Kang’ata threatens to turn tide on Senators who voted against proposal
Following Senate’s decision to reject the amendment on the revenue sharing formula by majority whip Irungu Kang’ata on Tuesday, it is likely counties will share revenue on basis of previous formula which aimed at minimizing development gap.Get breaking news on your Mobile as-it-happens. SMS ‘NEWS’ to 20153 This, however, will happen if they adopt the amendment on the Finance Committee’s Report sponsored by Nairobi Senator Johnson Sakaja seeking to retain the status quo until county revenue share increases.Also Read Uhuru extends curfew ahead of his address Tuesday next weekBut as counties await the Senate’s decision, proponents of the one man one shilling formula are working on a comeback as well punitive measures against those believed to have betrayed their cause.Also Read President Uhuru to make remarks in the 75th Session of UNGAThe Senators who voted against the Bill include Kakamega’s Cleophas Malala whose county was to get an additional Ksh 1 billion, Nairobi’s Johnson Sakaja whose county was to get an additional Ksh 1.2 billion, and Kipchumba Murkomen of Elgeyo Marakwet.Other senators who rejected additional monies include Kajiado’s Senator Philip Mpayie, Lamu’s Anwar Loitiptip and Kisii’s Prof Sam Ongeri.25 Senators in total voted against the amendment while 22 Senators voted in support of the same.The House will now reconvene on 4th of August to continue with debate on Sakaja’s amendment on the report of the Finance Committee.Also Read PSC to challenge Maraga’s advice to dissolve Parliament over gender ruleSakaja wants to retain the current revenue allocation formula for Counties saying they are all in agreement that Counties shouldn’t lose money.He said the narrative that some Counties in this Country are getting money than they don’t deserve shouldn’t even exist saying as Senator for Nairobi, the County would rather lose the extra Ksh 100 million it would have gotten had they adopted the report of the Finance Committee than see other Counties lose cash. Senate Majority Whip Irungu Kang’ata is threatening to turn the tide against Senators whose counties were bound to benefit from the 3rd Basis Revenue Allocation Sharing Formula but voted against his proposal.Kang’ata threatened to do this by touring their respective regions and informing the electorate that they will be missing additional funds as a result of acts and omissions by their Senators.At least 7 senators voted against Kangata’s Bill which sought to provide a two-year window before counties begin receiving funds based on population density.
“Every time I speak there is a consequence,” Mourinho said. “Even if I say that a referee was amazing that was a reason to be with a charge. “I can’t say the truth. I don’t feel free at all. If you want a better press conference, speak with the FA.” Asked about the British sense of humour and sarcasm, Mourinho said: “So Mr Bean is in jail…” Mourinho lost his 77-match unbeaten home league record when Sunderland won 2-1 at Stamford Bridge. Following the match, which saw his assistant Rui Faria sent to the stands and later given a six-match stadium ban, Mourinho refused to answer questions, instead making a statement in which he congratulated his Chelsea players, Sunderland and then moved on to the officials. He described referee Mike Dean’s performance as “unbelievable” and “fantastic”, before moving on to referees’ chief Mike Riley, saying “what they are doing during the whole season is fantastic, especially in the last couple of months, especially in matches involving the teams that were in the title race, it’s absolutely fantastic”. It was found that Mourinho’s comments, in themselves, did not question the officials’ integrity, but amounted to disrepute and improper conduct. The Portuguese was fined £10,000 for his sarcastic appraisal of officials following the Barclays Premier League loss to Sunderland and failed in an appeal over an £8,000 penalty imposed after the defeat at Aston Villa. Following the charges in relation to the Sunderland match, Mourinho suggested he was being victimised and that the Football Association had lost its sense of humour. A FA statement read: “While the commission did not find that Mourinho’s post-match comments called into question the integrity of the referee appointed to the above fixture and/or the integrity of Mike Riley, general manager of the Professional Game Match Officials Limited, they did find that the comments brought the game into disrepute and the charge for improper conduct was found proven.” The Portuguese also was unsuccessful in an appeal against his £8,000 fine for his conduct towards referee Chris Foy at the end of a defeat at Villa Park in March. Mourinho has been sanctioned three times this season for brushes with authority, the first coming against Cardiff in October when he was sent to the stands and later fined £8,000. He was the third member of Chelsea’s staff to be punished following the Sunderland match after Faria and midfielder Ramires, who received a retrospective four-match ban, ending his domestic season, for striking Sebastian Larsson during the loss. Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho was made to pay on Thursday after his latest brushes with authority. Press Association
