Kenyan President William Ruto has announced measures to cut government spending after a finance bill meant to raise taxes triggered violent protests across the country.

Ruto said he declined assent to the controversial bill after reflecting on the conversation around its content.

The protests had left over 23 people dead as demonstrators breached the national assembly for the first time in Kenya’s history.

During an X-Space engagement with Kenyans on Friday, Ruto said the bill was marred with “falsehood and propaganda”.

The president explained that the bill provided interventions that would have created more jobs and protect Kenyan industries.

The presidency said the bill was meant to plug Kenya’s ballooning budget deficit and reduce reliance on borrowing.

Kenya’s public debt currently stands at 68 percent of GDP, significantly higher than the 55 percent recommended by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

AUSTERITY MEASURES

Ruto said his administration has settled on slashing various governance costs after wide consultations.

The president announced the resolutions in a separate speech at the State House in Nairobi.

Part of the cuts include the removal of budgets in the offices of the first and second lady.

“The budgetary provisions for confidential budgets in various executive offices, including my office, shall be removed, and the budget for renovations across the government reduced by 50 percent,” he added.

Ruto also dissolved 47 state corporations with overlapping functions “resulting in the elimination of their operational and maintenance costs”.

“Their functions will be integrated into the respective line ministries,” he said.

France have advanced to the semi-final of the 2024 European Championship.

The French team defeated Portugal 5-3 in penalties in the quarter-final encounter at the Volksparkstadion, Hamburg, on Friday.

The match ended goalless after 120 minutes of football that failed to meet expectations.

Both nations failed to play to live up to their full potential, with shots from Theo Hernadez and Kylian Mbappe the only real chances of a turgid first half.

The teams improved their performances after the interval, particularly the Selecao, with chances for Bruno Fernandes, Joao Cancelo,  and Rafael Leao.

The Portuguese had more opportunities in extra time but could not score, and the tie went to the lottery of penalties to decide the winner.

Ronaldo, goalless in his final Euro tournament, converted his kick in the shootout, but Joao Felix missed before Hernandez sent Costa the wrong way to send Didier Deschamps’ goal-shy side into the last four of the tournament.

France will face Spain, who dumped hosts Germany out with a 2-1 win in extra-time earlier in the day, in the semi-final.

Mikel Merino scored the all-important winner in the 119th minute after Florian Wirtz’s 89th-minute goal had cancelled Dani Olmo’s strike after the interval to force the additional period. Dani Carvajal was shown a red card for two bookings and will miss the semi-final match against France

A house of representatives committee has invited Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, the minister of women affairs, over the “N1.5 billion” debt owed to contractors.

Kafilat Ogbara, chairperson of the house committee on women affairs and social development, issued the summons at the panel’s sitting on Thursday.

The committee is investigating the alleged diversion of N1.5 billion meant for the payment of contractors.

Some contractors had petitioned the committee, alleging non-payment for contracts they had executed for the ministry.

When he appeared before the committee, Aloy Ifeakandu, director of finance in the ministry, said he was instructed by his “superior” not to issue any payment to contractors.

‘FUNDS HAVE BEEN DIVERTED’

Ogbara further alleged that the ministry awarded contracts not included in the 2023 budget, while the funds were diverted.

“Money for contractors has not been paid, and money has been diverted,” Ogbara said.

“So, how do you pay these contractors?”

Ogbara said the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offenses Commission (ICPC) is also probing the ministry over alleged misappropriation of funds.

Responding, the director of finance said he assumed office at the ministry in September 2023 and does not know what happened before he came on board.

“The individual contractors have their files. It can be traced. As at the time I took over, there was no balance in the vote,” he said.

Consequently, Ogbara invited the minister to appear before the committee next Tuesday.

“We are giving until Tuesday for the ministry to bring all documents to come and defend where the N1.5bn disappeared to,” the committee chairperson said.

In June, Kennedy-Ohanenye filed a N1 billion defamation of character lawsuit against Ogbara.

In an interview on June 5, Ogbara said there are “many petitions” against the minister, adding that the parliament is investigating the minister.

The minister had denied the allegations, saying she was not under investigation over claims of fund misappropriation.

