1.2 billion shillings bridge collapses in Kenya

A section of a bridge that is being constructed at a cost of 1.2 billion shillings in Budalang'i constituency in the county of Busia, Kenya,  has collapsed.

Sigiri bridge which is being constructed by a Chinese company was expected to link several rural areas, markets, schools and hospitals within the constituency.

The bridge, one of the Jubilee Government flagship projects has collapsed just two weeks after President Uhuru Kenyatta inspected it.

While conducting the inspection, President Kenyatta noted that the bridge will significantly reduce the number of deaths in the area. It is not yet clear what caused the bridge to collapse.

Sigiri Bridge was designed to enable people cross River Nzoia where several people have died in the past while attempting to get across. Before the collapse, the bridge was 90 per cent complete and was expected to be operational from next month.

Infrastructure Principal Secretary Engineer John Mosonik says Kenya Rural Roads Authority will conduct a detailed Geotechnical and Structural Investigation to establish the cause of the failure.

“The Kenya Rural Roads Authority has dispatched a team of top Engineers to the site to investigate the cause of the failure of the structure and will release more information as it becomes available.”

He says construction activities on the site have been suspended until a structural integrity report is ready with investigative authorities looped in to determine if there was any foul play involved.

The collapse has occured less than two weeks after President Uhuru Kenyatta inspected the project.

Two people are still admitted to the hospital while 25 others have been treated and discharged following the incident.

The County Police Commander Elisha Odhiambo told reporters that the 25 were part of the workers on site during the incident.

Odhiambo says preliminary reports indicate that the section that collapsed was just done over the weekend.

He has cautioned locals to keep off the area as the hanging part might also collapse and cause more injuries.

Former Budalang’i MP Raphael Wanjala called for investigations on the workmanship of the project.

Source: NTV Kenya 

Congo president's daughter charged with corruption in France

French investigators have charged the daughter and son-in-law of Congo's President Denis Sassou Nguesso with corruption, judicial sources said on Sunday.

Julienne Sassou Nguesso, 50, and her 53-year-old husband Guy Johnson were placed under investigation this week for "money laundering and misuse of public funds", the sources said.

In March, the nephew of the Congo-Brazzaville president, Wilfrid Nguesso, was placed under investigation on the same counts.

The investigation is part of a probe by French police into how members of the families of three African presidents - Congo, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea that began in 2010.

French investigators are looking into the entire Nguesso clan as well as relatives of Gabon's late president Omar Bongo and his son, the current ruler, and President Teodoro Obiang Nguema of Equatorial Guinea.

Obiang's son, Teodorin, is currently fighting a case in a Paris court for having diverted the country's assets himself to fund his lavish lifestyle.

 Ms. Nguesso and her partner are yet to comment on the investigation, but her lawyer is quoted by RFI as saying that he will try to overturn any indictment.

South Africa bans sale of live hens in the country

South Africa has banned the sale of live hens countrywide in a bid to control an outbreak of highly contagious H5N8 bird flu which was confirmed at a farm in Mpumalanga, the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries announced Sunday.

‘’We have placed a general ban on the sale of live hens across the country until further notice,’’ department spokesperson Bomikazi Molapo said.

This was after a highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N8 was confirmed in a broiler breeder site in Mpumalanga on Thursday, June 22.

HPAI is a rapidly spreading viral disease that can infect many types of birds and it is highly contagious.

“It exists naturally in many birds and can be transmitted by coming into contact with infected animals or through ingestion of infected food or water,’’ the department explained.

The farm, which has not been named yet, has been quarantined and the affected animals have been already been culled there.

Hens are female chickens and those in broiler breeder sites are usually spent after a year, and are sold to small businesses who then sell them on at markets in towns and villages.

The department is tracing the movement of all poultry in and out of the farm in order to establish the source of the Influenza.

US senator expelled for saying he was "glad" Steve Scalise was shot at the baseball practice

A member of the Nebraska Democratic Party has been kicked out after an audio recording of him surfaced on YouTube saying he was "glad" House Majority Whip, Steve Scalise was shot at a congressional baseball game practice and wished the Louisiana Republican was dead.
In the leaked audio recording, Phil Montag blamed Scalise for seeking to take away people's health care coverage through the Republican bill, to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act.

"This motherf***er, like, his whole job is like to get people to convince Republicans to f***ing kick people off f***ing health care," Montag was heard saying in the recording in reference to Scalise.

