Five things you need to know about SA today

1. Uh-oh. That dreaded “deflation” word. Business Day reports that house prices have fallen back to levels last seen in December 2006, according to First National Bank’s house price index. Prices reached double-digit deflation last month, a drop of 10.2%. Read the full story here.

2. IOL reports that the police have promised suspended top cop Jackie Selebi copies of the spy recordings that got ANC president Jacob Zuma off the hook but the prosecution team has cried foul over this decision, saying that they have not heard the recordings. Read the full story here.

3. Cope has told Mosiuoa Lekota that he can’t go to Parliament, says The Times, so it looks like there’s a battle for power between the former defence minister and party head Mvume Dandala and its deputy, Mbhazima Shilowa. Click here to read the story.

4. You’ve got to hand it to Nando’s for genius marketing. A Julius Malema puppet, the star of a withdrawn Nando’s TV advert, is up for auction that the fast food franchise believes  will fetch “at least R5-million”. Says the company’s marketing head:

We do expect him to fetch a good price — he has become a celebrity overnight. And his whole wardrobe comes out of the Woolworths children’s section. He’s completely on trend.

Read the full story here at The Times.

5. And it’s off to the Dispatch for tales from the Far Side. A gang of hapless burglars were found skunk drunk in an Mthatha bottlestore after breaking into it and then parking off and laying into the beer. One beer was found wearing a balaclava.  Read the full story here.

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