Hi there 🙋🏾♀️
Things are looking good for Mzansi, at least for now: The rand is putting on quite the show, tourism is recovering (Just ask any Capetonian 🤭), and corrupt CEOs are getting their just desserts. We hoped to also add an interest rate cut to the good news, but alas, not this time. In this week’s Wrap, we spill the latest tea from the Madlanga Commission, and let’s just say maybe it’s best not to have faves at this point. We tell you about Icasa’s data decision and why it’s good news for South Africans. Then there are the films you should definitely watch this weekend, and one that we’re not sure you’ll be able to. We take a look at the horrific scenes playing out in Minneapolis thanks to the Trump administration. And we tell you about Juju’s latest comments while he awaits his fate.
So, let’s dive into these stories and more in this week’s wrap, brought to you by Verashni Pillay and the explain.co.za team. 😄
Format:
▁ ▂ ▄ ▅ ▆ ▇ █BRIEFS
NATIONAL
- The CEO of the Johannesburg Development Agency, Themba Mathibe, was arrested earlier this week on money-laundering charges. 💀 Mathibe, who is also the acting CEO of the Johannesburg Social Housing Company, was allegedly found by police with what sources say was close to R2 million in cash at his home. Did we mention he reportedly earns R300,000 per month? Sies. He was released on R50,000 bail on Wednesday and is due back in court on 2 June.
- SA’s tourism industry smashed records in 2025. 🙌🏾 Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille said at a Tuesday briefing that the country welcomed 10.48 million international visitors last year, a 17.6% jump from 2024. It’s the first time arrivals exceeded pre-pandemic levels. Tourism created one job for every 13 visitors, with KZN and the Free State named standout performers. Still, the department is currently without a CEO, COO or Chief Marketing Officer. Let’s hope it tightens up and doubles down.
- ActionSA joined forces with two little-known parties, it announced on Monday. Herman Mashaba’s party merged with the Creatives Congress Movement and Azanian Independent Community Movement. The idea is to unite community voices ahead of the 2026 local polls. Analysts say the move broadens ActionSA’s geographical reach — the party captured just 1.2% of the national vote in 2024. It echoes the “Unite for Change” merger between Rise Mzansi, GOOD, and Bosa late last year, which together captured just over 1%. 😬
- The rand is looking grand. Our currency was under R16 to the US dollar this week; by comparison, last April it stood at more than R19. Why? The US dollar has been weakened by the surreal second season of the Donald Trump Show. But there’s more to it, including improved investor sentiment about SA. As Moneyweb puts it: “Suddenly, nobody is talking about [SA’s] lacklustre economic growth, trade sanctions… and ongoing corruption.” Economists believe the rand will continue to appreciate. Nice one, ZAR! 😎
- Icasa announced new data rules, putting an end to the great bundles vanishing act. The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa says unused data will, from early 2027, roll over automatically at no extra cost. Users will also be able to transfer unused data to others on the same network. Networks aren’t impressed (shame 🙃) but the EFF has rightly called it a victory for consumers. We’re counting down to next year when the rules kick in.
INTERNATIONAL
- The Melania Trump documentary was pulled from SA cinemas on Tuesday. Local distributor Filmfinity removed it days before its planned 30 January release after being questioned by local journalists. The move followed weak advance ticket sales and growing controversy around the film, whose director, Brett Ratner, was accused of sexual misconduct in 2017. Critics are also side-eyeing Amazon, which bankrolled it, suggesting the loss-making deal may be a move by Jeff Bezos to curry favour while Amazon Web Services seeks multi-billion dollar government contracts. 🙄
- Chinese President Xi Jinping has turned on his most senior figure yet. China’s top general Zhang Youxia,75, joined the People’s Liberation Army in 1968 and was, until recently, Xi’s close ally. Now he faces a purge dressed up as an anti-corruption investigation, one of 200,000 officials Xi has punished similarly since becoming president in 2013. Analysts say it’s a warning that no one is untouchable as Xi consolidates his control over China’s key military leadership.
