Author: Platform Times Newspaper

Daud Olatunji A public relations consultant, Mr. Adetokunbo Modupe, has cautioned Nigerians against actions and utterances that could further damage the country’s reputation globally, even as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in the 2023 Ogun State election, Hon. Oladipupo Adebutu, warned that Nigeria is gradually sliding into a totalitarian state. Modupe and Adebutu spoke on Thursday in Abeokuta at the 2025 Annual Colloquium of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR), Ogun State Chapter, themed “Leadership and Reputation: The Role of Public Relations in Building Trust in Nigeria.” The event also honoured notable Nigerians, including the Inspector General…

…Targets housing projects in Niger, Abuja, Edo Daniel Osiyemi &  Hakeem Rahmon Gateway Mortgage Bank Limited has announced a significant improvement in its financial performance for the 2024 fiscal year, recording growth across key performance indicators despite prevailing economic challenges. The bank’s Chairman, Evangelist Samuel Durojaye, disclosed this at the institution’s 8th Annual General Meeting (AGM) held in Abeokuta, Ogun State, on Thursday. He said the bank’s gross earnings, profit before and after tax, shareholders’ funds, deposits, loans and advances, and total assets all showed remarkable increases compared to the previous year. “Despite the economic headwinds, Gateway Mortgage Bank achieved…

.. Schistosomiasis, Intestinal Worms Detected In 18 LGAs Boluwatife Olabode Health experts in Ogun State have raised serious concern over the alarming spread of Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs), particularly schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminths (STH), across communities in the state. PLATFORM TIMES reports that the  diseases, largely associated with poor sanitation, open defecation, and unhygienic practices, have now been detected in 18 out of the 20 local government areas of the state, according to the Neglected Tropical Diseases Control and Elimination Programme. Speaking on Thursday,  during an interactive  stakeholders’ meeting with journalists for the Schol Deworming Programme, held in Abeokuta, Ademuyiwa…

The House of Representatives has ordered a comprehensive investigation into the spending of over $18 billion on Nigeria’s non-functional refineries, describing the prolonged failure of the facilities as a national embarrassment and a gross abuse of public trust. The lawmakers, during Thursday’s plenary session presided over by Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu, directed relevant committees to unravel how such a huge amount was expended on the rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna refineries over the past two decades with no tangible results. The resolution followed a motion sponsored by Oluwaseun Whinghan, representing Badagry Federal Constituency of Lagos State, who…

… UN Report Shows No Progress Since 2019 Ranking … Experts Blame Poor Healthcare, Insecurity,  Povert Daud Olatunji Nigeria has been ranked as the country with the lowest life expectancy in the world, according to the latest United Nations Global Health Report (2025). The report estimates the country’s average life expectancy at 54.9 years, far below the global average of 73.7 years and the African continental mean. According to the data, Nigerian men live an average of 54.3 years, while women slightly exceed that at 54.9 years. The figures place Nigeria behind countries such as Chad (55.2 years) and the…

…Hails Abiodun, Daniel For Visionary Execution Public affairs analyst and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain, Otunba Segun Showunmi, has declared that the newly operational Gateway International Airport in Iperu-Ilishan will transform Ogun State into Nigeria’s foremost investment destination. Showunmi, who made the declaration on Thursday after arriving at the airport on a commercial flight from Abuja, said the multi-billion-naira facility had positioned Ogun as a true hub of economic prosperity and industrial expansion. He described the airport as “the most strategic infrastructure to unlock Ogun’s economic future,” stressing that the state now offers unmatched opportunities for investors seeking sustainable returns.…

Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State has declared that his successor in 2027 will emerge through the will of the people and not through political godfathers or entitlement politics. Makinde stated this on Thursday in Ibadan while flagging off the zonal stakeholders’ consultative forum and engagement meeting on the preparation of the 2026 Budget, stressing that only credible leaders with a clear development vision will enjoy the people’s mandate. “Oyo State has gone beyond the era of politics based on entitlement or propaganda,” the governor said. “Our people are now politically aware, and they will only support leaders who present…

 The Council of State on Thursday approved President Bola Tinubu’s recommendation for the presidential pardon of 175 Nigerians, including historic figures such as Herbert Macaulay, Major-General Mamman Vatsa (retd.), and members of the Ogoni Nine and Ogoni Four, executed during Nigeria’s military era. The decision, reached at a meeting held at the State House, Abuja, followed a presentation by the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), who conveyed the report of the Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy to the Council. Governor Uba Sani of Kaduna State, who briefed State House correspondents after the…

A Lagos Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja on Thursday admitted fresh documentary evidence against the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) linked him to an alleged $600,000 kickback. Justice Rahman Oshodi overruled objections by the defence team and admitted the additional documents presented by the prosecution as Exhibit G. The documents, according to the EFCC, were obtained directly from the CBN and other sources during investigations into the ongoing $4.5 billion fraud case. During the proceedings, EFCC counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), continued the examination of an…

Daud Olatunji  Fresh details have emerged about the death of Arise Television news anchor, Somtochukwu Christella Maduagwu, popularly known as Sommie, who died during a violent armed robbery attack at her residence in the Katampe area of Abuja. The Federal Capital Territory Police Command on Thursday disclosed that one of the arrested suspects, Sani Sirajo, confessed to attempting to hold the deceased journalist from falling off the storey building but was overpowered by her weight. Maduagwu reportedly plunged from the third floor of Unique Apartments, a 16-flat building, on September 29, during an attack by about 15 armed men, which…