Brazilian judge denies ex-president Lula privileges in prison
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a brazilian judge on tuesday denied former president luiz inacio lula da silva the right to receive a visit from nine regional governors and other politicians in the prison where he is staying in the southern city of curitiba the newspaper folha de sao paulo reported1 judge carolina lebbos pointed to an earlier order from judge sergio moro who issued an arrest warrant for the popular politician and said he could have no prison privileges other than a television set in his cell1 the prison regime allows visits only on wednesdays1 lula arrived at the prison on saturday capping two days of drama over whether or not he would submit to the arrest warrant1 the 72-year-old is to serve a 12-year sentence following his conviction on corruption charges last year1 lulas workers party meanwhile said he remained its candidate in the october 7 presidential elections and announced plans to move its leadership to curitiba1 lulas party comrade dilma rousseff who succeeded him as president from 2011 to 2016 said the party would mobilize lulas supporters to press for his freedom1 there is no plan b for the elections we maintain lulas candidacy rousseff said during a visit to the spanish capital madrid1 hundreds of people were camping outside the prison tuesday in a show of support for lula1 supporters regard the judicial proceedings as a plot to take lula out of the presidential race which he had been expected to easily win while opponents say jailing him boosted brazils fight against impunity.dpanan1

New compound that repairs cancer cells found
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biologists from st. petersburg have created a compound that causescancer cells to repair their dna or self-destruct after fatal genome damage occurs1 the efficacy of the new compound is much higher than that of the most powerful drugs developed in the u.s. and europe tass reported quoting alexander garabagiu professor of st. petersburg state technological institute.1 it could be a new step toward more effective and safer chemotherapy1 a large number of cancerous tumours are caused by the breakdown of the p53 gene which is responsible for dna repairand self-destruction in case of fatal genome damage1 this is often caused by the increased activity of a protein called mdm2 which neutralises the molecules of p531 scientists have been trying to create or find a molecule that will neutralise the protein and help cells fight against small mutations and larger breakdowns in dna.1 during their experiments the compound created by russian researchers was able to kill about 40 per cent of cancer cells.1

Pope puts caring for migrants, opposing abortion on equal footing
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some catholics consider it a secondary issue compared to the grave bioethical questions1 caring for migrants and the poor is as holy a pursuit as opposing abortion pope francis declared in a major document issued by the vatican on monday morning1 pope francis again cast himself and the mission of the roman catholic church in a more progressive light1 the other harmful ideological error is found in those who find suspect the social engagement of others seeing it as superficial worldly secular materialist communist or populist pope francis wrote in an apostolic exhortation on the subject of holiness1 our defense of the innocent unborn for example needs to be clear firm and passionate. equally sacred however are the lives of the poor those already born the destitute the abandoned1 the popes vision of holiness explicitly highlights migrants whose plight he has sought to elevate to global attention perhaps more than any other issue1 we often hear it said that with respect to relativism and the flaws of our present world the situation of migrants for example is a lesser issue he said1 pushing back against conservative critics within the church who argue that the 81-year-old popes focus on social issues has led him to lose sight of the true doctrine1 that a politician looking for votes might say such a thing is understandable but not a christian he continued adding that welcoming the stranger at the door was fundamental to the faith. this is not a notion invented by some pope or a momentary fad1 the popes 103-page document an apostolic exhortation titled gaudete et exsultate or rejoice and be glad is less authoritative than a papal encyclical but is nevertheless an important teaching pronouncement1 at its outset francis makes clear that it is not meant to be a treatise on holiness but to re-propose the call to holiness in a practical way for our own time1 as he put it elsewhere in the document seeing and acting with mercy that is holiness1 that statement is a distilled expression of francis vision of the church which is consistent with a view articulated by cardinal joseph l. bernardin the archbishop of chicago who died in 1996 and who called for a consistent ethic of life that1 read more athttpswww.nytimes.com20180409worldeuropepope-francis-migrants-abortion.html1