US President, Joe Biden has put to rest, speculation about his political future.

In a statement at a rally in Madison, Wisconsin on Friday, he addressed rumours and doubts surrounding his reelection bid.

“I’m the sitting President of the United States. I’m the nominee of the Democratic party. I’m staying in the race,” Biden declared.

He further emphasized his determination, saying, “I’m not letting one 90-minute debate wipe out three and a half years of work. I’m staying in the race, and I will beat Donald Trump.”

This statement comes as a response to recent debates and polls, questioning him on whether he’ll drop out of the race.

Biden then shifted his focus to the core issues driving his campaign, stating.

“I want a country where women have the right to make their own healthcare decisions. Trump wants an America where abortion is banned and women are punished,” he said.

The US President continued, “Justice Sotomayor warned us in her dissent that, based on the majority decision, Trump could take out his opponents, take bribes, and lead a coup while president—and be immune to being held accountable. He really could become the dictator that he promised to be on day one.

“For over two centuries, America has been a free and democratic nation. I’ll be damned if in the year 2024—just two years before the 250th anniversary of our Declaration of Independence—Donald Trump takes that away.”

Biden vowed to stay the course in his re-election bid and defeat Donald Trump in a November.

Former presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 general election, Peter Obi has urged members of the party to put away their differences and work together in harmony.
The former Anambra governor made the call via his X account on Friday.

He stated that the party would emerge stronger if they were more united.

He stressed the need to move forward with a shared sense of purpose and vision.

Obi expressed confidence that the party would overcome the current crisis through open communication, empathy, and willingness to listen.

According to him, “We will successfully resolve our differences and emerge stronger and more united than ever. Our strength lies in greater unity for our common national good.

“I reiterate my earlier appeal for us to put aside our differences and work together in a spirit of harmony and mutual understanding.”

Petrol stations across Nigeria are experiencing lengthy queues, reflecting concerns about fuel shortages due to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited‘s $6 billion backlog in petrol payments.

BusinessDay’s investigation revealed that NNPC owes around $6 billion to international traders for imported petrol, with payments now delayed beyond the typical 90 days.

Reuters reported that overdue payments of $4 billion to $5 billion for January imports alone have led international petrol suppliers to withdraw from recent tenders.

An industry insider disclosed to Reuters, “The only reason traders are putting up with it is the $250,000 a month (per cargo) for late payment compensation.”

These payment delays point to the return of fuel subsidies, which were scrapped in May 2023. The subsidies drain NNPC’s cash reserves, affecting its ability to import petrol and finance President Bola Tinubu’s government.

Two suppliers have already stopped participating in tenders after reaching their debt exposure limits to Nigeria. They will not send more gasoline until they receive payments.

NNPC’s suppliers, including international traders like Vitol, Mercuria, and Gunvor, as well as Nigeria-based trading houses, declined to comment as they were not authorized to speak to the media.

BusinessDay found that traders, while thriving in risky environments, limit their credit exposure to avoid excessive risk with one borrower. Consequently, Nigeria’s tenders for petrol in June and July were smaller.

NNPC will import about 850,000 tonnes in July, down from the usual 1 million tonnes in previous months, according to sources.

As a result, Nigerians are facing renewed petrol scarcity and long queues in major cities such as Lagos and Abuja.

Rishi Sunak, outgoing prime minister of the UK, has apologised to the Conservative Party after Labour won the general election by a landslide.

Sunak conceded defeat as the networks called the election for Keir Starmer of the Labour Party — who had reached the required 326 parliamentary seats.

The Conservative Party candidate retained his seat in Richmond & Northallerton however.

“Britain has delivered a sobering verdict. On this difficult night, I’d like to express my gratitude to the people of Richmond and Northallerton constituency for your continued support,” Sunak said.

“Today, power will change hands in a peaceful and orderly manner, with goodwill on all sides. That is something that should give us all confidence in our country’s stability and future.

“There is much to learn… and I take responsibility for the loss.”

The outcome of the election ends 14 years of Conservative government, in which time five different prime ministers ran the country.

