Author: Platform Times Newspaper

The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has lauded the Aliko Dangote Foundation over its newly unveiled ₦100 billion annual education scholarship initiative, describing it as a landmark private-sector intervention capable of transforming Nigeria’s education landscape. The decade-long programme, which is expected to benefit over 1.3 million Nigerian students in public secondary and tertiary institutions, was unveiled in Lagos on Thursday, with Vice President Kashim Shettima representing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. NELFUND said the initiative aligns squarely with the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Agenda, particularly its drive to expand access to quality education and remove financial barriers confronting Nigerian students. In…

… Lawmakers, passengers Slam Airlines Over ‘Unaffordable’ Tickets …Operators Blame Taxes, Fuel Costs, Seasonal Deman Daud Olatunji  There was widespread outrage on Friday as domestic airfares climbed to as high as N500,000 for one-hour flights, triggering angry reactions from lawmakers, travellers and social media users who described the prices as exploitative and far beyond the reach of average Nigerians. The surge in ticket prices, which coincides with the Christmas travel rush, came under sharp scrutiny at the National Assembly this week, where senators openly lamented what they called an “unacceptable burden” on citizens. At a Senate plenary, Senator Onyekachi Nwaebonyi…

Daud Olatunji Renowned gospel singer and broadcast entrepreneur, Yinka Ayefele, has reaffirmed his unwavering belief that he will one day walk again, nearly three decades after a devastating motor accident confined him to a wheelchair. Ayefele, who survived a ghastly auto crash on December 12, 1997, said his faith remains unshaken despite the life-altering injuries he sustained during the Christmas-season accident. In a video shared on his Instagram page on Friday, the broadcaster was seen calmly explaining his condition to his triplets, reassuring them that his inability to walk is temporary. “I still believe I’m going to walk,” Ayefele told…

The founder of INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church, Primate Elijah Ayodele, has denied allegations that he demanded N150m and other costly items from the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, in exchange for spiritual support to secure the Oyo State governorship. Ayodele was reacting to a petition written against him by Adelabu to the Department of State Services, accusing the cleric of blackmail, fake prophecies and repeated demands for money and expensive “spiritual items”. In the petition dated October 13, 2025, and signed by the minister’s media adviser, Bolaji Tunji, Adelabu alleged that Ayodele demanded, among other things, 24 All Progressives Congress…

The Moshood Abiola Polytechnic (MAPOLY), Abeokuta, has been thrown into mourning following the death of its Best Graduating Student for the 2022/2023 academic session, Orisawayi Samuel Emmanuel, popularly known as Samoriz, who passed away without receiving the cash reward publicly promised to him by Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun. Orisawayi, a standout graduate of the Department of Civil Engineering, died on Sunday, December 7, 2025, barely six months after he was celebrated at the institution’s 15th Combined Convocation Ceremony held on June 24, 2025. At the convocation, which produced over 51,000 ND and HND graduates, Orisawayi’s name drew loud applause…

The Peace Corps of Nigeria (PCN) has accused the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) of defying subsisting court orders and criminalising a purely civil business transaction in the arraignment of its National Commandant, Dr. Dickson Akoh, and Director of Finance, Mrs Omolola Aminat Ahmed. Akoh and Ahmed were on Thursday arraigned before Justice H.B. Yusuf of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Abuja, on a two-count charge of conspiracy and dishonest conversion of N60 million allegedly meant for the supply of official badges. But the Peace Corps, in a strongly worded statement issued on Friday and signed by Patriot…

A 14-year-old boy identified as Pelumi has died by suicide in the Onipaanu area of Ogun State, shortly after he was teased for giving a girl in his neighbourhood a small gift and a handwritten note. The incident, which occurred on Wednesday evening, has plunged the community into deep sorrow and raised fresh concerns over child supervision, emotional support and bullying culture among minors. PLATFORM TIMES gathered that Pelumi had taken a gift and a love note to a girl, Adijat, who lives within the neighbourhood. He reportedly sent another child to deliver the items and watched from a distance.…

Leader of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN), Sheikh Ibraheem El-Zakzaky, has alleged that the United States is responsible for the creation and sustained funding of Boko Haram, the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP), and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). In a video currently circulating online, the cleric also accused Nigerian political leaders of deliberately engineering insecurity to serve their interests, insisting that the crisis persists because those in authority have refused to end it. El-Zakzaky questioned how armed groups he described as “former cattle rearers” suddenly gained access to sophisticated weapons and armoured vehicles…

A Syrian national who had lived in Sokoto State for over four decades has died in a suspected suicide after reportedly ingesting mosquito insecticide at his residence in Gawon Nama Zaga Road, Sokoto metropolis. The Sokoto State Police Command confirmed the incident, which occurred around 9:30 p.m. on Wednesday. According to police sources, the tragedy came to light when a 16-year-old boy, Ahmad Aliyu of Gagi area—employed by the deceased—raised an alarm after finding his boss, identified as Abdulrahman Badenjki, allegedly drinking a substance later identified as Executor mosquito insecticide. Aliyu was said to have rushed into a nearby mosque…

The Supreme Court on Friday upheld the death sentence imposed on Maryam Sanda for the murder of her husband, Bilyaminu Bello, dismissing the presidential pardon earlier granted to her by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Sanda, daughter-in-law of a former National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, had been convicted in 2020 by an Abuja High Court for stabbing Bello to death during a domestic dispute at their home in Abuja in 2017. She had spent more than six years and eight months in the Suleja Custodial Centre before receiving a controversial presidential reprieve that reduced her penalty to 12 years’…