Author: Platform Times Newspaper

The Federal Government has warned telecommunications operators in the country, including Airtel Nigeria, MTN Nigeria, Globacom and 9mobile, that they risk regulatory sanctions if they fail to urgently improve the quality of their services across the country. The Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani, issued the warning in a statement on Sunday, stressing that ongoing reforms in the sector were not designed to excuse poor performance but to strengthen accountability and service delivery. Tijani said Nigeria’s long-standing connectivity challenges were structural, rooted in years of underinvestment in critical infrastructure and operational constraints that had hindered telecom operators…

… Crisis Deepens Across Conflict-Hit, Food-Insecure States …Nigeria Records Highest Child Admissions In Recent Years Daud Olatunji Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), also known as Doctors Without Borders, has raised alarm over deepening malnutrition crisis in Nigeria, revealing that more than 440,000 children were treated for varying degrees of the condition in 2025 alone. The organisation disclosed this in its 2025 Country Activity Report released in Abuja, attributing the worsening situation to rising food insecurity, ongoing conflict, inflation, flooding, mass displacement and weak healthcare systems across affected regions. MSF said its operations covered 10 states during the period under review, including…

The National Universities Commission (NUC) and the World Bank have signed an additional $65 million financing agreement aimed at strengthening Nigerian universities and expanding professional training for about 24,000 Nigerians under the Sustainable Procurement, Environmental and Social Standards Enhancement (SPESSE) initiative. The agreement, signed on Wednesday at the NUC headquarters in Abuja, brings new momentum to the SPESSE project, which initially commenced in 2021 with an $80 million World Bank facility designed to bridge critical skills gaps in procurement, environmental management, and social safeguards. Stakeholders at the signing included representatives of participating universities, the World Bank, and the Bureau of…

A 32-year-old housewife has been arrested by the Kano State Police Command for allegedly setting her co-wife’s room on fire in a midnight attack that left four members of a family with severe burns in Mangwarori Quarters, Mariri area of Kano State. The incident, which occurred at about 12:40 a.m. on May 12, 2026, reportedly affected her co-wife, two children, and her husband, according to the police. Confirming the development in a statement on Wednesday, the spokesperson of the Kano State Police Command, CSP Abdullahi Haruna, said the suspect, identified as Maryam Usman, allegedly set fire to the room occupied…

The Director-General of the National Automotive Design and Development Council, Oluwemimo Osanipin, has disclosed that Nigeria expended a staggering N6.54 trillion on the importation of vehicles and auto parts between 2023 and 2025, heightening concerns over the country’s growing dependence on foreign automotive products. Osanipin made the revelation on Tuesday at the West African Automotive Summit held in Lagos, warning that the surging import bill poses a significant threat to the survival and growth of the nation’s local automotive industry. According to him, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed that over N4.3 trillion was spent on vehicle imports…

A Kwara State High Court sitting in llorin has sentenced a church founder, Prophet AjiboyeOlayinka, to life imprisonment for raping three minors within his mission house.. The trial judge, Justice H.A. Gegele, in a judgment delivered on Wednesday, also slammed the convict with an additional14-year jail term for carrying  out illegal abortions to terminate pregnancies resulting from the sexual assaults. Olayinka, the General Overseer of the Land ofJoy and Prayer Ministry, Agah, Ganmo,in Ifelodun Local Government Area of the state, He  was arraigned on an eight‑count charge, including criminal conspiracy, unlawful sexual intercourse with minors, illegal abortion, and possession of…

A faction of Boko Haram insurgents has reportedly executed more than seven captives who attempted to escape from their hideout in Borno State, in what sources described as a chilling escalation of brutality in the North-East. The victims, said to be among dozens of abducted civilians held by the Jama’atu Ahlis-Sunna Lidda’Awati Wal-Jihad faction, were killed on Tuesday evening after their escape attempt failed. Sources familiar with the incident told PLATFORM TIMES that the executions were carried out in the presence of other captives, including women and children, to instil fear and deter further escape attempts. It was gathered that…

The Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday convicted and sentenced a former Minister of Power, Saleh Mamman, to a cumulative 75 years’ imprisonment over ₦33.8bn fraud linked to the Zungeru and Mambilla hydroelectric power projects. Trial judge, James Omotosho, found Mamman guilty on all 12 counts of conspiracy and money laundering filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. The court ordered that the sentences run consecutively, resulting in a total jail term of 75 years. Mamman was, however, convicted and sentenced in absentia after failing to appear in court for the judgment and previous proceedings. Justice Omotosho held…

President Bola Tinubu has disclosed that Nigeria will spend an estimated $11.6bn on debt servicing in 2026, warning that the burden could significantly constrain investments in key sectors of the economy. Tinubu made this known on Tuesday while speaking at the Africa Forward Summit held in Nairobi, according to a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga. The President said nearly half of the country’s projected revenue for 2026 would be committed to servicing debt obligations under the current global financial system. He lamented that rising debt costs were diverting funds away from critical sectors…

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has expressed concern over low tax compliance among residents of the nation’s capital, warning that inadequate revenue generation could undermine ongoing infrastructure development. Wike raised the alarm on Tuesday while inspecting key projects, including the Karsana estate access roads and the Dei-Dei to Life Camp road in Abuja. The minister said the FCT administration was grappling with financial constraints, noting that allocations from the federation account were insufficient to meet basic obligations such as salary payments. He stressed that improved internally generated revenue, particularly through tax compliance, had become critical to…