Mayor shot dead in Burkina Faso
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gunmen shot and killed the mayor of koutougou commune in burkina fasos northern province of soum on sunday evening local media reported on monday.1 the attackers fled the scene after killing hamidou koundaba outside his home reports said1 the president of burkina faso roch kabore condemned the cowardly and despicable act and offered his condolences to the family of the deceased. xinhuanan1

Catholic priest shot dead as unrest continues in Congo
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source63 a catholic priest has been found dead in the congo days after1 father etienne sengiyumvam 28 was found shot in the head hours after he had celebrated a wedding with his parishioners the head of his diocese said1 father etienne sengiyumva was killed sunday by the mai mai nyatura [militia] in kyahemba where he had just celebrated a mass including a baptism and a wedding father gonzague nzabanita head of the goma diocese where the incident occurred said according to1 the mai mai nyatura are an armed group operating in north kivu in eastern dr congo1 the congo has been torn apart by more than 20 years of war exacerbated by ethnic conflicts and land disputes in a bid to control the countrys rich mineral reserves1 last week parish priest of saint paul of karambi and are demanding 500000 for his release1 three other priests assumptionist fathers jean-pierre ndulani edmond kisughi and anselme wasukundi were abduced on october 19 2012 and two more jean-pierre akilimali and charles kipasa on july 17 2017. none of them has been heard from since1

NDLEA arrests 25, seizes 122kg of banned drugs
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by ibrahim kado1 the national drugs law enforcement agency ndlea has arrested 25 suspects and seized 122.78kg of banned drugs in gombe since january1 the state commandant of the ndlea mr aliyu adole made the disclosure in an interview with the news agency of nigeria nan in gombe on monday1 he said that the agency convicted 20 of the suspects and sentenced them to various prison terms while five were still in custody1 within this period we removed 122.78kg drugs from circulation1 in march alone we recovered 92.39kg compared with february when we had 543g he said1 adole called on all stakeholders to join in the fight against drug abuse1 he also called on parents and guardians to advise their children and wards to desist from forming gangs and joining thugs which he said encouraged drug abuse1 i am advising you to talk to your children. if you do not talk to them somebody outside the family will talk to them and it will be dangerous1 politicians have their children in high institutions of learning if you allow your children to follow bad politicians you will be the losers he said nan1

Buhari urges APC allow party execs contest at convention
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this the president said would give credence to the right to freedom of association guaranteed by the amended 1999 constitution1 president muhammadu buhari has asked the all progressives congress apc leadership to consider granting waivers to party executives at all levels that may want to contest in its planned elective convention1 buhari had at another nec meeting on march 27 opposed the one-year tenure extension decision beginning from june saying it was illegal and unconstitutional1 the news agency of nigeria nan recalls that the apc nec at its meeting of february 27 approved the extension of the tenure of the chief john odigie-oyegun-led national working committee and the partys other executives by one year starting from june1 he had explained that the decision was causing acrimony within the party with some members not comfortable with the matter dragging the party to court1 this consequently led the partys nwc to constitute a 10-member technical committee to advise its leadership on the issue and the way forward1 i also believe that the current executives should be free to run for elective position in the party if they so wish as permitted by our party constitution1 however considering the provision of article 30 section 1 and subsection 3 of our party constitution which requires any serving officer desirous seeking re-election to resign from office 30 days before the election1 im not sure of the practicality of the present serving officers ability to meet this condition1 accordingly the party may consider granting waivers to party executives at all levels so that they are not disenfranchised in participating in the elections provided this does not violate our rights or our rules he said1 he added that necessary waivers should also be extended to executives at the ward level whose tenures may have elapsed and to any other members wishing to contest1 the president while speaking at the partys national executive committee nec meeting on monday in abuja said this was necessary to forestall disenfranchising some executives1 he therefore directed the partys leadership to issue a statement on the suggested waivers to make room for more participation saying that the must not be ignorant of the task ahead of it1 he thanked members of the technical committee for a job well done within a limited time frame1 it shows the essence of commitment and the ideals of our party with a view to consolidating the party to continue to provide good governance in the overall interest of nigerians buhari said1 he added that in the general interest of the party and based on the technical committee report it is important to focus on how to move the party forward by avoiding actions that were detrimental to its interest1 he said that considering that politics was a game of numbers the party must not be a house divided against itself and must try to appreciate and accommodate differences as far as the law permits1 he maintained that having seen the committees report his position was to ensure that the party towed the part of unity legality cohesion and not that of division1 he stressed that the party must strengthen its internal democracy by organising congresses and convention where election of national executive committee members would be held1 this the president said would automatically end the cases filed by members seeking orders of court compiling the party to hold congresses1 just like our party symbols the broom we stand by strength in unity. let us try to be united in party victory is sure by the grace of god1 he added that the partys members must continue to sanitise nigerias political environment1 he expressed optimism members would conduct themselves without rancor and promote the highest interest of the party and the nation1

