A Philippine man, Ruben Enaje, who has been nailed to a cross every Easter for the past 32 years in a Good Friday re-enactment of Jesus Christs crucifixion says he no longer feels any pain from his wounds.

Enaje, 58, again portrayed Christ on Friday in the traditional religious rite in Cutud village, about 76 km (47 miles) from the capital Manila.

In the past, I went home injured and limping, but this year I feel so great, Enaje said after the ritual held under a sweltering sun.

He said he believed his strong Catholic faith helped him avoid pain.

I feel like he is telling me go ahead, keep it up, he said, referring to God.

Easter is a festival marking the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ.

About 80 percent of the 105 million people in the Philippines, a former Spanish colony, are Catholic.

Enaje said he felt strong enough to perform in two or three more crucifixions, until he turns 60.

Enaje was among three devotees nailed to wooden crosses in the village on Friday, including a woman taking part for the seventh time.

Actors wearing Roman soldier costumes attached the devotees to crosses by hammering two-inch nails soaked in alcohol through their hands and feet and hoisted them up in a field packed with domestic and foreign tourists.

The Catholic Church in the Philippines tolerates the ritual but says it does not support such gory displays of devotion, describing them as a misinterpretation of faith.

Many Catholics in the Philippines perform religious acts of penance during the Holy Week at Easter as a form of worship and supplication.

Some believe penance cleanses sins, cures illnesses and even leads to wishes coming true.

Source: NAN

A judge in Los Angeles, California, United States has ordered coffees globally known retailer Starbucks Corp and other coffee sellers to put a cancer warning on coffee sold in the state.

A little-known not-for-profit group sued some 90 coffee retailers, including Starbucks, on grounds they were violating a California law requiring companies to warn consumers of chemicals in their products that could cause cancer.

One of those chemicals is acrylamide, a byproduct of roasting coffee beans that is present in high levels in brewed coffee.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Elihu Berle said in a decision dated Wednesday that Starbucks and other companies had failed to show there was no significant risk from a carcinogen produced in the coffee roasting process, court documents showed.

Starbucks and other defendants have until April 10 to file objections to the decision.

Starbucks declined to comment, referring reporters to a statement by the National Coffee Association (NCA) that said the industry was considering an appeal and further legal actions.

Cancer warning labels on coffee would be misleading. The U.S. governments own Dietary Guidelines state that coffee can be part of a healthy lifestyle, the NCA statement said.

In his decision, Berle said: Defendants failed to satisfy their burden of proving by a preponderance of evidence that consumption of coffee confers a benefit to human health.

Officials from Dunkin Donuts, McDonalds Corp , Peets and other big coffee sellers did not immediately respond to requests for comment, Reuters reported.

The lawsuit was filed in 2010 by the Council for Education and Research on Toxics (CERT). It calls for fines as large as $2,500 per person for every exposure to the chemical since 2002 at the defendants shops in California.

Any civil penalties, which will be decided in a third phase of the trial, could be huge in California, which has a population of nearly 40 million.

CERTs lawyer Raphael Metzger did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Starbucks lost the first phase of the trial in which it failed to show the level of acrylamide in coffee was below that which would pose a significant risk of cancer. In the second phase of the trial, defendants failed to prove there was an acceptable alternative risk level for the carcinogen, court documents showed.

Several defendants in the case settled before Wednesdays decision, agreeing to post signage about the cancer-linked chemical and pay millions in fines, according to published reports.

Source: NAN

Following a viral video that patrayed Blue Band as unsafe, the Consumer Protection Council (CPC) says it has opened an inquiry into aspects of Blue Band products.

It stated that the inquiry would determine product safety and clarify some aspects of the manufacturers statements on Blue Band Spread for Bread.

The CPC Director General, Mr Babatunde Irukera, said this in a statement issued by the organisation on Sunday in Abuja,

He said that the purpose of the inquiry was to ensure that the products, differentiated or otherwise, were safe and subjected to proper processes and in-trade handling consistent with the different properties and characteristics of each product.

This is in reaction to a short demonstration video on social media showing how Blue Band Spread for Bread reacts under certain heat conditions.

He said that the video or the impression it conveyed had become the subject of anxiety and intense controversy.

It suggests that the product, which the narrator considers a functional equivalent of Blue Band Original, is unsafe because when subjected to high temperature in boiling water, it did not melt or dissolve.

