MEXICO
Senior official quits
A senior official in charge of one of the government’s signature social programs on Monday resigned in a sharply worded letter that marked the latest bust-up within President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador’s administration. Javier May was the deputy welfare minister in charge of “Sembrando Vida,” an ambitious forestation program focused on Mexico’s poorer south intended to provide jobs and support agriculture. The scheme has also been exported to Central America in a bid to help contain migration from the region. “Once the welfare minister had unilaterally revoked the faculties required to run the said program, the conditions to remain in charge of it no longer existed,” May said in a resignation letter seen by reporters.
UNITED STATES
Autopsy set for inmate
A Mississippi prisoner died on Monday, becoming at least the 22nd inmate in just over two months to die in a state prison system that is under Department of Justice investigation because of violence and shoddy living conditions. A state Department of Corrections news release said “no foul play is suspected” in the death of Patricia Wilhite, 68, and an autopsy would be conducted. Wilhite was serving life without parole and had been in nearby Central Mississippi Correctional Facility since shortly after her 1998 murder conviction. She died at Baptist Medical Center in Jackson.
UNITED STATES
Academy fires ousted chief
The Recording Academy on Monday fired Deborah Dugan, its former president who called into question the integrity of the Grammy Awards nominations process. The academy said the decision was reached after “two exhaustive, costly independent investigations” about Dugan and her allegations. It said the reviews found “consistent management deficiencies and failures,” although no specifics were offered. Dugan had been on administrative leave since the middle of January, when she was ousted amid a complaint about her treatment of a long-time Recording Academy employee.
UNITED STATES
MSNBC host retires
Chris Matthews, the long-time MSNBC host, announced his retirement on Monday night during his daily talk show Hardball following accusations of inappropriate workplace conduct. He and the network reached the decision mutually, Matthews, 74, said on the air. He was accused of misbehavior by journalist Laura Bassett, who had written about the incidents in 2017 without naming him. “I’m retiring,” Matthews said. “After conversations with MSNBC, I decided tonight will be my last Hardball.” The decision to step down marked the end of a long career in politics and journalism. Matthews worked in print media for 15 years and was Washington bureau chief for the San Francisco Examiner.
BRAZIL
Eighteen killed as boat sinks
At least 18 people were killed when a riverboat sank in the Amazon Rainforest region, authorities said on Monday as survivors described fleeing the foundering boat in terror. The ferry was taking passengers up the Jari River, a tributary of the Amazon, when it suddenly began to tip over on Saturday at about dawn. Authorities late on Monday said that beyond the 18 fatalities, they had rescued 46 survivors and 30 others were still missing — meaning there were far more people on board than initially believed.
A new online voting system aimed at boosting turnout among the Philippines’ millions of overseas workers ahead of Monday’s mid-term elections has been marked by confusion and fears of disenfranchisement. Thousands of overseas Filipino workers have already cast their ballots in the race dominated by a bitter feud between President Ferdinand Marcos Jr and his impeached vice president, Sara Duterte. While official turnout figures are not yet publicly available, data from the Philippine Commission on Elections (COMELEC) showed that at least 134,000 of the 1.22 million registered overseas voters have signed up for the new online system, which opened on April 13. However,
EUROPEAN FUTURE? Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama says only he could secure EU membership, but challenges remain in dealing with corruption and a brain drain Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama seeks to win an unprecedented fourth term, pledging to finally take the country into the EU and turn it into a hot tourist destination with some help from the Trump family. The artist-turned-politician has been pitching Albania as a trendy coastal destination, which has helped to drive up tourism arrivals to a record 11 million last year. US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, also joined in the rush, pledging to invest US$1.4 billion to turn a largely deserted island into a luxurious getaway. Rama is expected to win another term after yesterday’s vote. The vote would
ALLIES: Calling Putin his ‘old friend,’ Xi said Beijing stood alongside Russia ‘in the face of the international counter-current of unilateralism and hegemonic bullying’ Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday was in Moscow for a state visit ahead of the Kremlin’s grand Victory Day celebrations, as Ukraine accused Russia’s army of launching air strikes just hours into a supposed truce. More than 20 foreign leaders were in Russia to attend a vast military parade today marking 80 years since the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II, taking place three years into Russia’s offensive in Ukraine. Putin ordered troops into Ukraine in February 2022 and has marshaled the memory of Soviet victory against Nazi Germany to justify his campaign and rally society behind the offensive,
FRAUD ALLEGED: The leader of an opposition alliance made allegations of electoral irregularities and called for a protest in Tirana as European leaders are to meet Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama’s Socialist Party scored a large victory in parliamentary elections, securing him his fourth term, official results showed late on Tuesday. The Socialist Party won 52.1 percent of the vote on Sunday compared with 34.2 percent for an alliance of opposition parties led by his main rival Sali Berisha, according to results released by the Albanian Central Election Commission. Diaspora votes have yet to be counted, but according to initial results, Rama was also leading there. According to projections, the Socialist Party could have more lawmakers than in 2021 elections. At the time, it won 74 seats in the
RSS