She continued, “It is deeply disturbing that while coronavirus cases in Florida surge, Disney is refusing to provide regular testing to one of the few groups of workers in the park who by the very nature of their jobs, cannot use personal protective equipment. Now is the time for Disney to pause, focus on the science and put the safety of their actors and stage managers first by making regular testing available.”Florida reported more than 114,000 cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, an increase of 5,004 over Wednesday.The union represents about 600 actors at Disney World, out of a total workforce of 77,000 employees at the resort.It also is concerned that not enough testing was planned for the actors, who are unable to use face masks on the job. The union that represents actors at Walt Disney World says the company should its the scheduled July reopening of its Florida parks.Disney’s Orlando parks are scheduled to reopen July 11, after being closed since mid-March due to the coronavirus pandemic.The Actors’ Equity Association said Thursday that it remains unclear how Disney World could “responsibly” reopen, as cases of the virus continue to increase throughout the state.The news comes a day after Disney announced it is delaying the reopening of its California themes parks from the original July 17 date there.“For weeks, we have made it clear to Disney that testing is a fundamental part of maintaining a safe and healthy environment for everyone, from the guests to the cast,” said Mary McColl, executive director of the Actors’ Equity Association.Florida is seeing record spikes in coronavirus cases, but @WaltDisneyWorld is still preparing to reopen – even as CA’s @Disneyland has postponed. Disney needs to pause and put the safety of their actors and stage managers first with testing https://t.co/Nwlmi6rRal— Actors’ Equity (@ActorsEquity) June 25, 2020
BARCELONA: Ahead of the clash against Mallorca, Barcelona head coach Quique Setien confirmed that star striker Lionel Messi is ready to take the field for the side.”He is ready to play, he is perfectly okay. He is trained well, there is no problem. Messi and a lot of these players know how to gauge things and how to save their strength when necessary,” Goal.com quoted Setien as saying in the pre-match media conference. “As for breaks, we will see. For some, the more time they are on the pitch, the better,” he said. Messi’s fitness was a major concern ahead of the resumption — the talismanic forward was dealing with a quadriceps injury. But he has suffered no further setbacks since returning to training with the rest of the squad at the start of the week. Striker Luis Suarez who is returning the pitch after a knee injury and a lengthy lay-off, will not play the whole game against Mallorca. Agencies Also Watch: Wife Prays for Justice as Husband Killed by Colleague
The Latest: Summit League pushes back start of fall sports ___Real Madrid says forward Mariano has tested positive for the coronavirus.The announcement came as the team returned to practice ahead of its Champions League match against Manchester City on Aug. 7. Real Madrid lost at home 2-1 in the first leg of the round-of-16 series.Madrid says Mariano was in “perfect health condition” and was following health protocols.The entire Madrid squad was tested for COVID-19 on Monday. The players had been on a break of almost 10 days after winning the Spanish league title. The Titans so far have had one player opt out. Undrafted rookie free agent Anthony McKinney is an offensive lineman out of Texas Christian. Vrabel confirmed McKinney informed the coach and general manager Jon Robinson of his decision. Vrabel says he has not heard nor talked to other Titans who might choose to opt out and is waiting until players make the best decision in the interest of themselves and their families. ___A person familiar with the situation says New England Patriots linebacker Dont’a Hightower has decided to opt out of the 2020 season. Hightower’s decision was made out of concern for the health of his fiancée and child, who was born earlier this month, the person said. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the Patriots have not announced the decision. The Toray Pan Pacific Open already had been postponed from September because of the COVID-19 outbreak that has put the WTA and ATP tours on hold since March.Two-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka won that title last year.Tuesday’s announcement follows news last week that 11 men’s and women’s tournaments planned for later this year in China were scrapped.That included the WTA Finals.As of now, women’s tennis is scheduled to resume next week in Palermo, Italy. ___The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference has moved most fall sports until the spring, including football.The MIAC joined the majority of its NCAA Division III peers, postponing competition in cross country, football, soccer and volleyball. Tennis teams will be permitted to compete against conference opponents this fall in accordance with campus, state, NCAA and MIAC health directives. That sport is deemed low risk for coronavirus transmission.Training, practice and other team activities will be permitted in the postponed sports, in compliance with the virus-related guidelines.The biggest impact of the MIAC’s move will be on the football game between league powers St. John’s and St. Thomas, rivals who first played in 1901 and have faced off 89 times in the sport. This year’s game, which was scheduled for early November at U.S. Bank Stadium, the NFL home of the Vikings, could be the last ever with the impending move by St. Thomas to the FCS level after being booted from the MIAC for competitive reasons. ESPN was the first to report the move. Two other people told the AP that starting right tackle Marcus Cannon and fullback Danny Vitale have also chosen to sit out the season, citing health concerns.Cannon is a cancer survivor and Vitale has a young family and doesn’t want to risk exposing them, according to the sources. ___Two people with direct knowledge of the decision have confirmed to The Associated Press that Buffalo Bills starting defensive tackle Star Lotulelei is voluntarily opting out from playing this season. The traditional “Skull Session” pregame pep rallies at St. John’s Arena will not be held.Athletic director Gene Smith informed season-ticket holders of the new rules in a letter Tuesday, first reported by Cleveland.com.The guidelines limit capacity of the 105,000-seat stadium to 20%.-Mitch Stacy reporting from Columbus, Ohio___ ___The Tennessee Titans have placed their top draft pick on the COVID-19/reserve list.Coach Mike Vrabel announced that move Tuesday at the end of a 40-minute video conference call with reporters. The Titans drafted offensive lineman Isaiah Wilson with the No. 29 pick overall out of Georgia, and Wilson remains the one member of their six-man draft class that has yet to agree to a contract. Wilson is expected to compete for the right tackle job that came open when Jack Conklin signed with Cleveland in free agency.Vrabel also said linebacker Jayon Brown will start training camp on the physically unable to perform list. The people spoke to The AP on the condition of anonymity because the team has not revealed this information as players reported for the start of training camp Tuesday. The NFL Network first reported Lotulelei’s decision earlier in the day.The 30-year-old Lotulelei has seven years of NFL experience and was entering his third season with the Bills. He has two years remaining on his contract, which will now run through 2022.— John Wawrow reporting from Buffalo. New York.___Iowa has paused its men’s basketball workouts for 14 days after two players tested positive for COVID-19, the school announced Tuesday. Share This StoryFacebookTwitteremailPrintLinkedinRedditThe Latest on the effects of the coronavirus outbreak on sports around the world:___The Latest: PSG faces Lyon in the League Cup final at the same stadium on Friday.___More AP sports: https://apnews.com/apf-sports and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
___The French government has maintained a maximum capacity of 5,000 fans in stadiums until the end of August amid the coronavirus pandemic.French sports minister Roxana Maracineanu says the decision was taken because France has seen an increase in coronavirus cases recently.But Maracineanu adds that local officials will have the authority to increase the capacity at some events from Aug. 15 if they can obtain special dispensation and observe strict health and safety protocol.Only 2,805 fans attended the French Cup final between Paris Saint-Germain and Saint-Etienne last Friday but the number was low because Saint-Etienne fans did not use their allocation of 900 seats at Stade de France. Associated Press The Summit League is pushing back the start of fall sports to Sept. 23 due to concerns about the coronavirus pandemic.The conference’s president’s council agreed to delay championship seasons for men’s and women’s soccer, volleyball and cross country. Non-championship segments for golf and tennis, along with non-traditional seasons for softball and baseball also were pushed back.Soccer and volleyball will have conference-only schedules.