Buhari announces his intention to contest in 2019 Elections
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buhari15 2019 elections6 buhari announces intention to run in 20191 nasir elrufai1

Buhari should be ruthless with looters Oshiomole
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i think the promise of democracy is that good or bad the people have the right to know and that is the starting point and particularly important1 the former governor of edo mr adams oshiomhole has called on president muhammadu buhari-led federal government to adopt a ruthless measure against alleged looters of the nations treasury1 the former governor noted that it was the right of nigerians to know the level of rot that transpired in former president goodluck jonathans government1 i think that if other nigerians dont understand the power of transparency the right to know the media should uphold that right and defend it1 what was stolen was not from private purse the house that was destroyed was not a private residence1 we are talking of resources which if it is distributed on basis of equality divide by 180 million people you will be a lot richer1 i think my only complaint is that the federal government should be more ruthless because there are lot of people who should be in court who are not there1 when i was still in the office and i said the kind of money they stole was huge in dollars they paid hired writers to ask how i knew1 i have interacted with power vertically and horizontally. i know that we cannot be lamenting today without understanding that the treasury was burgled yesterday1 oshiomhole who disclosed this on sunday in benin described as mindless the stealing by the then peoples democratic party pdp led federal government1 i think the people have the right to know and if any of them think that what has being said is not true they can go to court1 all of them who are involved and those who they are looking for they should put everything in public domain and that is the promise of democracy and it is about you1 just by virtue of being in a winning party they helped themselves so much1 one of the acting chairmen of pdp ahmed makarfi i used to respect him so much i heard him saying that the reason they did not indict diezani was that the money missing and everything that was done goodluck approved1 if president approved the money should it be stolen and not go into the federation account or used for the intended purpose1 jonathan may have immunity against prosecution but he doesnt have power to appropriate what the national assembly have not done1 right now they are now saying the national assembly should not approve the 1 billion the federal government is going to spend on security1 this is a party that spent well above that without going to the national assembly at all1

Trump blames Obama, Russia, Iran for Syrian chemical attack
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donald j. trump @realdonaldtrump2 in other tweets trump blamed russian president vladimir putin as well as iran for backing animal assad and allowing the disaster in syria to continue1 in a series of tweets on his twitter handle @realdonaldtrump he said that if former president obama had taken the right action the ongoing disaster in syria would have ended a long time ago1 if president obama had crossed his stated red line in the sand the syrian disaster would have ended long ago animal assad would have been history1 u.s. president donald trump has blamed former president barack obama for the continued crisis in syria and the middle east1 this is even as he has blasted russia and iran for backing syrian president bashar al-assad whom he refers to as an animal1 he wrote many dead including women and children in mindless chemical attack in syria1 area of atrocity is in lockdown and encircled by syrian army making it completely inaccessible to outside world1 president putin russia and iran are responsible for backing animal assad. big price to pay1 open area immediately for medical help and verification. another humanitarian disaster for no reason whatsoever. sick1 many dead including women and children in mindless chemical attack in syria. area of atrocity is in lockdown and encircled by syrian army making it completely inaccessible to outside world. president putin russia and iran are responsible for backing animal assad. big price1

