Author: Platform Times Newspaper

Michael Babatunde The air is different! For anyone coming into the community for the first time, you may likely suspect that this oxygen is not clean but for residents, there is nothing amiss, little do they know of the deadly substance penetration to the lungs – lead! In this quiet town near Lagos, a hidden crisis is unfolding: factories that recycle car batteries are silently poisoning the community, especially children, with deadly lead. What many call “green recycling” is, in reality, a public health disaster. Residents report black soot raining down on their homes, covering floors, gardens and schoolyards. This…

Political strategist and member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Segun Showunmi, has accused PDP governors of engaging in actions he describes as “clearly anti-party,” following reports that they submitted lists of nominees to President Bola Tinubu for federal appointments. Showunmi, who spoke during an interview on TVC, said the development not only undermines the party’s internal structures but also raises serious questions about loyalty and collective discipline within the opposition party. According to him, “All the PDP governors submitted names of 10 people to the president to help them appoint. Is that not anti-party?” He argued that such conduct…

Nigeria’s long-running education crisis has taken a more troubling turn as fresh figures from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) show that Nigerians spent $1.39 billion (N2.16 trillion) on foreign education in the first half of 2025 — the highest in five years. The amount marks a sharp jump from 2024, rising 20 per cent in dollar value and 38 per cent in naira terms, according to the CBN’s latest Balance of Payments report. The surge occurred despite a relatively stable exchange rate during the period, averaging N1,553.6/$. Education analysts describe the spike as a damning reflection of the collapsing…

A custodian of Yoruba culture and a broadcast  journalist, Kikelomo Ogunsina-Obabi, has  condemned the Federal Government’s decision to abolish the use of indigenous languages as mediums of instruction in Nigerian schools, describing the policy reversal as a setback to the nation’s educational and cultural development. Ogunsina-Obabi, popularly known as Torera, stated this while delivering the annual lecture at the ASA Day celebration, tagged Ayajo Asa, held on November 22, 2025, in Abeokuta. The Federal Government had recently announced that English would become the sole language of instruction from pre-primary to tertiary level, scrapping the long-standing language policy that encouraged mother-tongue…

The Federal High Court has dismissed as false a viral social media report alleging that Justice James Omotosho survived an assassination attempt following his life-imprisonment sentence on Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra. A Facebook blogger had claimed that gunmen attacked the judge at his residence in the early hours of Saturday, forcing security operatives to rush him to a hospital for emergency treatment. The post, which circulated widely across several platforms, linked the purported attack to the judge’s ruling that commuted Kanu’s death sentence to life imprisonment. But the Chief Registrar of the Federal High…

The Kaduna State Government has dismissed as “reckless and unfounded” the allegation by former Governor Nasir El-Rufai that the administration of Governor Uba Sani paid ₦1 billion to bandits, issuing him a one-week ultimatum to either provide evidence or publicly apologise. El-Rufai had, during a recent interview on Channels Television, alleged that the state government under Sani authorised a huge payout to criminal groups—an allegation the government described as politically motivated and a deliberate attempt to mislead the public. In a strongly worded statement on Sunday, the Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Sule Shu’aibu, SAN, said the former…

Troops of the 6 Brigade of the Nigerian Army have arrested a suspected kidnapper in Wukari Local Government Area of Taraba State while he was allegedly negotiating a N20 million ransom with relatives of an abducted resident. The suspect, identified as Umar Musa Geyi, was picked up on Saturday during a covert operation at the Jandei–Kulamu axis following an intelligence-led surveillance by troops under Sector 3 of Operation Whirl Stroke (OPWS) and Operation Zafin Wuta. Army spokesperson, Umar Mohammed, who confirmed the arrest on Sunday, said Geyi had long been on the radar of security agencies over his alleged links…

A Nigerian man, Victor Benjamin Fajemirokun, who allegedly killed an official of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Mrs. Funmilayo Lasisi, and her daughter, Sewa, has been arrested in Ghana after weeks on the run. PLATFORM TIMES gathered that Fajemirokun, 36, was tracked down by operatives of Ghana’s Eastern South Regional Police Command after fleeing Nigeria to evade arrest. The Regional Commander, George Ohene-Boadi, who confirmed the development during a press briefing, said officers launched an intelligence-led operation after intercepting a viral video alleging that the suspect abducted and murdered the FRSC officer and her daughter in Abeokuta, Ogun State.…

President Bola Tinubu on Sunday held an emergency closed-door meeting with the nation’s service chiefs at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, amid rising security concerns and a fresh wave of abductions across northern states. PLATFORM TIMES gathered that the meeting, which began in the afternoon, was convened urgently following heightened public anxiety over recent kidnappings and bandit attacks. Top military and intelligence chiefs in attendance included the Chief of Defence Staff, General Olufemi Oluyode; Chief of Army Staff, Major General Waidi Shaibu; Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Idi Abbas; Chief of Air Staff, Air Vice Marshal Kelvin Aneke, and Chief…

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed the immediate withdrawal of police officers attached to Very Important Persons (VIPs) across the country, insisting that the overstretched police force must return to its core constitutional responsibilities of protecting citizens and communities. The directive, issued on Sunday during a high-level security meeting in Abuja, signals a major policy shift aimed at boosting police visibility nationwide amid worsening insecurity. Presidential spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, confirmed the development, stating that VIPs who still require close protection would henceforth request armed operatives from the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) rather than the Nigeria Police Force.…