___A women’s professional tennis tournament that was supposed to be played in Tokyo in November has been canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic, the latest event scratched from the sport’s calendar. A fan favorite for his humorous style leading sports programs, Rodrigues was hospitalized on Saturday in Rio de Janeiro after feeling nausea and disorientation. Doctors found he had a cerebral venous blood clot, one of the possible bodily responses to an infection by the new coronavirus. Rodrigues had surgery on Sunday and was in an induced coma. He worked at TV Globo and its cable channel Sportv, which confirmed his death during one of the programs he hosted. Rodrigues also worked in several other Brazilian networks, including ESPN.___ ___Ball State has filled one of three open dates on its football schedule by announcing plans to open the season Sept. 12 at Iowa State of the Big 12.The game replaces a previously scheduled date for the Cardinals at Michigan and the annual rivalry game at Iowa for the Cyclones. Both games were wiped out when Big Ten officials said they would play a conference-only schedule.Ball State also had its Sept. 3 season opener against Maine and a Sept. 19 trip to Indiana canceled earlier this month. The Big Ten games reportedly cost the Cardinals about $1.7 million in guaranteed money.Ball State is still scheduled to host Wyoming on Sept. 26 in its second game of the season before heading into Mid-American Conference play. The Atlanta Falcons have selected their 40-member cheerleaders squad following their first virtual tryouts.Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 38 women and two men earned their spots in online tryouts. The results were announced on Monday night on a livestream on the Falcons website.Chato Hendrix, director of the cheerleaders, said the group was disheartened at first to have to go completely virtual, but like the rest of the world had to adapt.Hendrix says the virtual tryouts made it possible for out-of-state applicants to compete for spots without having to travel to Atlanta. This is the first time since 1989 the Falcons have had male cheerleaders. The New Jersey Athletic Conference announced the suspension of all fall sports because of the coronavirus pandemic. The conference of Division III schools will explore the possibility of playing fall sports in the spring. The fall sports include football, women’s soccer, men’s soccer, field hockey, women’s volleyball, women’s tennis, women’s cross country, and men’s cross country. The member schools are Kean, Montclair State, New Jersey City, Ramapo, Rowan, Rutgers-Camden, Rutgers-Newark, Stockton, The College of New Jersey, and William Paterson.___Brazilian TV host Rodrigo Rodrigues has died at age 45, two weeks after contracting COVID-19. Iowa’s protocol requires individuals who test positive to be in isolation and for people who might have been exposed to someone with the virus to be quarantined.Last week, Michigan State suspended football workouts and players began a 14-day quarantine after a staff member and player tested positive.___ Ohio State will limit home crowds to about 20,000 and prohibit tailgating if the football season is played this fall.Fans inside Ohio Stadium will be required to wear masks and observe social distancing to help stem the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. Concessions will be limited. July 28, 2020
General Secretary of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Dr. Mohammed Sanusi, has charged organisers of the annual Nigeria Pitch Awards to ensure the sustenance of the values of transparency, credibility and integrity that have assured the project a pride of place in Nigerian Football in the few years that it has been in existence.Speaking in Abuja at the weekend, Sanusi lauded the diligence and efforts that Matchmakers Consult International Limited has put into the organisation of the awards since its first edition in 2013.“I am delighted that despite all the challenges faced by the organisers over the years, they have managed to sustain the Nigeria Pitch Awards. It is a noble programme because Awards are very special in the role they play in motivating and galvanising people to strive to be better in whatever they do.“With regards to the Nigeria Pitch Awards, the existence of such a project makes our football players, referees, coaches, administrators, sponsors and even player-managers to aim to do their job better. I advise the organisers to remain upright and rigid about the values inherent, and not to succumb to any temptation to tamper with the credibility and transparency that the Awards are known for.