NNPC says financial statemnet up to date
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however the important factor was not to look at the past. we saw an opportunity to challenge the problem and resolved to clear the arrears in the shortest possible time he said1 the nigerian national petroleum corporation nnpc said on sunday that it had updated its outstanding audit of the group financial statements from 2011 to 20161 he quoted mr isiaka abdulrazaq chief financial officergroup executive director finance and accounts nnpc as saying that the presentation of the audited financial statements would help foster better relationship between nnpc and stakeholders1 he said that the presentation would further promote transparency and accountability in the corporation1 ughamadu said that the management inherited a total of 65 unaudited financial statements for nnpc group corporate and its subsidiaries covering 2011 20141 there were undoubtedly challenges that led to the backlog which may have been beyond the control of the previous managements1 nnpc spokesman mr ndu ughamadu said in a statement in abuja that the audited backlog had since been approved by the board of the corporation in line with the laws governing its operations1 he said the corporation management constituted a project steering committee which met weekly with the auditors and relevant stakeholders to identify and isolate key challenges and give them priority attention1 with this approach management achieved the first step of concluding the audit of the 2011 2012 financial positions and presented same to the board in 20161 in recognition of that modest achievement the nnpc board further mandated management to clear the remaining outstanding reports for theperiod 2013 20161 the result today is the delivery and board approval of the audited group financial statements as at dec. 31 2016 he said1 ughamadu said that the managing director nigerian pipeline and storage company mr luke anele would embark on a comprehensive audit of the over 5000 kilometre petroleum products and crude oil pipelines under its watch1 he said the project which had already been approved by the nnpc management would be executed by the national engineering and technical company an upstream subsidiary of the nnpc1

Egyptian Nufal begins bike trip to Russia World Cup
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reuters9 a 24 year-old egyptian mohamed ibn nufal nufal has set off from cairos tahrir square for the world cup in russia on a bicycle1 after about 5000 km 3000 miles and 65 days on the road nufal hopes to reach moscow to see egypt make its first appearance in the world cup for 28 years1 nufal plans to get there via jordan bulgaria romania moldova and ukraine. he will fly over syria due to the civil war there and will also give iraq a miss for security reasons1 on his bike nufal has packed spare parts an extra phone batteries and camping gear. in addition to his tent nufal will put up in hostels where he can find them as well as relying on the kindness of strangers for a bed for the night1 it is about the road more than the arrival he told reuters television. if it were just about the world cup i would take a plane. it is a great chance for me to see new things1 a group of cyclists and friends escorted nufal as he started his trip on saturday and he hopes many more will offer him help along the way1 after clinching its world cup spot in october egypt will compete on footballs ultimate stage for the first time since 19901

Just In: Buhari leaves for London tomorrow
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president muhammadu buhari will leave abuja tomorrow for an official visit to britain ahead of the opening of the commonwealth heads of government meetings on 18 april1 malam garba shehu senior special assistant on media said president buhari will hold discussions on nigeria british relations with prime minister mrs theresa may1 the president will also meet the chief executive officer of royal dutch plc mr. ben van beurden in connection with shell and other partners plan to invest 15b in nigerias oil industry1 these investment ventures will lay the foundation for the next 20 years in production and domestic gas supply bringing with it all the attendant benefits both to the economy and the wider society1 president buhari during the visit is due to renew discussions with the archbishop of canterbury the most rev. and rt. hon. justin welby a good friend of the president on inter-religious harmony in nigeria and world-wide1 further meetings have also been scheduled for the president to see some prominent british and nigerians residing in britain1 the commonwealth heads of government meetings will begin on 18april and end20thapril 20181 president buhari on sunday returned from daura his home town after a three-day visit. during the time he also paid a condolence visit to the family of the senator mustapha bukar who died last week1

Danish husband of murdered Alizee detained in Panti
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danish husband of murdered alizee detained in panti1 alizee1