When he made the remarks, Montag was speaking to Chelsey Gentry-Tipton, the chairwoman of the state Democratic Party's Black Caucus, and her friend, Destin Madison. It's unclear how the conversation began, but the recording on YouTube starts with Madison asking:

"So what is it you want to do?"

Gentry-Tipton responds to Montag's complaints by saying: "We know all of this."

Scalise, a member of the Republican baseball team, was hospitalized after a gunman opened fire while Republican members of Congress were practicing earlier this month in Alexandria, Virginia, ahead of the annual charity baseball game.
He went through multiple surgeries after the shooting and is still hospitalized.
Fortunately, he has been released from intensive care Thursday.

For the first time in two decades, the White House did not host a Ramadan dinner

Instead, President Donald Trump and first lady Melania released a statement on Saturday wishing "warm greetings" to those celebrating Eid al-Fitr. The statement partly reads, 'muslims in the United States joined those around the world during the holy month of Ramadan to focus on acts of faith and charity.
Breaking with tradition, the White House under President Donald Trump did not host an iftar dinner, the meal Muslims eat to break their daily fast during Ramadan.
The dinner, which has been often attended by prominent members of the U.S. Muslim community, began in 1996 during former President Bill Clinton’s White House tenure and continued throughout George W. Bush Jr . and Barack Obama's administrations.
The statement read in full:

"On behalf of the American people, Melania and I send our warm greetings to Muslims as they celebrate Eidal-Fitr. Muslims in the United States joined those around the world during the holy month of Ramadan to focus on acts of faith and charity.  Now, as they commemorate Eid with family and friends, they carry on the tradition of helping neighbors and breaking bread with people from all walks of life. During this holiday, we are reminded of the importance of mercy, compassion, and goodwill.  With Muslims around the world, the United States renews our commitment to honor these values. Eid Mubarak".

Supreme Court sacks Taraba Senator, Sani Danladi, orders him to refund all salaries, allowances earned within 90 days

The Supreme Court has ordered the Senator representing Taraba North Senatorial District, Sani Abubakar Danladi to vacate the seat immediately and refund all salaries and allowances he received within 90 days.

In its ruling, the Apex court declared Shuaibu Lau, as Senator representing Taraba North.

The order was contained in the judgement of the court on the appeal filed by Shuaibu Lau challenging the decision of the court of appeal that had upturned his victory during the primary that he was wrongfully substituted.

The court also ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to issue a fresh certificate to of return to Lau.

The apex court in the unanimous decision of a five member panel held that the “the appellant has the right to participate just like any other candidate in the primary and of he feels his right was infringed upon, he has the right to approach the court.

And his substitution at the primary election is null and void since the appellant scored the highest number of votes, the only option is to declare the appellant as the winner of primary."

Five people electrocuted in Turkish water park

5 people died today after getting electrocuted at a Turkish water park. The victims were swimming in a pool in the town of Akyazi, in Sakarya province when an electric current shot through it.

Among those who died were two teenagers and a 12-year-old. The remaining two victims are the park's manager and his son who dived into the water to try and save the children.

All five of them were taken to the hospital but they did not survive. There was a sixth person hospitalised with injuries 

Sky News, citing Turkish officials,  said there was no residual current device (RCD) at the water park to help break the electrical circuit. The dead children were aged 12, 15 and 17, according to NTV television. An investigation into the cause of the electrocutions is being conducted by Gendarmerie officers. 

Television footage showed ambulances waiting outside the water park and several people gathered outside the Akyazi State Hospital following the incident which just occurred.

Actor Johnny Depp makes Trump Assassination joke

American actor, Johnny Depp during the Glastonbury Festival on Thursday made a joke about killing President Donald Trump.

The Pirates of the Caribbean actor asked a large crowd when was the last time an actor assassinated a president. Depp said to the crowd: “Can we bring Trump here? I think he needs help.

 

“It is just a question — I’m not insinuating anything. By the way, this is going to be in the press. It will be horrible. I like that you’re all part of it. But when was the last time an actor assassinated a president?”

He followed by saying that he is not an actor, but someone who lies for a living.

He said, it’s “been a while, and maybe it’s time.”

This comes recently after Comedian and CNN presenter Kathy Griffin got sacked after sharing graphic images of herself holding a severed head that looks like Trump.