â€Just as the NFF, the Super Eagles and indeed all Nigerian football fans are eagerly looking forward to the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match between the Eagles and Bafana Bafana of South Africa, scheduled for Uyo on Saturday, 10th June, organisers of the Nigeria Pitch Awards are also looking forward to the day.It is on that day that the fourth edition of the Nigeria Pitch Awards will take place, hours after the match scheduled for the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium.“We are making all necessary arrangements and tying up every necessary end to ensure another successful Nigeria Pitch Awards ceremony,†President of the Awards, Shina Phillips, told thenff.com on Sunday.“We are indeed happy at the level the Awards have grown to and very much aware of the expectations of Nigerian Football stakeholders. For us, the Pitch Awards is a national project, something that must be sustained and alongside, the values of credibility and integrity that have taken us thus far.“We treasure the endorsement of the Nigeria Football Federation and the encouragement that we continue to receive from highly placed football administrators and other stakeholders of the game.†The Nigeria Pitch Awards is the only ceremony that honours players in all departments of the football field as well as almost all workers in football in a single night.Phillips revealed that the nominees for this year’s Awards will be announced during the week.At a ceremony held in Lagos in February to present certificates to some of last year’s winners, Phillips declared that from next year, the award statuette would be fully gold –plated.Share this:FacebookRedditTwitterPrintPinterestEmailWhatsAppSkypeLinkedInTumblrPocketTelegram
With two tournaments on each side of the country waiting, senior Steve Johnson has a busy week of tennis action ahead of him.Ace · Steve Johnson is the defending NCAA singles champion. Led by Johnson, the Trojans have won three straight NCAA championships. – Mannat Saini | Daily TrojanBefore Johnson joins the No. 1 USC men’s tennis team in Virginia for the ITA National Team Indoor Championships, he is taking a shot at the singles draw in the SAP Open that started Monday and goes through Feb. 19 in San Jose, Calif.Johnson’s fourth Association of Tennis Professionals competition will pit him against the likes of France’s Gael Monfils, American Andy Roddick and Canada’s Milos Raonic, who are seeded No. 1, 2 and 3, respectively.On Monday night, Johnson participated in an exhibition doubles match alongside Monfils against John McEnroe, the 52-year-old tennis legend, and fellow American Jack Sock. McEnroe and Sock came out on top 6-4, 6-4 in the friendly.Barring his advance to the latter stages of the San Jose tournament, Johnson will rejoin the undefeated Trojans in Virginia on Friday for the four-day ITA Indoors tournament.Johnson, the reigning NCAA singles champion, took the fall semester off to train as an amateur on the professional circuit.He has played in several tournaments in the spring. He is currently ranked No. 365 in ATP singles and No. 191 in ATP doubles.He most recently flew to Hawaii in late January to participate in the ATP Honolulu Challenger, where he lost in the first round 2-6, 4-6 to American Robby Ginepri.In collegiate play, the ITA National Player of the Year and Pac-10 Player of the Year in 2011 currently has a 44-match winning streak in singles play dating back to March 2010.He hopes to lead the Trojans to their fourth-consecutive NCAA team championship in April.
For the second time since the start of January, the Wisconsin men’s hockey team got close, but again close turned out to be not good enough.Tied at three with Minnesota Saturday night, the Badgers (2-16-4, 0-6-2-2 Big Ten) scored on the power play with just 1:13 remaining in regulation to take the lead. But that lead didn’t last, as the Gophers (12-9-3, 3-2-3-0) scored with only two seconds left to send the game to overtime.However, in the extra session Wisconsin responded and battled to a scoreless five minutes and then took down the Gophers 3-2 in the shootout to earn the extra point in the Big Ten standings.Although disappointed with the second last second goal of the month to force a game into overtime, UW goaltender Joel Rumpel saw consolation in at least a positive result.“Quite honestly, we’ll take whatever we can get,” Rumpel said. “We battled hard hard and we played a good game. It’s obviously heartbreaking with two seconds left to give one up like that. Honestly, I’ll take it.”Like Friday night, Wisconsin jumped out to the lead, and a rather quick one at that. Freshman Ryan Wagner tipped Jake Linhart’s shot past Minnesota netminder Adam Wilcox to give UW the lead only nine seconds into the game, tying a Badgers’ record for the fastest goal to start a game.But Minnesota answered with a goal 7:48 later in the first to tie the game, and then took its first lead 4:47 into the second period of play.Unlike Friday night though, Wisconsin had a response to the Minnesota offense. It took a little more than a period, but Grant Besse answered with the first of the Badgers’ two power-play goals 7:01 into the third period to bring the game even at two.The back and forth affair continued, and Minnesota came back immediately to take the lead when Christian Isackson buzzed a shot past Rumpel’s glove 30 seconds later.But Rumpel continued to make saves throughout the rest of the game to keep Wisconsin within catching distance, finishing with 42 saves total.