Author: Platform Times Newspaper

In a move that has sent ripples through Nigeria’s political landscape, Abubakar Atiku Abubakar, son of former Vice President and 2023 Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has defected to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and openly pledged support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027. The defection, which took place on Thursday at the National Assembly, is being viewed as one of the most symbolically significant cross-party shifts ahead of the next election cycle, given Atiku Abubakar’s status as one of the most formidable opposition figures in the country. Popularly known as Abba,…

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has been accused of attempting to coerce a defendant in the ongoing $4.5bn fraud trial of a former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, into implicating the ex-apex bank chief. The allegation was made on Thursday at the Lagos State High Court, Ikeja, by a defence lawyer, Mr Nnamdi Offial, while testifying in a trial-within-trial ordered by Justice Rahman Oshodi to determine whether a statement made by the second defendant, Henry Omoile, to the EFCC was given voluntarily. Omoile, alongside Emefiele, is standing trial on multiple counts bordering on corruption, receiving…

The Federal Government has reiterated its long-standing position that it does not pay ransom to secure the release of kidnapped victims, insisting that those rescued are freed through sustained military pressure and intelligence-driven operations. The Minister of Defence, Gen. Christopher Musa (retd.), made the clarification during an interview with BBC Hausa, monitored in Kaduna, amid persistent public speculation that ransom payments are often made to free abducted persons, particularly schoolchildren. “The Federal Government does not pay ransom. Even if others do, the Federal Government does not. We do not pay ransom,” Musa stated emphatically. According to him, the rescue of…

The Federal Ministry of Works has proposed to spend over N500m in the 2026 fiscal year on empowerment programmes including the training of hairdressers and make-up artists, distribution of grinding machines, motorcycles and mini-vans, as well as anti-drug abuse campaigns across several states of the federation. Details of the controversial allocations are contained in the 2026 Appropriation Bill obtained from the Budget Office of the Federation on Thursday. A breakdown of the document shows that the projects, spread across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones, are largely constituency-based and fall outside the traditional mandate of the Ministry of Works, which is responsible…

…Alaafin absent As Gov  Kicks Off Rotational Leadership Of Obas’ Council Daud Olatunji Governor Seyi Makinde on Thursday stirred fresh reactions across Oyo State as he named the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja, as the inaugural chairman of the newly constituted Oyo State Council of Obas and Chiefs, sidelining expectations surrounding the Alaafin of Oyo. The development followed the formal inauguration of the reconstituted council at the House of Chiefs Hall, Secretariat, Ibadan, in line with the Oyo State Council of Obas and Chiefs (Further Amendments) Law, 2025, recently passed by the state House of Assembly. Under the new…

Widows of fallen Nigerian military personnel on Thursday decried what they described as years of neglect and abandonment by relevant authorities, even as the country marked the 2026 Armed Forces Celebration and Remembrance Day. The widows, who spoke during the wreath-laying ceremony held at the Tafawa Balewa Square, Victoria Island, Lagos, said the worsening economic situation and rising cost of living had compounded their hardship, years after losing their husbands in active service. Coordinator of the Military Widows Association, Navy Town, Mrs Helen Amodu, lamented that the group life insurance of her late husband, Capt. F. E. Amodu, had remained…

Former Senator representing Kaduna Central, Shehu Sani, has warned that the Federal Government’s ongoing economic reforms risk collapsing if Nigerians continue to endure hardship without tangible relief, stressing that public support can only be sustained when policies translate into improved living conditions. Sani gave the warning while speaking on Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese, Ijebu, where he said reforms, no matter how well-intentioned, would fail if citizens are left to absorb their pains without adequate cushioning. He argued that while policies such as the removal of fuel subsidy were economically inevitable, the government mishandled…

Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU), Ago-Iwoye, has announced plans to graduate 5,808 students, including 147 First Class degree holders, at its 35th Convocation Ceremonies for the 2024/2025 academic session. The week-long ceremonies will hold at the university’s main campus in Ago-Iwoye from Thursday, January 22 to Saturday, January 31, 2026, with the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Ayodeji Johnson Agboola, presiding over the events. Activities will commence on Thursday, January 22, with a press conference at the University Senate Chamber, followed by an undergraduate graduating class meeting with the Vice-Chancellor. Other highlights lined up include a health walk for staff and students, a special…

The Ogun State chapter of the Labour Party (LP) has condemned the ongoing electronic membership registration being conducted by the All Progressives Congress (APC), describing it as a deceptive political exercise aimed at masking what it called the failure of the Dapo Abiodun administration. In a statement issued on Wednesday, the Ogun LP Chairman, Chief Oluwabukola Soyoye, said the APC’s statewide e-registration was “a digital scam designed to mislead the public into believing that the ruling party still enjoys popular support in Ogun State.” Soyoye alleged that contrary to the APC’s claim that the exercise was a routine membership registration…

The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) has arrested a Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) tanker driver who allegedly struck and killed a commercial motorcyclist and his passenger along Epe–Ijebu Road in Epe, Lagos. The Special Adviser to the Governor on Transportation, Mr. Sola Giwa, confirmed the incident, which occurred at Pokia Junction, inward Araga, during a statement on Wednesday. Preliminary investigations revealed that the motorcyclist, carrying a male passenger, was riding against traffic on a prohibited one-way route when the tanker, reportedly speeding, collided with them. Both victims died instantly. “This is a clear violation of traffic laws,” Giwa said.…