16 year old teenager mauled to death by a Bear

A 16-year old teenager was mauled to death by a bear near an Alaskan trail on Sunday during an annual mountain race. According to Alaska State Troopers spokeswoman Megan Peters, the runner was found dead from injuries he sustained in the mauling shortly after 1 p.m. near the Bird Ridge Trail north of Girdwood.
The 16-year old teenager was running the juniors division of the Robert Spurr Memorial Hill Climb before authorities began searching for him after he texted a relative that a bear was chasing him.

A black bear, found near where the runner was laying, scurried off after being shot in the face.

7 fake credit cards found on Dammy Krane during arrest- Police

Singer, Dammy Krane,  whose real name is Oyindamola Emmanuel Johnson-Hunga, was found with 7 fake credit cards during his arrest -Miami-Dade Police say. Krane was recently arrested at Opa-locka Executive Airport after he used a fake card to book a private jet flight to Washington, D.C., police say.
During the search on him by authorities, seven fake credit cards were found in his wallet. Now the Krane faces nine felony charges in Miami-Dade criminal court for credit card forgery and grand theft.


Source: New Miami Time

American rapper, Prodigy of Mobb Deep has passed away at age 42

One half of rap group Mobb Deep, Prodigy has died. He died in Las Vegas this morning. He was just 42 years old.

The group’s publicist issued a statement confirming the news stating: “It is with extreme sadness and disbelief that we confirm the death of our dear friend Albert Johnson, better known to millions of fans as Prodigy of legendary NY rap duo Mobb Deep.

 

Prodigy was hospitalized a few days ago in Vegas after a Mobb Deep performance for complications caused by a sickle cell anemia crisis. As most of his fans know, Prodigy battled the disease since birth. The exact causes of death have yet to be determined. We would like to thank everyone for respecting the family’s privacy at this time.”

Born Albert Johnson in Hempstead, New York, raised in Queens, Prodigy became a member of the street-wise duo Mobb Deep. His grandfather, Budd Johnson, and his great-uncle Keg Johnson were strong contributors to the Bebop era of jazz, making Prodigy just that for music at a young age. 

Legendary rapper, Nas helped to raise public consciousness about Prodigy and Havoc, as the single, “Shook Ones Pt. 2,” raced up the hip-hop charts. 

It's a disgrace that people are taking selfies at the site of the deadly London fire - Residents lament

Residents who live near Grenfell Tower in London have also expressed heartbreak and outrage after spotting visitors taking selfies at the site of last week's deadly fire. 

Signposts have been erected near the site pleading with visitors to stop taking pictures and stop taking selfies.

Some other signs read, "Not a tourist attraction,".

At least 79 people have been declared or presumed dead after the June 14, disaster and according to British Prime Minister Teresa May, the government would open a public inquiry into the disaster and the police have opened a criminal investigation.

US warplane shoots down Syrian jet near Raqqah

A U.S. warplane shot down a Syrian jet on Sunday near the Islamic State-held city of Raqqah, according to US officials, creating the latest escalation between the U.S. and Syria since the civil war began six years ago.
The Pentagon said the U.S.-led coalition took the unprecedented move after a Syrian Su-22 attack aircraft bombed its allies who were fighting Islamic State militants south of the city of Tabqah, roughly 25 miles west of Raqqah.

A U.S.-backed alliance of Kurdish and Arab militia fighters known as the Syrian Democratic Forces, or SDF, is involved in a large-scale offensive on Raqqah, Islamic State’s self-declared capital in Syria.

About 4:30 p.m., Syrian forces loyal to President Bashar Assad attacked U.S. ground partners in the recently recaptured town of Jadin, south of Tabqah, according to a U.S. military timeline. The assault drove the militia fighters from the town. But the U.S. scrambled aircraft to fly over the battlefield in “a show of force” that stopped the pro-government forces’ advance.

Since the United States does not communicate with the Syrian military, U.S. commanders called their Russian counterparts on a special hotline set up to ensure that their pilots do not mistakenly run into, or fire upon each other as they conduct daily bombing runs over Syria.

Then about 2 hours  later, a Syrian plane dropped bombs near U.S.-allied fighters south of Tabqah, the U.S. military said.
A U.S. fighter pilot, who launched from an aircraft carrier stationed in the Mediterranean Sea, identified the Syrian aircraft and shot it down immediately.