Available scientific information confirms that though butter, margarine and spread appear similar and share similar components, in characteristics and uses, they are different products available to consumers.

Butter and margarine share a particular similar characteristic, low resistance to heat, and as such both are likely to melt when subjected to certain levels of heat.

Irukera, however, said that spreads had varying heat resistance, depending on intended use and production process.

He said that as a result, it could not be necessarily unsafe that a spread does not melt under similar heat conditions as butter or margarine.

He said spreads were produced in part by adding emulsifiers which were additives used in stabilizing and binding processed foods.

They are not inherently unsafe or uncommon. The specific emulsifying agent and amount used largely depends on many factors including shelf life, storage, handling and climatic conditions in order to prevent microbial activity.

Irukera said that the manufacturer of the product had made a statement seeking to address public concern by differentiating its products and explaining the purposes of the two different products.

He also said that the organisation would continue to collaborate with the National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) regarding applicable safety standards of butter and margarine.

He added that consumption of butter, margarine or spreads generally are not unsafe.

Source: NAN

The Senate has developed and is set to initiate two draft bills for legislation to tackle the menace of drug abuse in the country, especially among youth.

The bills are coming as the outcome of the roundtable convened by the President of the Senate, Dr Abubakar Bukola Saraki, in December 2017 in Kano on the rising spate of drug abuse in the country,

The proposed bills are: National Drug Control Bill and National Mental Health Bill.

A statement by the Media Office of the President of the Senate said the Drug Control Bill seeks to clarifies the mandate and strengthen the capacity of National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration Control (NAFDAC) and other relevant law enforcement and regulatory bodies to eradicate the illicit production, and trafficking of controlled substances.

It also seeks to establish a central mechanism to facilitate collaboration among law enforcement, regulatory and public health authorities in line with the National Drug Control Policy.

The Bill further focuses on proactive law enforcement and regulatory measures towards the eradication of the illicit importation, production and trafficking of controlled substances.

It also criminalizes the diversion, distribution or otherwise dispensing of controlled substances without a prescription or license

In recognition of the fact that psychosocial issues are the key drivers for the abuse of psychoactive substance, the mental health Bill was crafted to ensure that standard facilities are available in every state to provide mental health and substance abuse services.

The proposed law guarantees the protection of the rights of people with mental illness and stipulates that mental health practitioners and facilities no longer engage in practices that are harmful to people with mental health and substance use disorders.

In recognizing the low number of mental health practitioners in the country with the ratio of practitioners at one psychiatrist to 1.6 million people, the draft law makes provision for quality mental health and substance abuse services available for women and adolescents, who are an underserved segment of the population.

Commenting on the draft bills, Saraki said a provision for stiffer sanctions would be made in the bills as proactive mechanism in the prevention of drug trafficking and abuse.

He pledged the commitment of the Senate in the speedy passage of the bills to give a legal framework to help mitigate drug abuse in the country.

Source: NAN

Popular Sierra Leonean traditional artist Ahmed Janka Nabay has died in his home in northern Sierra Leonean district of Kambia, according to his band colleague Pa Fullah.

Janka moved to the US in 2003 and returned home last year.

Nabay, known as the King of Bubu Music, played the traditional music of the Temne people of Sierra Leone, who dominate the northern part of the country.

The music, which has its roots in the Sierra Leonean Muslim tradition, is played with the traditional bamboo flutes.

Nabayy, 54, who died on Monday, was credited for being the first musician to record this version of music by reworking the bamboo flutes and metal pipes with electronic instrumentation, hence the tag, King of Bubu Music.

According to , The dreadlocked artist was best known internationally, especially in the United States, where he relocated in 2003 and returned only in 2017.

Nabay and his Bubu Gang band made the Bubu music popular in Brooklyn and Manhattan in the US.

Fans have taken to twitter to mourn the musician.

According to Karen Alonzo, janka nabay was so passionate about bringing the bubu sound of sierra leone to the world. it was such an honor to work with him i was new to the music industry as a whole (like 2010) and he was the nicest human being ever. my heart is so sad

Ruby B. Johnson @Ruby_B_Johnson said: Sierra Leone has lost a legend but his legacy lives on. RIP Ahmed Janka Nabay, King of Bubu music. Such an amazing man to have met and be around.

