Author: Platform Times Newspaper

Fawaz Adebisi The Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF) has honoured outstanding students in the 2025 National Art and Essay Competition with an educational eco-tour of Abeokuta, Ogun State, as part of efforts to deepen environmental awareness among young Nigerians. The competition, organised in collaboration with the Amb. Aduke Alakija Memorial Programme, drew entries from across the country, tasking students to creatively express solutions to environmental challenges under the theme “Heal the Earth.” Participants submitted essays and artworks highlighting issues such as deforestation, pollution, climate change, and unsustainable resource use, while also proposing practical interventions to address environmental degradation. A total…

Special Adviser to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Policy Communication, Daniel Bwala, has disclosed that he underwent throat surgery just eight days after his widely publicised interview with Mehdi Hasan on Al Jazeera, an appearance that triggered intense online debate in Nigeria’s political space. Bwala made the revelation during an interview on News Central on Saturday, where he also addressed the backlash that followed the broadcast, particularly from supporters of Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, popularly known as “Obidients.” “I underwent surgery on my throat eight days after the interview with Mehdi Hasan. I don’t know whether it is…

Former Jigawa State Governor, Sule Lamido, has launched a sharp rebuttal against former Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, over past corruption allegations, insisting that Nigerians can now independently assess “who owns what” among political office holders. Lamido, speaking in a Hausa-language interview with DCL Hausa, said Malami had at different times dragged him before court over allegations of theft, but maintained that such claims were politically motivated and lacking in substance. The former governor argued that recent public discourse and emerging scrutiny of political office holders had made it easier for Nigerians to separate facts from politically driven accusations.…

The Imo State Police Command has launched a full-scale manhunt for armed assailants who brutally killed the traditional ruler of Ochia Autonomous Community, Ohaji/Egbema Local Government Area, His Royal Highness Eze Paulinus Ekwueme, alongside five other victims. The attack, which occurred on Friday along Asa Awara Road in Imo State, has thrown the community into mourning and heightened tension across the area. Confirming the incident in a statement on Saturday, the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Henry Okoye, said the command received a distress call from the Ohaji Police Division indicating that armed hoodlums ambushed and opened fire on the…

The internal crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party deepened on Saturday as a faction aligned with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, assumed control of the party’s national secretariat in Abuja following the unsealing of the facility by the police. The development comes months after the party’s headquarters, Wadata Plaza, was shut in the wake of a violent leadership clash that erupted on November 18, 2025, between rival factions of the National Working Committee. The crisis pits the Tanimu Turaki (SAN)-led faction, backed by Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde and Bauchi State Governor Bala Mohammed, against a…

Fresh concerns have emerged within Nigeria’s legal community over what stakeholders describe as growing judicial interference in the internal affairs of political parties, despite clear statutory restrictions. The alarm follows a series of recent court rulings linked to leadership disputes within political parties, particularly the African Democratic Congress, which critics say contradict provisions of the Electoral Act 2026. At the centre of the controversy is Section 83 of the Act, which expressly bars courts from entertaining cases relating strictly to intra-party matters. The Nigerian Bar Association had, on Friday, warned that continued judicial involvement in such disputes could undermine democratic…

The Federal Government has directed the immediate withdrawal and deactivation of Nigerian passports held by citizens who have formally renounced their nationality. The Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, issued the directive on Saturday, mandating the Nigeria Immigration Service to enforce the measure without delay. According to a statement by his media aide, Alao Babatunde, the order applies strictly to individuals whose renunciation of Nigerian citizenship has been duly approved by the President in line with constitutional provisions. Tunji-Ojo said the move was aimed at preserving the integrity of Nigeria’s citizenship system and preventing the misuse of official travel documents. He…

The Federal Government has named negotiator Tukur Mamu and separatist figure Simon Ekpa among 48 individuals and entities placed on its terrorism financing sanctions list. PLATFORM TIMES reports that the designation, published by the Nigeria Sanctions Committee, links the affected persons and groups to alleged funding of terrorist activities across the country. Among those listed is Abdulsamat Ohida, identified as a senior commander of the Islamic State West Africa Province, reportedly operating in Okene. Authorities linked him to the June 5, 2022 attack on St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State, as well as the July 2022 assault on…

The Department of State Services has interrogated several officials of the Kano State Government over allegations of cyberbullying and defamation targeting a former governor of the state, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso. The officials were reportedly invited and detained on Saturday for about four hours before being released on self-recognition, amid an ongoing investigation prompted by a petition filed by the Kwankwasiyya Movement. Those quizzed include the Director-General, Media and Publicity, Kano Government House, Sunusi Bature Dawakin Tofa; Special Adviser to the Governor on Information, Ibrahim Adam; APC Youth Leader in Kano, Salisu Yahaya Hotoro; and Senior Special Reporter at the Government…

One of the leading  governorship aspirants of the All Progressives Congress in Ogun State, Senator Iyabo Obasanjo, has said her ambition to lead the state is driven by public goodwill rather than financial strength. Obasanjo stated this on Saturday in Abeokuta while featuring on Media Parliament, an interactive programme organised by the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Ogun State Council. The former senator said she lacked the financial war chest often associated with governorship contests, stressing that her campaign was instead powered by voluntary support from the people. “I haven’t spent billions, and I don’t have billions to spend. What I…