Author: TheScrutinyNG

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Thursday won a second five-year term that she vowed would tackle the EU’s challenges head-on, including bolstering its defence capability and strengthening Europe’s industry. The German ex-defence minister, who became the first woman leader of the European Commission in 2019, had presented herself as the best and most experienced captain to steer the commission. Von der Leyen received votes backing her from 401 MEPs in the 720-seat chamber in the French city of Strasbourg — over the 361-vote majority she needed to remain head of the EU’s executive body. There were 284…

Former US president Barack Obama has told allies that Joe Biden needs to reconsider his reelection bid, the Washington Post reported on Thursday. Obama believes that Biden’s path to victory has diminished and that the 81-year-old should “seriously consider the viability of his candidacy,” the newspaper said, citing people briefed on his thinking. It said there was no immediate comment from Obama, who was in office while Biden was vice president from 2009 to 2017 and who remains hugely influential in the Democratic party. Obama would be the most heavyweight Democrat so far to join a growing chorus in the…

US President Joe Biden said Thursday he was extending his student loan forgiveness program by cancelling the loans of an additional 35,000 Americans as he seeks reelection. The latest move — amounting to $1.2 billion in student debt — brings to 4.76 million the number of people “who benefitted from our various debt relief actions”, he said in a statement. The borrowers, who will get an average of $35,000 in debt cancellation, include teachers, nurses, police officials and first responders. The announcement came on the final day of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where Donald Trump will accept the…

A man convicted of killing a delivery driver who stopped for cash at an ATM to take his wife to dinner is facing scheduled execution Thursday night in Alabama. Keith Edmund Gavin, 64, is set to receive a lethal injection at a prison in southwest Alabama. He was convicted of capital murder in the shooting death of William Clayton Jr. in Cherokee County. Alabama last week agreed in Gavin’s case to forgo a post-execution autopsy, which is typically performed on executed inmates in the state. Gavin, who is Muslim, said the procedure would violate his religious beliefs. Gavin had filed…

U.S. space agency NASA said on Thursday it will not send its rover to the moon after all, citing high costs and launch delays as reasons for the cancellation. The project, dubbed Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover, or VIPER, will be discontinued following a “comprehensive internal review,’’ NASA said at a news conference. The space agency said the decision to reconsider the project came amid escalating costs, potential future cost increases, and a launch date delay. According to NASA, the rover was originally scheduled to launch in late 2023, but the launch had to be postponed to later this year.…

An apartment building blaze early Thursday killed seven people in the southern French city of Nice and police were investigating the fire as a possible arson, authorities said. The dead include three children – 5, 7 and 10 years old – and a 17-year-old teenager who tried to escape by jumping from a window, they said. The apartment was occupied by a family believed to have Comoran origins, the regional prefect Hugues Moutouh said, referring to the southern African island nation. Ten people were inside when the fire broke out. Rescuers were alerted at around 2:30 am (0030 GMT) to…

The Kano State Government has approved the release of N29bn to commence and complete various capital projects in different parts of the state. The approvals were given at the state Executive Council Meeting presided over by Governor Abba Yusuf in Kano. This was contained in a statement issued by the Director-General, Media and Publicity, Sanusi Dawakin-Tofa, on Wednesday in Kano. According to him, the Council approved the release of N7.7bn to continue the dualisation of a 5-kilometre road across the 44 Local Government Areas of the state. The council also approved the sum of N239m for the construction of three…

Justices A. Isiaka and Hauwa’u Buhari of the Kaduna State High Court and Federal High Court sitting in Kaduna have convicted and sentenced the quartet of Segun Emmanuel Joseph (a.k.a Alina Renatas), Aliyu Dominic Daniel (a.k.a Jojo Snow), Winner Joseph (a.k.a Williams Scot) and Kenneth Oche Oduh (a.k.a Robert Ben James) to various jail terms for internet fraud. The convicts were prosecuted by the Kaduna Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC on separate one-count charges, bordering on impersonation and obtaining by false pretence. The charge against Joseph reads: “That you Segun Emmanuel Joseph (a.k.a Alina Renatas)…

The UK government on Wednesday announced plans to axe 92 House of Lords seats retained for hereditary lawmakers, resurrecting reform of the unelected chamber started under Tony Blair’s Labour government in the 1990s. King Charles III, opening the first parliamentary session after Keir Starmer’s general election win for Labour, said removing the peers’ right to sit and vote in the Lords was part of “measures to modernise” Britain’s uncodified constitution. Labour won the July 4 election by a landslide, returning it to power for the first time since 2010, allowing it to put its manifesto pledges into law, including the…

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governors’ Forum has vowed to reclaim all leadership positions occupied by other political parties. The Chairman of the PDP Governors Forum, Gov. Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State, made the vow at the opening of the forum meeting on Wednesday at the Government House, Enugu. According to him, it is a very unique and ambitious meeting in the history of the party, as they are in Enugu to make history and showcase their perseverance to the party. “Today we are here to unify ourselves, discuss issues that affect the party, and various matters within ourselves. “Our…