“Without Rumps playing the way he did, we don’t have the tie and we don’t win in the shootout,” Eaves said. “He was a big picture of it tonight.”Wisconsin took advantage of Rumpel’s stellar play after defenseman Kevin Schulze drew a penalty with 3:12 remaining in the third period.That set the stage for freshman Cameron Hughes, who blasted a slap shot past Wilcox from the right circle to give UW what seemed to be the game-winning goal.Minnesota had another answer left, and it came from Seth Ambroz, who continued to haunt Wisconsin. Ambroz banged the rebound past Rumpel in the waning seconds for his 34th career goal, 11 of which have come against the Badgers.After the teams played the overtime without a goal, Wisconsin won the shootout 3-2 with the clincher from Corbin McGuire.Wisconsin earned two points, but again left a win on the table still in search of its first Big Ten win.“It seems right now our path to success, we’re really hitting some bumpy roads to get there,” Eaves said. “There are some hard lessons. I was really interested to see how our kids reacted in overtime after getting scored on…because against [Boston University] we were flat coming out for that overtime. But tonight we had more life. “We need to use this as a lily pad to keep growing.”
The Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) slapped life bans on former national coach Sunday Chidzambwa and its ex-chief executive Henrietta Rushwaya Friday after a 2009 match-fixing scam in Asia.“We say zero tolerance to match-fixing and illegal betting,” ZIFA chief executive Cuthbert Dube said in a statement.“The dark episode should now be consigned to history’s dump site and it is incumbent upon the entire family of football to jealously safeguard the beautiful game from its enemies.”Others hit with life bans include players Method Mwanjali, Thomas Sweswe, Edmore Sibanda, Danisa Phiri and Guthrie Zhokinyu, ex-ZIFA official Jonathan Musavengana, player agent Kudzai Shaba and former national team fitness trainer Thompson Matenda.A former coach of top-flight club Monomotapa, Rodwell Dhlakama, an official at the same club, Hope Chizuzu, and Robson Sharuko, the sports editor of Harare newspaper The Herald, were also barred for life.The bans follow an independent investigation headed by retired high court judge Ahmed Ebrahim. Rushwaya, who sent the national team to play unsanctioned friendlies in Thailand and Malaysia, and a Singapore-based betting syndicate allegedly fixed the results.Ebrahim said exact details of how the Zimbabwe teams were involved in the match-fixing may never be known, but claimed those behind the scam were driven by greed.“I don’t subscribe to the view that the root cause of it (match-fixing) is economic hardship,” the former judge stressed.“I believe the motivating factor is greed and making a quick buck.”ZIFA suspended three board members two years ago, including a former national team player and a former referee, over the scandal.
The National Sports Authority (NSA) will extend invitations to some of its retired officials to answer questions raised in the Auditor-General’s report with regards to the misuse of funds.Information gathered by GNA Sports reveals that the decision to invite the retired officials who served as Director Generals or in Acting capacity follows the duration of the accounts being queried.According to the AG’s report, the misappropriation of funds was captured in the period between 2012 and 2017.In view of this, the invitations will be extended to Messrs Worlanyo Agrah, Joe Kpenge, and Robert Oduro Sarfo, with Madam Alice Attipoe, who also played an acting role during her tenure.The GNA Sports, however, gathered the NSA was not happy with the conduct of the A-G since they were not given the opportunity to respond to the report.A deep throat source says they have not even seen a copy of the report. “We have not yet received the report but it is being discussed in the media. Under normal circumstances we are given the opportunity to read and respond before it is made public.“We are going to issue an official response to the report in due course,” the source told the GNA Sports.It would be noted that the AG’s report made a number of findings against the NSA among which includes failure to use monies meant for renovation for the organisation of the National Sports Festival (NSA).The NSA is expected to refund ¢180, 494 to the state.