Mustapha Bukar: Senators pay condolence visit to Buhari
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president muhammadu buhari saturday in daura thanked senators for their support and solidarity with the people of katsina north senatorial district following the death of senator mustapha bukar who represented the zone1 receiving a delegation led by senator abdullahi adamu in his country home the president commended the legislators for identifying with the government and people of katsina state the daura emirate council and the bukar family in their period of grief1 the president said it was noteworthy that senator bukars colleagues have paid glowing tribute to him as a detribalized leader whose contributions may not beeasily forgotten1 the president prayed that almighty allah will grant the soul of the departed late madaki of daura eternal rest and continue to comfort all who mourn1 the senators who paid a condolence visit to the president were sen. ovie omo-agege sen. ali ndume sen. babajide omoworaresen. adamu abubakar sen. yusuf yusuf sen.hassan adamu sen. abu ibrahim and sen. umaru kurfi1

Japanese dad cages son for over 20 years
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a japanese dad who allegedly confined his mentally ill son in a small cage for more than two decades was arrested on saturday in western japan police and news reports said1 police arrested 73-year-old yoshitane yamasaki on suspicion of imprisoning his son now aged 42 at their house in the city of sanda in hyogo prefecture a local police spokesman told afp1 further details of the case were not available as the investigation is still underway the spokesman said1 according to local media reports the son was forced to live inside a wooden cage one metre 3.3 feet high and 1.8 metre wide built in a prefabricated hut next to the main house1 the suspect has reportedly admitted the allegations1 i made my son live in a cage for more than 20 years because he has mental problems and acted up the father earlier told city officials according to public broadcaster nhk1 the father said he fed his son and let him bathe every other day1 the son whose name has been withheld is in a stable condition but is suffering from a bent back nhk said adding that he was sent to a welfare facility1

Mavrodis death: MMM officially closes shop
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sergey mavrodis broadmindedness scale is unprecedented. therefore any attempts to continue the system operation without him are bound to fail1 participants in the worlds most popular ponzi scheme mavrodi mundial moneybox mmm are counting their losses as administrators of the programme have officially shut down operations worldwide following the death of its founder sergey mavrodi1 the administrators of the site had in a statement issued on april 6 2018 reminded participants of an earlier warning on the risk associated with the scheme1 the statement reads dear participants after much deliberation we have made the conclusion that continuing the system operation without our leader and ideological inspirer is impossible and makes no sense1 we all carried out the tasks he assigned to us since we had no doubt in his genius and rightness of the path he had chosen1 we are firmly aware of the fact that none of us has a full view of his conceptions profoundness and sequence of all the actions to achieve a final goal declared in the mmms ideology1 it would be recalled that mavrodi died on march 26 after a heart attack1 we respect him immeasurably and cannot afford to allow that our unskilled actions may cause profanation of his concepts1 in view of the above with deep sadness we have to announce the ultimate and irreversible mmm closure1 we also remind as a matter of form that all initially were fully aware of the risks and read thewarningand confirmed that by checking the relevant box when registering1 hoping for your understanding administration the statement reads1 the news agency of nigeria nan reports that the scheme had survived several pause mode and closure but could not escape the latest turn of event due to the death of mavrodi in russia1