- TikTok spun off a new US entity, ending the long legal fight following US threats to ban the app. Last week’s deal gives US investors, including Larry Ellison’s Oracle, majority control. TikTok’s owner, Beijing-based ByteDance, is left with a minority stake. Days after the transition, some US users reported that posts about Jeffrey Epstein or the Alex Pretti shooting, topics that make Trump’s administration squirm, showed zero views or were flagged. TikTok blamed technical glitches; California Governor Gavin Newsom, meanwhile, announced an investigation.
- CAF handed out bans this week after THAT chaotic 2025 Afcon final in Morocco. 🔥The 18 January match saw a late goal ruled out, a controversial penalty, crowd revolts and Senegal’s coach Pape Thiaw ordering his players off the pitch, a serious offence. That’s why CAF has thrown the book at him: a five-match suspension and $100,000 fine. Senegal’s football body was fined $615,000, and Morocco’s Achraf Hakimi and Ismael Saibari were also suspended. Luckily, the bans won’t affect either team’s World Cup prep.
- Alex Honnold took “no ropes, no problem” to new heights. The American climber pulled off a jaw-dropping stunt on Sunday, scaling Taipei 101 — a 101-floor skyscraper in Taiwan— with zero safety equipment. No ropes. No harness. Just vibes. 😳 The climber was completely calm at the top, even taking a selfie. He completed the climb in 90 minutes. For context: French climber Alain Robert, equipped with ropes and safety gear, took four hours to climb the same building back in 2004.
▁ ▂ ▄ ▅ ▆ ▇ █ BIG STORIES
1️⃣ Madlanga Commission: KZN Hawks boss Senona takes aim at Mkhwanazi
The Madlanga Commission is back in the headlines this week.
This week, Major-General Lesetja Senona, head of the KwaZulu-Natal Hawks, took to the stand defending his close – some say too close – relationship with businessman Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala.
Matlala is accused of attempted murder and linked to the ‘Big 5’ organised crime syndicate that has kept popping up throughout the commission’s hearings. Senona, who’s been testifying since Tuesday, described Matlala as a “brother”. He admitted to staying in touch socially, even after learning of serious allegations against Matlala in March 2025, and only “gradually” distancing himself before Matlala’s arrest in May.
Senona also conceded sending Matlala messages like “take them on brother” after SAPS axed Matlala’s R360 million health contract over irregularities – urging him to lawyer up and challenge it legally.
The commission hammered him on this: as the boss of the unit investigating serious crimes, why keep chatting with someone potentially under your own Hawks’ microscope? Senona called it an “error” and inappropriate for his position, insisting it was just empathy. He faces a misconduct charge linked to this saga.
Meanwhile, Senona also accused KZN Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi of a shady quid pro quo during an April 2025 meeting in Durban (which Senona says he attended to support Matlala, arranged via ex-Minister Bheki Cele). According to Senona, Mkhwanazi allegedly offered to pause the Political Killings Task Team’s probe into Matlala (including the attempted murder case involving his ex, Tebogo Thobejane) if Matlala handed over dirt on suspended Deputy Commissioner Shadrack Sibiya, like property deals and cash handovers.
Senona claimed he overheard this and found it dodgy, but didn’t report it straight away.
Mkhwanazi’s side? He’s denied it before and is expected back to respond, with WhatsApp messages suggesting Senona helped set up the meeting.
The entire saga surrounding the Madlanga Commission can be traced back to Mkhwanazi’s explosive whistleblower press conference in July last year. But as testimony unfolds, counter-allegations against him (including Senona’s claims this week) have intensified, leaving some observers to debate whether it is legitimate or a smear campaign to discredit the original whistleblower.
This all feeds into bigger concerns about conflicts of interest, leaks, and possible cartel influence at senior police levels in KZN. The commission’s interim report (delivered late last year) isn’t public yet, but President Ramaphosa has accepted its recommendations, including urgent probes into implicated officials like Senona.
