Author: Platform Times Newspaper

No fewer than 54 Nigerian pilgrims have been hospitalised in Saudi Arabia during the ongoing 2026 Hajj exercise, while four deaths have been recorded, the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (National Hajj Commission of Nigeria) has confirmed. The Head of the National Medical Team disclosed this on Thursday while briefing journalists in Makkah on the health and welfare situation of Nigerian pilgrims participating in the pilgrimage. He said the commission currently operates five licensed medical clinics across Saudi Arabia to attend to Nigerian pilgrims, including two in Madinah and three in Makkah. According to him, the Madinah facilities are located…

Obasa impeachment saga: I nearly lost my job over Desmond Elliot issue – Gbajabiamila Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu, Femi Gbajabiamila, has revealed how a political crisis in the Lagos State House of Assembly nearly cost him his job after he was drawn into the controversy surrounding the attempted removal of Speaker Mudashiru Obasa. Gbajabiamila said President Bola Tinubu almost sacked him after suspicions linked him to developments during the heated impeachment drama that rocked the Lagos Assembly. He spoke on Thursday while addressing members of the All Progressives Congress, recounting how his relationship with some lawmakers, particularly…

Authorities in Bauchi State have arrested a group of minors over an alleged illegal marriage ceremony in which a bride price of just N3,000 was reportedly paid, in a case that has sparked fresh concerns over child protection and declining social safeguards. The suspects, which include the purported bride and groom, were on Thursday presented before the Bauchi State Action Committee on Sexual and Gender-Based Violence, chaired by the wife of the state governor, Aisha Bala Mohammed. Security operatives from the Bauchi State Vigilante and Youth Empowerment Agency, working alongside the Bauchi State Police Command, carried out the arrests. Also…

A tragic internal military incident has been reported in Kano State, where an unidentified soldier allegedly opened fire on a colleague, killing him instantly during a dispute while on duty. The deceased, identified as Sergeant Suleiman, was reportedly shot by a junior colleague, a Private attached to the 21st Nigerian Army (21NA), during an altercation at a private security post in the state. Military sources said both personnel were on guard duty at the residence of a retired senior officer when the incident occurred earlier in the week. According to one source, the disagreement between the two soldiers escalated into…

Outrage has erupted over the alleged abandonment of Nigerian pilgrims from Adamawa State in Saudi Arabia, after a viral video showed dozens of them—many of them elderly—sleeping outdoors without accommodation despite reportedly paying over N8.3 million each for the 2025 Hajj exercise. The distressed pilgrims, drawn from Yola North, Song, and Madagali Local Government Areas, were seen in the footage sitting helplessly beside their luggage in open spaces, lamenting what they described as total neglect by officials responsible for their welfare in the Holy Land. Madagali, one of the affected areas, is the hometown of Adamawa State Governor, Ahmadu Umaru…

Former Governor of Ondo State, Olusegun Mimiko, on Thursday formally defected to the All Progressives Congress, declaring support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s re-election in 2027. Mimiko, who governed Ondo State between 2009 and 2017, announced his defection at the APC Ward 7 Secretariat in Ondo West Local Government Area, weeks after resigning from the Peoples Democratic Party in April. The former governor said his decision to join the ruling party was driven by a desire to contribute more meaningfully to Nigeria’s socio-economic and political development. He noted that despite prevailing economic challenges, the current administration’s policies were laying a…

…Subscribers Say Deposits Worth Millions Have Vanished …Anger In Lagos, Office Vandalised By Aggrieved Investors Daud Olatunji Panic has gripped investors across Nigeria following the sudden collapse of an online investment platform, XM Future Music Group, with many subscribers reportedly unable to access their funds. PLATFORM TIMES gathered that the platform, popularly known as “XM”, abruptly halted withdrawals within the last 24 hours, sparking fears of yet another Ponzi scheme crash in the country. Several users said the platform’s website became inaccessible, while its support channels were either muted or completely taken down, leaving thousands of subscribers stranded. The scheme…

Sahara Power Group has launched a technical academy aimed at grooming the next generation of Nigerian engineers, in a move to address skills gaps and boost capacity in the country’s electricity sector. The firm said its flagship Sahara Power Technical and Innovation Academy would train 50 graduate engineers through a 10-month intensive programme combining classroom learning with practical, on-the-job experience across major power generation facilities. The initiative is being executed in partnership with Egbin Power Plc and First Independent Power Limited, both members of Sahara Power Group. According to the company, participants will gain hands-on exposure to plant operations, maintenance…

A former Governor of Ogun State and Senator representing Ogun East Senatorial District, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, has challenged Governor Dapo Abiodun to a public debate over the administration of the state. The move has further deepened the political rift between both leaders ahead of the 2027 electoral cycle. Daniel threw the challenge on Thursday while appearing on a live television programme, Beyond Headlines, on TVC, where he criticised the governor’s communication style and demanded accountability on key governance issues. He said, “It’s time. I am throwing a public challenge to sit with me for a debate. He is a good…

A United States federal court has sentenced a Nigerian-born academic, Nkechy Ezeh, to 70 months’ imprisonment for orchestrating a $1.4 million fraud scheme involving funds meant for vulnerable preschool children. Ezeh, 61, was convicted by a federal court in the Western District of Michigan, where she was also handed a concurrent 60-month sentence for tax evasion. The presiding judge, Hala Y. Jarbou, ordered the convict to pay $1.4 million in restitution as well as $390,174 to the Internal Revenue Service. Ezeh, a former Associate Professor of Education at Aquinas College, was found guilty of diverting funds from a nonprofit she…