Source: NAN

Nelson Mandela ducked out of an arranged marriage when he was a student, then went on to wed three times.

His first two marriages collapsed under the strain of politics, but the third time around he found enduring happiness with the widow of Mozambican president Samora Machel.

In sharp contrast to Graca Machel and his feisty second wife Winnie, Mandelas first wife was a demure country girl who kept well away from politics.

Like him, Evelyn Wase hailed from the rural Transkei and had come to Johannesburg in the early 1940s to carve out a living in the big city.

She was the cousin of African National Congress (ANC) stalwart Walter Sisulu and met Mandela in Sisulus home in Soweto, southwest of Johannesburg, in 1944.

They married months later, in the same year that Mandela, Sisulu and Oliver Tambo formed the ANCs Youth League and politics of struggle against white minority rule came to consume Mandelas life.

Descriptions of their first years tell of Evelyn as the happy housewife with Mandela bathing their three babies and helping with the cooking when his work at his law practice and political meetings were done.

But by 1954, Evelyn had buried herself in religion, like her husband had in politics, and resented his absences.

When Mandela was arrested for treason the first time, he came home on bail to find Evelyn had gone, leaving behind their two youngest children.

She returned to the Transkei, ran a shop and remarried in her 70s.

Winnie who died aged 81 on Monday came into Mandelas life at the start of a second treason trial, which would see him jailed for 27 years, and they married in June 1958.

She too came from the country, but took to the city, and once she met Mandela, also dove into politics.

Soon after their wedding, she was arrested for an incendiary speech, leading Mandela to remark proudly and prophetically I think I married trouble.

The couple had two daughters before the prison doors slammed behind Mandela in 1964. In the coming years, Winnie would be in and out of jail as the police hounded her in a bid to demoralise him.

In 1969, she was held in solitary confinement for 13 months on terrorism charges and in 1973 endured another six months in jail, but when the 1976 student riot revolt broke out in Soweto, Winnie was unbowed, urging crowds to fight to the bitter end.

The police saw her as a mastermind of the uprising. She was locked up for five months, then banished to the desolate town of Brandfort for seven years.

When she returned to Soweto, the firebrand militant-martyr became a liability for Mandela and the anti-apartheid movement.

In 1986, at a time when suspected traitors were being burned alive in the volatile townships, Winnie declared that South African blacks would be freed with our matchboxes.

She surrounded herself with a band of thugs christened the Mandela United Football Club who murdered a young activist called Stompie Sepei.

Her bond with Mandela had endured through letters and visits to prison and when he was released in 1990 Winnie was there holding his hand, but in private she had a young lover.

Mandela stood by her when she was convicted for kidnapping Sepei and only in 1992 announced their separation.

Winnies six-year sentence was suspended on appeal and in 1994 she was appointed a deputy minister in his government, but was later sacked for insubordination.

By the mid-90s, Mandela was courting Graca Machel a woman 27 years younger than him who studied in Lisbon before she became a freedom fighter for Samora Machels Frelimo movement, and eventually Machels education minister and wife.

Gracas first contact with Mandela came in 1986 when her husband died in an air crash that many believe was orchestrated by the apartheid regime, and he wrote to her from prison.

When they met in Mozambique in 1990, Machel was still in mourning. But two years later Mandela became the godfather of her stepchildren and in 1996 they were spotted at President Robert Mugabes wedding.

Mandela was smitten and let the press in on their love story, telling reporters: Late in life, I am blooming like a flower because of the love and support she has given me.

On July 18, 1998 Mandelas 80th birthday Machel broke her vow that she would not marry another president.

While clearly a proud husband, Mandela joked that sometimes he found it hard to keep pace with the younger woman.

She is busier than I am. We meet for lunch, go off and then only see each other again for supper. I wish I had married a wife who was less busy, he told students in 2007.

Source:

Source: NAN

Mark Zuckerberg the founder of Facebook should quit from the Facebook board said investor Scott Stringer.

Stringer oversees New York Citys pension fund investments with an almost 1 billion dollars stake in the social media platform.

The financial officer said an independent chairman for the board was needed to ensure privacy safeguards after revelations that data was harvested from more than 50 million Facebook accounts by Cambridge Analytica.