Bishop Kukah supports amnesty to Boko Haram
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it is also gratifying to report that the troops morale remains high as they dominate the general area with a robust fighting patrol in continuation with the clearance operations he said1 bishop matthew kukah the fiery catholic bishop of sokoto diocese has supported the decision of president muhammadu buhari to grant amnesty to repentant members of the boko haram1 i think i was one of the first people to raise the issue of amnesty about five years ago i know how much we were vilified he said1 but i was pretty convinced about what i was saying that for me if you mention the word amnesty nigerians think it simply means shaking hands and telling everybody to go home1 on march 23 president muhammadu buhari unveiled that government was willing to offer amnesty to members of the outlawed group1 he had noted that while further efforts were ongoing to secure the release of every citizen abducted by the insurgents government was ready to accept the unconditional laying down of arms by any member of the group who showed strong commitment in that regard1 kukah on his part lauded the decision saying amnesty was the way to go as no war has ended with victory being declared1 if boko haram has been perceived to be as so weakened as it is we would not be talking about negotiation. so clearly those with superior information and superior knowledge which is what government is all about know something that the rest of us dont1 evaluating the war against corruption the clergyman said corruption is not something that government fights government might offer a lead but it will get you to nowhere unless you have the buy-in of the people kukah told1 the nigerian army had also asked boko haram insurgentsto lay down their arms and embrace the federal governments amnestyoffer1 a statement signed by brig.-gen. texas chukwu director army public relations said we wish to remind repentant boko haram fighters that the window of opportunity to embrace the federal government amnesty programme is still open for them to surrender and lay down their weapons1 bishop kukah revealed his position while appearing as a guest on televisions hard copy in abuja the nations capital1 chukwu disclosed that the troops of 23 brigade under the operation lafiya dole had arrested three suspected boko haram terrorists at ngurore on march 281 the army spokesman explained that one of the suspects who was wounded as a result of gunshots confessed to have participated in various attacks coordinated by the insurgents1 according to him the army is conducting preliminary investigations with the 23 brigade provost company1 the army commended members of the civilian joint task force cjtf for patriotism resilience and cooperation with troops1 chukwu also called on members of the public to emulate the vigilance of the cjtf and report any suspicious persons or objects to the nearest military location1 nan reports thatpresident muhammadu buhari on march 23 said the federal government is ready to offer amnesty to members of the boko haram sect that are willing to drop their arms1 president buhari said this at a meeting with the schoolgirls who recently regained freedom after they were abducted from their school in dapchi yobe state by boko haram terrorists1 federal government is ready to rehabilitate boko haram militants who are ready to lay down their arms1 while further efforts are being made to secure the release of every abducted citizen in nigeria government is ever ready to accept the unconditional laying down of arms by any member of the boko haram group who show strong commitment in that regard1 we are ready to rehabilitate and integrate such repentant members into the larger society he said1

God is punishing PDP for its sins: Bafarawa
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on his part former katsina state governor ibrahim shema backed calls for the restructuring of the country saying it would result in rapid development of the nation1 former sokoto state governor alhaji attahiru bafarawa said god is punishing the peoples democratic partypdp for its sins and urged members to intensify prayers to seek forgiveness from god1 almighty allah does not make mistakes and that was the reason why when the pdp offended him he snatched the power and handed it to apc he said 1 also governor of gombe state ibrahim dankwambo charged nigerians to shun all forms of corrupt practices rise and challenge the evil of corruption in the country1 corruption is an evil deed that retards the progress of any nation he said1 it is the sins that the pdp members committed that god is punishing them with it bafarawa bluntly told members at thepdp northwest zonal rally on saturday in katsina1 he particularly said that the banking and political sectors must be restructured to encourage all citizens to be part of the nigeria project1 shema stressed that nigerians need not to panic over the agitations by some well meaning nigerians over the restructuring project1 in his remarks former governor of niger state muazu babangida aliyu advised pdp members to close ranks and work towards the success of the party in 20191 aliyu said that without unity the pdp would not clinch back the power that they held for 16 years1 nan reports that pdp national chairman uche secondus ekiti state governor ayodele fayose ex-governors sule lamido ahmed makarfi ramalan yero and ibrahim shekarau as well as muntari shagari and amb. aminu wali were among dignitaries at the event1

Heavy rain destroys Tedder Hall at UI
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a heavy downpour on saturday destroyed a part of the tedder hall of nigerias premier university of ibadan1 the residential hall located west of the university court was opened on 17 november 1952 along with mellanby hall1 it was named after lord tedder 1890 1976 marshal of 1950-1967 who formally opened the present site of the university of ibadan1 a section of the hall was also gutted by fire in 20131 photo credit timothy adeogodirannan1