“The coalition’s mission is to defeat ISIS in Iraq and Syria,” the U.S. military statement said, using a common acronym for Islamic State. “The coalition does not seek to fight Syrian regime, Russian, or pro-regime forces partnered with them, but will not hesitate to defend coalition or partner forces from any threat.”

The Syrian military were unhappy about the plane that was shot down, claiming that the US has been coordinating with the Daesh.
A statement said its plane had been conducting a combat mission against Islamic State over the village of Resafa, which lies more than five miles southeast of Jadin, and said the U.S. attack resulted in the “loss of the pilot.”

“This blatant attack confirms the coordination between the United States and Daesh,” the Syrian statement said, employing the Arabic acronym for Islamic State. “Such aggressions will not bend the Syrian army from its determination to continue the war against Daesh … and restore security and stability.”

The shootdown is part of a steady escalation of the U.S. military’s role in Syria. Hundreds of U.S. special operations forces are working alongside Syrian rebels fighting the Islamic State, while U.S. warplanes and a Marine Corps artillery unit provide firepower for the advancing forces on a daily basis.

Source: Tribune Washington Bureau   

Man jailed for sharing photo of dead London fire victim on Facebook

A 43 year old man named Omega Mwaikambo who posted pictures on Facebook of the body of someone believed to have leapt to his death from the Grenfell Tower fire in London has been jailed for three months.  

According to the Telegraph, Mwaikambo who lives just yards away from the tower posted one video and two pictures of the body bag with the man inside and then later five pictures of the victim's face and body after opening it to look inside, all on Facebook.

He pleaded guilty at Westminster Magistrates Court to two counts of sending by a public communications network an offending, indecent or obscene matter.

After his arrest he provided the police with the pin to his iPad and phone and the images were taken down from the web.

Usher steps out in house slippers

The singer stepped out in NYC wearing that unattractive slippers but guess how much they cost? It's Fendi and it cost $1,450.

Egypt threatens to jail parents who give their children ‘Western’ Names

The Egyptian authorities are considering to a place ban on parents giving their children “Western” names, with a possible jail sentence for offenders.

A draft law banning the use of ‘foreign names’ like “Mark”, “Lara” and “Sam” was introduced by one of Egypt’s 588 MPs, MP Bedier Abdel Aziz and discussed by his country’s parliament Tuesday.

According to the Egypt Independent newspaper, he claims that a spread of American and European names in new generations will divorce Egyptians from their “true identity”.

“Using such Western names and abandoning Arabic ones will lead to an undesired and radical change in our society and culture.

“Our sons will no longer be connected to their true identity,”

Aziz who also claimed that Western names can be hard to pronounce, suggested punishment of up to $250 fine or six months in prison for offenders.

If the ban finally puts in place, Egypt would not be alone in operating a ban on certain names. In 2014,  Saudi Arabia banned 50 names, including Linda, Sandy, and Alice.

The draft law has however, been criticized by social media users who, citing it as a baseless matter that the Parliament should not discuss.

Village in India to be named after Donald Trump

Bindeshwar Pathak, International founder and chief of NGO Sulabh, has announced that an open defecation-free (ODF) village in north Indian state Rajasthan's Mewat region will be named after US President Donald Trump.

"I announce to name one village in India as Trump Village," Sulabh International founder said at a community event organised in the suburbs of Washington DC. 

According to him, the move is part of his effort to enhance India-US relationship.

While giving a presentation to the local community and political leaders in the US, Pathak said that he is working to provide affordable sanitation and toilets to the masses in other to end the practice of manual scavenging in India.

In his address, he urged the Indian-American community to help realise the goal of sanitation and cleanliness in India. The cost of one toilet ranges from USD 25 to USD 500, depending on nature of construction. Technology remains the same, he said.

However, the Rajasthan government officials in a counter-statement,  have said there is no such proposal with the government to rename any village after the name of the US president.

"It is the government which renames a village and there is laid down procedures for that. As of now, there is no such proposal with the department to name a village after the US president. I have nothing to comment on what Mr. Pathak has said," Alok, Rajasthan government's principal secretary of the revenue department, told PTI in Jaipur.

He added:

"The competence of renaming a village lies with the government and no private man can do that. We have no such proposal or request in this regard.''