Earlier, the Facebook CEO following criticism from Apples Tim Cook.

Mark Zuckerberg said that Cooks suggestion that his company did not care about users was extremely glib.

Cook criticized Facebook last week in the aftermath of the, saying it was an invasion of privacy to traffic the personal data of users.

When asked what he would do if he were Zuckerberg, Cook said he wouldnt be in that situation.

Source: NAN

Bayern Munich fought back with a deflected own goal and a late header from Thiago to claim a 2-1 win at Sevilla in an exciting Champions League quarter-final, first leg clash on Tuesday.

Pablo Sarabia had put Sevilla ahead in the 32nd minute when he got the better of Juan Bernat to control Sergio Escuderos cross and fire home at the back post.

However, five minutes later Bayern levelled when Sevillas Jesus Navas deflected Franck Riberys cross past home goalkeeper David Soria at the near post.

With Sevilla tiring, five-time European champions Bayern took advantage and Thiago headed the winner with the help of a deflection off Escudero in the 68th minute.

Vincenzo Montellas Sevilla were unlucky to go in level at the break, having had the better of the first half and demonstrating the spirit that saw them knock out Manchester United in the last 16.

Despite the absence of suspended playmaker Ever Banega, the Andalusians defied their underdog label and might have been awarded a penalty when Joaquin Correa was felled by Jerome Boateng.

The referee however booked him for diving.

Sarabia should then have put the hosts ahead but fired just wide after the ball dropped perfectly for him in front of goal.

The Spanish attacking midfielder made amends with the opening goal before Navass own goal levelled the scores.

With Bayerns usual left-back David Alaba injured, Bernat was given a torrid time by Sarabia who he was booked for fouling shortly after the opener before being withdrawn at halftime.

The hosts nearly scored just after the break but Javi Martinez made a superb tackle on Franco Vazquez in the area.

After that Sevilla ran out of steam and Soria had to make a fine save to deny Martinez before Thiago grabbed the winner.

Having let the lead slip, Sevilla never looked like pulling level and Bayerns Robert Lewandowski fired narrowly wide as the visitors looked for a third.

The visitors were in control in what seemed like Sevillas undoing in the 2-2 draw with Barcelona in La Liga on Saturday.

Sevilla now need an unlikely triumph against the experienced Jupp Heynckes side in Munich in next Wednesdays second leg to reach the Champions League semi-finals for the first time

Source: NAN

By scoring twice against Juventus on Tuesday, Real Madrids Cristiano Ronaldo becomes the first to score in ten UEFA Champions League games in a row.

And he keeps extending his records for club and country, according to UEFA log book.

2 Ral Gonzlez 107
3 Lionel Messi 103 (next non-European is Sergio Agero on 53)
4 Klaas-Jan Huntelaar 91
5 Andriy Shevchenko 90
6 Zlatan Ibrahimovi 87
7 Filippo Inzaghi 86
8 Margrt Lra Vidarsdttir 84
9 Thierry Henry 81
10 Ricardinho (futsal) 79

Source: NAN

Cristiano Ronaldo has described his memorable bicycle-kick goal in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-final tie between Juventus and Real Madrid, as probably the best of his career.

Ronaldo, who scored the first goal on the third minute was applauded by even the Juventus supporters after the spectacular s second goal. Madrid won 3-0.

The Portugal international spoke to Realmadrid TV: It was a very good team performance. Obviously people are talking about the second goal, it was amazing, probably the best of my career. The team looked great, I think we played very well and were one step closer to the semi-final.

Dream goal
I once scored one with the national team which hit the post and went in, but the referee didnt see it. This was a bit better, it was spectacular. I jumped very high and its a goal that will live long in the memory. Its probably my best goal. As many people have said, Ive been looking to do it for a while, but it depends on the circumstances of the game. It just came to me to give it a go, you always have to try it. I tried it today and it came off.

Applause
It was one of the most poignant moments of the night. To receive applause from a stadium like this, which has been graced by great players, is a unique experience. Im really happy. When I was a kid, I liked Juventus and the fact that their fans have clapped me will stay with me and is a great memory. To all of the Italians in the stadium I just want to say Grazie.

Message for the fans
To those whove travelled to Turin, thank you for your support and to those back in Madrid, Id ask them to continue to back the team and tell them that were going to keep going right until the end

Source: NAN