10th August 2022 | Advertise | Shop | Archive
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Good morning. 23-time Grand Slam champ Serena Williams is saying so long to tennis.
After seven Wimbledon and seven Australian Open titles, six US Open trophies, and three French Open crowns, Williams, 40, announced on Tuesday that she is officially retiring from the sport.
In her words, she is "evolving away from tennis, toward other things that are important..." after playing in what will be her final US Open at Flushing Meadows in Queens later this month.
Tunisia. U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin raises concerns for Tunisia democracy. Tunisia's President Kais Saied last month pushed through a new constitution giving himself nearly unchecked authority in a referendum that the electoral commission said had 30% turnout.
United Kingdom. Nearly one-third of households will face fuel poverty this winter due to a surge in energy bills. The average household energy bill is expected to reach $5,163 a year from January, representing a 116% increase from current prices. 10.5 million are expected to be affected.
Football. Just days to La Liga's kickoff and despite signing top players, Lewandowski and Raphinha, FC Barcelona will not be allowed to register new players until it reduces expenses. The club has a debt burden of $1B, but that hasn't stopped the team from spending over $100M on new players.
2005 Google Restructures
Google announces its restructure as Alphabet, a holding company with Google, YouTube, Android and Chrome as subsidiaries. Google co-founder Larry Page said the name "Alphabet" appealed to Google because it means a collection of letters representing language, and language forms the core of Google's search indexing.
NIGERIA
Passport Production Boost
The Story
The federal government on Tuesday commissioned its Enhanced Passport Production Centre in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, as part of efforts to address the challenge of passport booklet shortage.
That's a good one!
Yes, it is. The Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, during the commissioning, dismissed concerns about the shortage of passport booklets, as he said that there's enough supply to meet the growing demand from Nigerians. His Media Adviser, Sola Fasure, in a statement said the Port Harcourt passport production centre will serve the passport demands from Rivers, Cross River, Bayelsa, and Akwa Ibom states.
Are there more demands from those states?
No, the minister stated that the commissioned center is for production purposes only, and gives no special advantages or disadvantages to applicants from the four states. Noting that there are no backlogs in the four states, the minister said additional 10,000 booklets have been released to the center. "In addition to the standardized timeline, we have also introduced tracking mechanism in the application process, to enable applicants monitor the progress of their application", he said.
According to the statement, the processing time for fresh application and renewal is now six weeks and three weeks respectively, after biometric data capture. The timeline, Fasure said, is to enable the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) investigate and validate the claims of applicants, and confer integrity on the passport issued. Source
AFRICA
Odinga's Last Shot?
The Story
Kenya's Tuesday presidential election saw a lower turnout than anticipated, as electorates cast their votes to determine the country's next leader.
How did it go?
The election, which was considered close but calm, had a turnout of around 60%(less than the previous 80% in 2017) as voters expressed indifference about any expectation of real change. Economy and widespread corruption have been the main issues in the buildup to the election, which saw a dramatic change of alignment as outgoing president Uhuru Kenyatta is reported to favour a victory by longtime rival, 77 years old Raila Odinga.
How do the contestants stand?
The East African country is projected to see a presidential runoff - the first time in its history - unless one of the candidates gets more votes than pre-election polls suggest. While Raila Odinga, a democracy campaigner who has had his eyes on the presidency for more than 20 years, remains favourite, he faces a stiff challenge from 55-year-old Deputy President William Ruto, who used his rise from a humble childhood to appeal to struggling Kenyans.
What does a candidate need to win?
To be declared the outright winner, a candidate must have polled more than half of all votes cast, and have a minimum of 25% of the votes in more than half of Kenya’s 47 counties. In the absence of this, a runoff election will be conducted within 30 days. Expressing hope of an unusual victory, Ruto drew attention to the significant influence that the electorates - many of whom are regular struggling citizens - wield at times like this. “In moments like this is when the mighty and the powerful come to the realization that it is the simple and the ordinary that eventually make the choice,” he told journalists. Source
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LATIN AMERICA
Searching Mar-a-Lago
The Story
The embattled former president of the United States, Donald Trump, is in the news after Monday's search of his Mar-a-Lago estate by FBI agents.
What has he done now?
Well, there's been no new allegations against him. The FBI search is reported to be primarily about Trump's alleged retention of classified materials, especially relating to the ongoing probe into his actions before, during, and after the January 6, 2021 riot at the Capitol. While Trump has recently been seen prospecting on a potential presidential run in the 2024 elections, some observers have suggested that the Mar-a-Lago search may not be unconnected to alleged efforts to stop his potential 2024 bid.
What did the FBI say?
The FBI had secured a search warrant from a federal magistrate judge after demonstrating probable cause to support their suspicion of criminal activity. Previously, 15 boxes of documents - including classified materials - had been retrieved during a previous search at the Palm Beach, Florida residence, prompting the Justice Department to refer the case to the FBI earlier this year. Trump has, however, decried the search as politically motivated, with the objective of stopping him from running for president in 2024.
Is he seeking redress?
That's not clear, yet. His son, Eric, while confirming on Fox News that the search was related to document retention, dismissed any potential wrongdoing by his father. Condemning the manner of the search, Eric said his father has always had an "open-door policy", welcoming anyone who indicated a need to search his property. "My father saves clippings and things like that. So he had boxes, right, when he moved out of the White House. And he was very collaborative", Eric said, in reference to the previous search.
The Mar-a-Lago search has received condemnation from voices within the Republican party, including Representative Kevin McCarthy from California, who said that the Department of Justice “has reached an intolerable state of weaponized politicization", and indicated intention to investigate Attorney General Merrick B. Garland should the Republicans take control of the House in November. Source
Gunmen behind Owo church attack arrested
Kyari: Nigeria loses $1.9bn every month to crude oil theft
Nigeria, three others top World Bank debtors’ list
WAEC releases 2022 WASSCE results
Diaspora Nigerians remit $60.22bn in three years
Shiites, security agents clash in Kaduna, six killed
Fed Govt secures Kizz Daniel’s release from Tanzanian prison
New York company raises $120k to make Zelenskyy action figure
India aims to restrict sale of Chinese cheap smartphones
At least 7 dead, as South Korea’s Seoul deluged by record rain
JOB OPPORTUNITY
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Predictions from technology experts 20 years ago for the year 2022. Gizmodo
Netflix reveals the audience size of its most popular shows. Verge
The world's busiest airports. ACI
Exploring the faces on the world's currencies. Pudding
Charting social media use by age. Flowing Data
TENNIS TRIVIA
In honour of Serena Williams, smash the quiz!
INSTAGRAM CHEFS DO THE MOST!
Written by Seun, Mercy, Kingsley, and Tosin.
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