Thailand shuts down Facebook and YouTube over royal insults

Today, a Thai courted ordered all Facebook pages and Youtube videos with elements of Royal Insults and inappropriate content to be shut down.

According to Takorn Tantasith, Secretary-General,  National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) “web pages with alleged royal insults were among a total of 965 pages deemed illegal, with others containing violence, copyright issues and other inappropriate content'.

Takorm continued to say,

 '“among the 965 pages, 569 of them were on Facebook and 373 on YouTube. “Although nearly 100 percent has been blocked, the NBTC has instructed ISPs [internet service providers] to keep monitoring online content."

Pope Francis threatens to fire Nigerian priests for refusal to obey him and their bishop

Catholic Pontiff, Pope Francis has laid down an ultimatum to defiant Nigerian priests; lose your job if you don’t obey me and your bishop.
Pope Francis met with a delegation from the Ahiara diocese, on June 8 at the Vatican. The delegation from the diocese is an area where priests have been refusing to accept the 2012 appointment by the then pontiff, Benedict XVI, of the local bishop.
Defending the pope's unusual harsh order, Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano, said that Francis was acting “for the good of the people of God” by threatening to suspend the priests from the ministry if they didn’t pledge in a letter, by July 9, “total obedience” to Francis and accept Bishop Peter Okpaleke’s appointment.

According to Associated Press, Pope Francis told the visiting delegation he was “very sad” about the priests’ refusal to obey and ruled out tribal loyalties as explaining the refusal.

Africa has been one of the continents where the Catholic church is growing. The faithful and clergy there often imbue their practices with local culture in dynamic contrast to more traditional routines in Europe or North America.

Pope Francis’ move to end disobedience to the Vatican aims at ensuring the growing church there will be loyal to the pontiff.His remarks to the visiting delegation indicated how dangerous he viewed any rebellion against papal authority. "Those priests opposing Okpaleke’s taking up of his office want to destroy the church, which is not permitted" Pope Francis said in his address to the delegation.

He also demanded that each priest in the diocese write to him asking forgiveness and clearly manifest total obedience to the pope. or run the rsik of loosing their current office. "They must also accept the bishop chosen by Rome. If, within a month, each priest doesn’t do so, he will be ispo facto suspended, such as from the celebration of the sacraments, and “will lose his current office" Francis warned.

Francis acknowledged that his move “seems very harsh.” He added that he had even considered the extraordinary remedy of suppressing the entire diocese but didn’t, so as not to hurt rank-and-file faithful. He said he thought the rebellious priests might have been manipulated from outside the diocese or even abroad, but named no culprits.

In 2015, the diocese served around 520,000 Catholics, out of a local population of about 675,000, and had 128 diocesan priests and seven other priests. It wasn’t immediately clear how many of the priests were involved in the rebellion against the bishop’s appointment.

Source: Associated Press

Police dog sacked from his job for being too friendly

A police dog has been fired from his job because he did not have the intimidating personality needed to carry out his job effectively.

1-year-old Gavel is a German Shepherd who is just too friendly and rolls around with everyone. He would rather roll around and have his belly robbed than stand at attention and look menacing.

Because of these attributes, Gavel failed to make the final cut for Queensland Police Service in Australia, despite having a prestigious family bloodline which saw him related to five current working QPS dogs. However, he is not totally out of a job as he was offered a new role welcoming visitors to Brisbane's Government House as Governor Paul de Jersey's official Vice-Regal Dog – a job suitable for his personality. 

Gavel has reportedly struck up quite the bond with Governor de Jersey and the many Australians he greets every day and this has now made him is now a social media star.

A spokesman for Queensland Government House said: 

"Gavel arrived at Government House in April last year as a six-week-old puppy. It was intended that he would undergo a training and socialisation programme preparing to become a Queensland Police Service Dog. But like many aspiring QPS Dogs, Gavel did not display the necessary aptitude for a life on the front line. Not all dogs display this, and Gavel proved himself to be quite sociable."

He added:

 "He is better suited to life as a ceremonial dog and will instead now spend his working days at Fernberg, where he has become a much-loved part of Government House life."

When the dog's service at Queensland Police Service ended earlier this year, staff at Government House couldn't let him go. They created a brand new state position – Vice-Regal Dog – especially for Gavel and gave him the official title Gavel VRD.

Now his official state duties include welcoming the building's thousands of callers, attending functions and formal ceremonies with the governor and even sitting in on briefings.