And Morsi is sentenced to death

An Egyptian court sentenced deposed Islamist president Mohamed Morsi and more than 100 other defendants to death on Saturday over jail breaks during the 2011 uprising.
Morsi, sitting in a caged dock, raised his fists in defiance when the judge read his verdict.
Many of those sentenced were tried in absentia, including prominent Islamic cleric Yusuf al-Qaradawi who resides in Qatar.
Under Egyptian law, death sentences are passed on to the mufti, the government’s interpreter of Islamic law, who plays an advisory role.
The court will pronounce its final decision on June 2.
Morsi was spared the death sentence in the first of two trials that concluded on Thursday, in which the court advised death sentences for 16 defendants on espionage charges.
They had been charged with colluding with foreign powers, the Palestinian Hamas and Iran to destabilise Egypt.
The court will pronounce the verdicts for Morsi and the remaining 18 defendants in that trial at a later date.
The court then delivered its verdict in the other the case, in which Morsi and 128 defendants were accused of plotting jail breaks and attacks on police during the uprising that overthrew president Hosni Mubarak in 2011.
More than 100 were sentenced to death along with Morsi.
Many of the defendants are Palestinians alleged to work with Hamas in neighbouring Gaza, and were tried in absentia along with a Lebanese Hezbollah commander.
They were alleged to have colluded with Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood to carry out attacks in Egypt in what prosecutors allege was a vast conspiracy.
With this verdict, Morsi and other former opposition members have been condemned for violence during the anti-Mubarak protest, while Mubarak himself beat charges in a trial over the deaths of anti-government protesters during the 18-day revolt that toppled him.

Ogogoro banned in Ondo state

The Ondo Government has banned the production and consumption of locally-made gin, commonly called `ogogoro` in the state.
The state Commissioner for Health, Dr Dayo Akinyanju, announced this at a news conference in Akure on Saturday.
The commissioner attributed the ban to the outbreak of an unknown disease two weeks ago in Irele Local Government Area of the state.
“Our clinical analysis reveals the fact that there were no known viruses, while toxicology reports have confirmed our prime suspicion of methanol poisoning.
“We have reviewed our strategies and embarked on sensitisation to let people know that locally-made gin is prohibited.
“We will also embark on searches because this batch of methanol-containing gin must have gone round because 4 cases: 2 alive and 2 dead have been found in Odigbo Local Government Area,“ he said.
Akinyanju said that stakeholders such as religious leaders, transporters, youths, market women, and the relevant association would be informed of the development.
He said, “We will start with the entire South Senatorial District, then move to the Central Senatorial District.
According to the commissioner, the unknown disease has so far claimed 23 lives with ten other people receiving treatment.
“Two of them have regained their sights and are back home.
“We appeal to the general public to desist from drinking the gin until we are able to identify the source of contamination or find out how the methanol got into the drinks,“ he said.
The commissioner said that the state government was working closely with the National Agency for Food,  Drug Administration and Control and the National Orientation Agency to sensitise members of the public to the dangers of consuming such drinks. (NAN)

Dance with Peter of psquare gets underway

Peter Okoye, one half of the P-Square music duo has debuted with “Dance Nigeria with Peter,” a TV reality show designed to raise the bar.
Dance Nigeria with Peter is the first Dance Reality TV show that abrogates the normal humdrum of dance competition seen on TV. It’s a show that brings about a whole new dimension to dancing in an exciting display of talents, all wrapped up with suspense and indecision of the judge/mentors.
The show has Peter Okoye making his debut as a judge cum mentor alongside dance Queen Kaffy and hip hop dance choreographer, Flex. According to Peter Okoye, “This show is going to revolutionize the way Nigerians see dance. I am so happy to have on this project the best Nigeria has to offer when it comes to dance.
We believe that dance has the power to put this nation on the map. Charity begins at home, so let’s dance Nigeria.” The competition, Peter said, will be open to individuals from different dance backgrounds, be it solo, group or duet. Auditions will be held in June across four major cities of Jos, Abuja, Port Harcourt and Lagos.
It also includes street battles to make up the final 30 that will move to the competition phase. Registration of interested candidates will commence in May.