It’s messy, tense stuff – and with Mkhwanazi likely returning soon, expect more sparks.
2️⃣ The killing of Alex Pretti: a new flashpoint in ICE’s war on Minnesota communities.
If you thought American democracy couldn’t take any more strain, last week’s shocking killing of Alex Pretti has created a new low.
Pretti was a 37-year-old intensive care nurse who worked with veterans at a hospital in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
On Saturday, he was shot dead by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers. His murder, captured on video by multiple bystanders, was the latest flashpoint in a city under siege. The Trump administration claims the masked ICE officers prowling the streets of Minneapolis and other cities are trying to rid the US of illegal immigrants.
People like Pretti are stepping up to defend their neighbours. He was a US citizen, not undocumented, not under arrest, and, from all accounts, just on the scene filming federal immigration raids in his neighbourhood – something that’s generally protected under the country’s famed First Amendment.
Videos from bystanders show Pretti holding his phone (not a gun, despite initial federal claims), trying to help a woman who’d been pepper-sprayed and tackled. Agents then wrestled him to the ground, and at least two fired around ten shots. He died at the scene.
Pretti WAS legally carrying a hidden handgun at the time, but witnesses and footage note he wasn’t brandishing it or acting aggressively.
Pretti’s death came just weeks after another US citizen, Renee Nicole Good (also 37), was shot dead in the same city, through a car window by an ICE agent on 7 January.
The pushback against ICE is growing.
🔹 Kristi Noem, the current Secretary of Homeland Security, has faced heavy criticism over her handling of the Pretti shooting and the broader immigration operations. Right after the incident, Noem held a press conference where she described Pretti as “the definition of domestic terrorism.” Pretti’s family has called government statements “disgusting lies”, stressing that he was a dedicated ICU nurse and beloved community member.
🔹 A preliminary report released on Tuesday by the Department of Homeland Security (the umbrella agency that controls ICE) said Pretti resisted arrest but made no mention of him brandishing a weapon, attacking officers, or planning any “massacre” – directly contradicting Noem’s early claims.
🔹 The report and Noem’s comments have sparked backlash from across the political spectrum. Even some Republicans, including North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis, have spoken up; Tillis called Noem “incompetent” and said she should step down.
🔹 The two border patrol agents who shot Pretti have been placed on paid administrative leave pending investigation.
🔹 A Minnesota judge has ordered ICE’s acting director to appear in court over the agency’s conduct.
To be clear, immigrants – by which it sometimes feels ICE means “anyone who doesn’t look white to us” – remain the agency’s biggest target and are most at risk of assault, arrest and detention. But the murder, on camera, of citizens showing up to keep their neighbours from harm, seems to have lit a real spark across the US and highlighted the democratic crisis the country has lurched into under Trump.
3️⃣ From firearm conviction to ‘Kill the Boer’: why Julius Malema is back in the headlines
We’ll find out in April if Julius Malema will go to jail. 👀
If you’re wondering why the EFF leader’s name has been popping up in the news more than usual lately, it dates back to an EFF rally in Mdantsane in 2018. Video footage showed Malema firing what looked like an assault rifle into the air during the party’s fifth birthday celebrations.
Last October, the East London Magistrates’ Court found him guilty on three charges, including unlawful possession of a firearm and discharging a firearm in a built-up area.
So what is his punishment? That’s the big question now.
The matter is back in the headlines because pre-sentencing arguments were heard on Friday. Malema’s legal team pointed out that he’s a first-time offender and that locking up a sitting opposition leader could have serious political fallout. They’re not wrong. If Malema serves more than 12 months behind bars without the option of a fine, he’ll lose his seat in Parliament under the Constitution and his parliamentary position as leader of the official opposition.
His team are arguing for alternatives to jail time, including a fine, community service, or a suspended sentence. The state pushed back, saying that firearm offences are serious by nature and that no one should be above the law.