Sunak was appointed prime minister on October 25, 2022, becoming the first British Asian and the first Hindu to assume the office.

At 42, Sunak became the youngest prime minister since Robert Jenkinson.

Aliko Dangote, chairman of the Dangote Industries Limited, says Nigeria’s economy can be turned around in a few months.

Dangogte addressed journalists in Abuja after the inauguration of the presidential economic coordination council (PECC) on Thursday.

“What I keep saying is that our own issues are not that bad, this economy can be turned around within few months and I think we are on that way,” he said.

The billionaire also pledged the support of the private sector in investing in job creation for Nigerians.

“The private sector will support the government to invest heavily and create jobs,” the business tycoon said.

“Government does not create jobs but they give us the right policies, you can see the interventions in gas sector, getting the OB3 to work will give the country additional $2 billion.”

On July 4, President Bola Tinubu inaugurated the PECC and announced a N2 trillion economic stabilisation plan in a move to revive Nigeria’s struggling economy.

Established in March, the PECC is chaired by the president and includes key government officials such as the vice-president, the senate president, and the chairman of the governors’ forum.

Prominent private sector leaders, including Dangote, Tony Elumelu, and Bismarck Rewane will serve on the council for one year.

On July 2, Dangote had warned that the increase of interest rate to almost 30 percent by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) would stifle growth.

Tajudeen Abbas, speaker of the house of representatives, says the nation’s security will improve if traditional rulers are given constitutional roles. 

The bill seeking to give traditional rulers constitutional roles did not scale through during the last assembly.

Speaking at an event to mark the one year anniversary of the 10th house, Abbas said through the ongoing constitutional amendment process, parliament will grant constitutionally recognised roles to traditional institutions.

“The 10th house, under my leadership, will do its best to give recognition to the traditional rulers during our constitution amendment exercise,” Abbas said.

“Many amendments were made in the past to grant constitutional recognition to traditional rulers, but they never saw the light of day.

“Because most of us in the house honestly believe that traditional institutions are the backbones of our society. We believe that the welfare of our people will be more enhanced with a legal role for the traditional institutions.”

Abbas said he constituted two special standing committees when he assumed office, to drive the process of actualising constitutional roles for traditional institutions, and achieving autonomy for local governments.

“We also believe the security of our country will be more enhanced if the traditional institutions are given better roles. That is the reason from the onset, we decided to create committees — two different ones — actually,” he added.

“One of them is the committee on traditional institutions to drive the process of giving legal recognition to the traditional institutions in this coming constitutional amendment.

“The second one is the committee on states and local governments.

“If we must make headway with the ongoing constitution amendment, state governments, state houses of assembly, local government councils and their councillors must be considered.

“That is the reason we decided that another committee dealing with issues of states and local governments should come on board.

“These two committees, we believe, will drive the process of reaching out to critical stakeholders in the states to ensure that the goal of local government autonomy is realised.”

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has sanctioned Samuel Eto’o, president of the Cameroon Football Association, for ethics violations. 

In a statement on Thursday, CAF announced Eto’o was facing “charges of alleged manipulation of football matches and violating the principles of ethics and integrity.”

The continental football governing body added that “there is insufficient proof” to corroborate Eto’o’s involvement in match-fixing alongside Valentin Nkwain.

However, CAF ruled that the four-time African Footballer of the Year “seriously violated the principles of ethics, integrity and sportsmanship” by “signing a brand ambassador contract with the company 1XBET in exchange for remuneration”.

The statement said Eto’o breached “Article 2 paragraph 3 of the CAF Statutes,” which reads: “any person or organisation involved in football in Africa has to respect at all times and unreservedly the principles of ethics and fair play enacted by CAF, the principles of integrity and sportsmanship as well as the Statutes, regulations, decisions, and directives of CAF and FIFA.”

Eto’o was penalised with $200,000 fine for the violation.

The former Barcelona striker has been embroiled in controversy since he was elected president of Cameroon FA in 2021.

In 2022, he was caught on tape attacking a cameraman outside a stadium at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

A year later, CAF investigated him for alleged improper misconduct following complaints from several stakeholders of Cameroonian football.