Author: Platform Times Newspaper

Daud Olatunji The management of Tai Solarin University of Education (TASUED), Ijagun, Ogun State, has dismissed as false a viral social media report claiming that the institution had been shut down following an alleged invasion of Ijebu-Ode by bandits. In a strongly worded statement on Friday, the Registrar and Secretary to Council, Dapo Oke, described the circulating report as “malicious, misleading, and targeted at causing unnecessary panic within the university community and across the state.” The false publication had alleged that the university instructed students to vacate their hostels due to a supposed security breach in Ijebu-Ode. But Oke clarified…

…Mint Notes Now Thrive In  Illegal Second Market Fuelled By Scarcity …Regulators Look Away As Bouquet Vendors Openly Trade Cash For Profit Fawaz Adebisi “We fold the naira like flowers, wrap it and design it to look beautiful and then sell the designed money to our customers,” Obiremi Ayanfe, a caterer and event planner in Abeokuta said, her fingers moving with the casual confidence of someone doing normal business, not committing a crime. Meanwhile, the Central Bank of Nigeria explicitly categorized money bouquets as a form of Naira Abuse under the Section 21 of the Central Bank Act…

A 24-year-old convict, Usama Abdullahi, has narrated how he stole packs of noodles to impress his three girlfriends — only for all of them to abandon him throughout his time in custody. Abdullahi, who worked at a car wash in Shelleng Local Government Area of Adamawa State, made the confession when he appeared before the Adamawa State Jail Delivery Committee, a mobile court constituted to review cases and decongest custodial centres. According to Daily Trust, the young man said he fled to another town after the theft but was eventually arrested and sentenced to two years in prison at the…

Kaduna-based Islamic cleric, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, has claimed that killings involving herdsmen and Christian communities across Nigeria are retaliatory attacks rather than a targeted genocide against Christians. Gumi, who posted the comments on his Facebook page on Thursday, insisted that both sides bear responsibility for the deadly clashes that have persisted for years across the Middle Belt and other parts of the country. “The Christians at ‘fault lines’ in war with herdsmen do also attack and counterattack. They kill and they are also killed. We regret all loss of lives,” he wrote, cautioning commentators against describing the crisis as a…

The Federal Government has secured a major legal victory in a 43-year-old dispute over the controversial Ajaokuta Iron and Steel civil works contract, after an arbitration tribunal dismissed a fresh multi-billion-naira claim filed by French construction firm, Fougerolle SA and its Nigerian affiliate, Fougerolle Nigeria Ltd. Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, announced the victory on Friday, describing it as a decisive blow against “predatory and opportunistic claims” targeting Nigeria’s finances. Fagbemi said the tribunal—sitting under the Alternative Dispute Resolution Centre of the Federal High Court—delivered its final award on November 11, dismissing the…

The Department of State Services (DSS) has transferred the detained leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, from its Abuja facility to the Nigerian Custodial Centre in Sokoto following his conviction for terrorism. PLATFORM TIMES gathered that the transfer was carried out on Friday, barely 24 hours after a Federal High Court in Abuja sentenced Kanu to life imprisonment on seven counts of terrorism. The defence counsel, Aloy Ejimakor, who confirmed the development, raised concerns that the relocation would severely limit Kanu’s access to his lawyers and family members. Ejimakor wrote, “Mazi Nnamdi Kanu has…

The Benue State Police Command has arrested three women suspected to be part of a child trafficking ring after officers intercepted a vehicle transporting six children along the Orokam–Enugu highway. Spokesperson of the command, DSP Udeme Edet, disclosed in a statement on Friday that the suspects — Monica Okonkwo (57), Nkiru Nwosu (55), and Oyechele Francisca (57) — were apprehended during a routine patrol around 5:05 p.m. on Thursday. According to Edet, the women, all natives of Umude Oka in Dunukofia Local Government Area of Anambra State, were unable to provide credible explanations for the movement of the children, raising…

A fresh wave of school abductions hit Niger State on Friday as 215 pupils and 12 teachers of St. Mary’s Catholic School, Papiri, in Agwara Local Government Area, were whisked away by armed bandits in a dawn raid that has triggered nationwide outrage. The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Niger State chapter, confirmed the exact number hours after the attack, ending earlier speculations by the Catholic Archdiocese of Kontagora which had said the number of abductees was still unclear. Speaking after visiting the affected community late Friday, CAN Chairman, Most Rev. Bulus Dauwa Yohanna, described the incident as “devastating” and…

Troops of the Nigerian Army have arrested a suspected major arms dealer, rescued a kidnapped victim and disrupted several terrorist networks during coordinated operations across the North-West and North-Central within the last 24 hours. A credible military source at the Army Headquarters confirmed the breakthroughs to the News Agency of Nigeria, saying the operations were carried out under Operation FANSAN YAMMA, Operation Enduring Peace, and Operation Whirl Stroke. According to the source, troops on Thursday intercepted a suspected terrorist informant during an ambush at Ungwan Gombawa in Kontagora Local Government Area of Niger State. In another major operation, soldiers of…

The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has deepened its footprint in Ogun State after its recent sensitisation programme triggered a surge in student loan applications amounting to more than ₦785 million in disbursements to tertiary institutions across the state. The awareness campaign, held at the Crownbirth Event Centre in Ijebu-Ife, was facilitated by education advocate Otunba Femi Adewumi and hosted by the Executive Chairman of Ijebu East Local Government, Dr. Oluwadare Kehinde (Hacco). The event brought together parents, students, school administrators and community leaders to demystify the process of accessing the Federal Government-backed loan scheme. Adewumi said the outreach was…