The court postponed sentencing to April 2026 to mull the arguments over and make a decision.
Juju, of course, kept the headlines coming. Outside court on Friday, he attacked AfriForum (the lobby group behind the charges), warning its members could be “locked up” should the EFF ever come to power, and his supporters sang the controversial “Kill the Boer” song. Some see the song as part of South Africa’s liberation history; critics argue it is inflammatory and threatening. It’s sparked national and international outrage, not least from US President Donald Trump, who Malema called “Satan” on Friday while telling controversial SA-born billionaire Elon Musk to “voetsek” following his ongoing criticisms of Malema.
The theatrics are unnerving, but it’s worth noting that Malema, despite his bad rep, generally has a history of respecting the courts. He has vowed he will appeal against the conviction, taking it all the way up to the Constitutional Court if necessary, which he’s fully within his rights to do. So for now, Malema’s guilty — but still loud. Whether he’ll be making a noise from Parliament or prison come April 2026 remains to be seen. 👀
Read our full explainer here.
4️⃣ Snubs, nods and firsts: Movies we’re watching this awards season
You know what’s more dramatic than the movies themselves? Awards season. The Golden Globes have already handed out their trophies earlier this month, and last Thursday, the Academy dropped the nominations for the 98th Oscars. Here are the movies you may want to add to your watchlist.
1. One Battle After Another: This action-comedy-drama follows a paranoid former revolutionary, “Ghetto” Pat Calhoun (Leonardo DiCaprio), who is pulled back into chaos when a rescue mission involving his daughter spirals out of control. It dominated at the Golden Globes with four wins, including Best Director for Paul Thomas Anderson and a Best Supporting Actress nod for Teyana Taylor. She impressed with an emotional speech encouraging “little brown girls” that “our softness is not a liability, our depth is not too much, our light does not need permission to shine”. It’s also set for a sweep at the Oscars with 13 nominations, including Best Actor for DiCaprio.
2. Sinners: The Ryan Coogler-produced horror set in 1930s Mississippi tells the story of twin brothers, Smoke and Stack, who return home to open a juke joint for the local Black community. Instead, they find themselves battling a dark supernatural force tied to the town’s racist history. It made history by becoming the first film EVER to be nominated for 16 Oscars, was the seventh-largest movie at the US box office in 2025, and holds a 97% score on Rotten Tomatoes. 🤩 At the Globes, Sinners won two awards, though not in the main categories. It ought to do better at the Oscars. Horror movies haven’t fared well there, so a Black-led horror movie having this many nominations is a big deal.
3. Shakespearean Hamnet: A reimagined retelling of a sad time in the Bard’s family, the death of his only son. Jessie Buckley delivered as grieving mother Agnes (or Anne) Hathaway and won a Best Actress nod at the Globes. The film also won Best Drama and has been nominated for eight Oscars. It’s touted as a powerful and moving watch.
4. Marty Supreme: This sports drama, set in the 1950s, follows Marty Mauser (Timothée Chalamet), a young Jewish American table tennis prodigy obsessed with becoming the best. At the Globes, Chalamet won Best Actor in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy for this role. The film earned nine Oscar nominations, including Best Original Screenplay. Meanwhile, Wicked: For Good surprised fans by being completely shut out of Oscar nominations, unlike its prequel. Now we wait for 15 March 2026 to see which of the nominees wins big.
That’s it from us at The Wrap, an award-winning product of explain.co.za – simple news summaries for busy people. 💁🏾♀
The Wrap is sponsored by explain’s agency division. We specialise in content marketing for purpose-driven organisations, often with a pan-African reach. Mail info@explain.co.za for a quote.
🇸🇺🇧🇸🇨🇷🇮🇧🇪
Remember to share the love. 💫
Tell your friends to sign up:
📩 Email: http://explain.co.za/subscribe
📲 Our new WhatsApp channel: https://w
