Author: TheScrutinyNG

Vice President Kamala Harris opened up a marginal two-percentage-point lead over Republican Donald Trump after President Joe Biden ended his re-election campaign and passed the torch to her, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found. That compares with a marginal two-point deficit Biden faced against Trump in last week’s poll before his Sunday exit from the race. The new poll, conducted on Monday and Tuesday, followed both the Republican National Convention where Trump on Thursday formally accepted the nomination and Biden’s announcement on Sunday he was leaving the race and endorsing Harris. Harris, whose campaign says she has secured the Democratic nomination, led…

US Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned on Tuesday, a day after acknowledging that the agency failed in its mission to prevent an assassination attempt against Donald Trump. Cheatle was facing bipartisan calls to step down after a 20-year-old gunman wounded the former Republican president and current White House candidate at a July 13 campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. “It is overdue, she should have done this at least a week ago,” Mike Johnson, the Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives, told reporters. “I’m happy to see that she has heeded the call of both Republicans and Democrats.” President…

By Olawale Olaleye In societies where national pride derives from thriving democratic ethos and strong institutions, some character quotients are clearly not negotiable. Just as in an open or representative electoral process, a debate among candidates of participating parties is a basic minimum standard. In serious democracies, debate is a major event – a carnival of sort with serious contents. Candidates and their parties invest a lot of resources, including engaging the services of experts in different fields, particularly in communications and strategies, to help prep their standard bearers. By the time the first round of the debate is done,…

Ugandan police detained several demonstrators in the capital Kampala on Tuesday, according to an AFP journalist, as scattered anti-corruption rallies began despite being banned by authorities. President Yoweri Museveni, who has ruled the East African country with an iron fist for almost four decades, had warned the demonstrators at the weekend they were “playing with fire”. On the eve of the rally, Ugandan authorities had cracked down on the opposition, besieging the headquarters of the National Unity Platform (NUP) of former presidential candidate Bobi Wine and arresting several of his party’s MPs. Police were out in force across Kampala on…

The death toll from a landslide in southern Ethiopia has risen to at least 146, a local official said Tuesday, warning that the number could rise. The landslide occurred around 10:00 am (0700 GMT) on Monday following heavy rains in a mountainous area of South Ethiopia’s regional state. The last toll given was 55. “The number of dead from the sudden landslide that happened in Geze-Gofa district of Gofa zone has passed 146,” a statement from the Gofa zone Communications Affairs Department said, quoting local official Habtamu Fetena. Habtamu said the bodies of 96 men and 50 women had been…

The billionaire founder of South Korean internet conglomerate Kakao was arrested early Tuesday, a Seoul court said, accused of manipulating stock prices during the acquisition of K-pop powerhouse SM Entertainment. Founded in 2010, Kakao has grown to be a sprawling empire and owns everything from a major online bank to South Korea’s largest taxi-hailing app, plus KakaoTalk — the country’s biggest messaging app which is installed on 90 per cent of phones. It also has a vast entertainment portfolio, encompassing music labels and talent management, which it augmented significantly last year by securing a controlling 39.87 per cent stake in…

The United States Secret Service Director, Kimberly Cheatle, acknowledged on Monday that the agency “failed” in its mission to prevent the assassination attempt on former president Donald Trump. “The Secret Service’s solemn mission is to protect our nation’s leaders,” Cheatle said during testimony before the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability. “On July 13, we failed,” she said. “As director of the United States Secret Service, I take full responsibility for any security lapse.” Cheatle, who is facing bipartisan calls to resign, said the assassination attempt on Trump, who was slightly wounded in the ear while speaking at a campaign…

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez will testify on July 30 in a preliminary corruption inquiry into his wife Begona Gomez’s business ties, a Madrid court said Monday, an issue that caused him to consider resigning three months ago. The investigation over alleged corruption and influence peddling has infuriated Sanchez, who has characterised the allegations as an effort to undermine him and his left-wing government. Judge Juan Carlos Peinado will hear Sanchez as a “witness” at his official residence at 11:00 am (0900 GMT) on July 30, a court statement said. He will be questioned over suspected influence peddling by his…

The National Association of Resident Doctors, Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, has commenced a five-day warning strike over the non-payment of salaries owed to some members. The branch association’s Vice President, Dr. Ashiru Mikail made this known during a news conference on Monday in Zaria, Kaduna State. Mikail said that the association on July 15, 2024, gave a one-week ultimatum to the hospital management to address their demands or be faced with a warning strike. He, however, noted that the request had expired on Sunday, July 21, 2024, hence the commencement of the warning strike. He said the association would…

Tottenham Hotspur star Son Heung-min’s father has been accused of verbally abusing a young player at his football academy in South Korea, according to a police interview transcript given to AFP by a lawyer on Monday. Former footballer Son Woong-jung is a public figure in South Korea and authored a best-selling memoir detailing how he helped his son become one of the best strikers in the English Premier League. But the family of a 12-year-old, identified only as Kim, told police he was the target of foul language just weeks after his enrolment at Son senior’s academy in November. “I…