses. The figures show that banking apps were linked to R1.7 billion in reported client losses during the year, making them the biggest contributor to digital banking crime losses.
Read more here:
https://iol.co.za/business/2026-10-20-how-criminals-are-using-banking-apps-to-steal-billions-from-south-africans/

————-
◼️ 24% of provincial police officers in SA do not have driver’s licences: Almost a quarter of provincial police officers working for the South African Police Service (SAPS) do not hold valid driver’s licences. This was revealed by the acting Minister of Police, Firoz Cachalia, in response to a parliamentary question from Member of the National Assembly Christiaan Smit. He also asked the Minister for the current ratio of operational police officers to vehicles in each province, and the number of officers with valid driver’s licences versus those without.
Read more here:
https://newsday.co.za/south-africa/29370/24-of-provincial-police-officers-in-south-africa-do-not-have-drivers-licences/

————-
◼️ Warning to people buying milk off the shelves in SA: South African dairy farmers are warning that consumers could face higher milk prices in the long term if mounting production costs and lower prices paid to farmers force more producers to shut down their dairy operations. South Africa’s milk surplus is also linked to difficulties in export markets, according to van Heerden. He said producers had lost some export contracts in the Middle East, particularly in Saudi Arabia, contributing to pressure on the domestic market.
Read more here:
https://businesstech.co.za/news/lifestyle/880392/warning-to-people-buying-milk-off-the-shelves-in-south-africa/

__________________________________________________________________________

FOLLOW INDEPENDENT PRESS:

WhatsApp CHANNEL
https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaAtNxX8fewmiFmN7N22