Author: Platform Times Newspaper

Daud Olatunji At least 21 per cent of Nigerian women aged between 15 and 49 have experienced physical or sexual violence, while more than half of survivors do not report the abuse or seek help, stakeholders have disclosed. The alarming figures were revealed on Friday in Abuja during the launch of the Sexual and Gender-Based Violence Media Corps, an initiative of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons in collaboration with the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance. The programme is supported by the European Union through its End Sexual and Gender-Based Violence Programme. The stakeholders…

Former Vice-President and African Democratic Congress presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has alerted security agencies to what he described as a suspicious payment made into his private bank account by an individual or entity he said he does not know. Atiku’s Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, disclosed this in a statement issued on Friday, saying the transaction carried the narration, “Contribution Electioneering Campaign.” According to Shaibu, neither Atiku nor his campaign organisation solicited, authorised or had prior knowledge of the payment. He said the account into which the money was paid was a strictly private account and its…

A rescued abductee from Woro community in Kwara State, Fatima Mohammed, has recounted the harrowing conditions she and other victims endured during more than six months in terrorist captivity. Mohammed, one of the abductees recently rescued from the terrorists, said the captives were forced to sleep in the open, endured hunger and had no spare clothes throughout their ordeal. She said whenever rain soaked their clothes, the victims had no option but to remain in them until their bodies dried the clothes. “There were no rooms to sleep in. We slept in the open, even when it was raining. “We…

Today on Platform Times Newspaper, 7th August, 2026. Visit www.platformtimes.com.ng for many more stories.

Mujeeb Akindoyin The Academia Campus Journalists (TACJ), University of Ibadan, Abeokuta Chapter, has honoured the Editor of PLATFORM TIMES, Daud Olatunji, veteran broadcaster Mr Eddy Aina, public affairs analyst Alhaji  Ola Animasaun, and the Ogun State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Oluseyi Babaseyi, for their outstanding contributions to journalism, public communication and nation-building. The awards were presented during the association’s 10th Anniversary and 9th Annual Symposium, held on July 29, 2026, at the Theatre Arts Hall of the Federal College of Education, Abeokuta. The event, themed, “Journalism and Insecurity: The Roles of Campus Journalists and Professionals in Promoting Peace and…

…Orders Hospitals To Set Up Violence Prevention Teams, Tighten Security …Warns Perpetrators Of Prosecution As EFCC-Uyo Hospital Incident Triggers Nationwide Reform Daud Olatunji The Federal Government has ordered the immediate implementation of sweeping measures to protect doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers from harassment, intimidation and physical assault following a surge in violent incidents across public health facilities. The directive comes after a ministerial committee investigating the harassment of health workers uncovered at least 18 reported cases of assault, intimidation and harassment in Federal Tertiary Health Institutions within the last 12 months, exposing what authorities described as a growing threat…

…Says Nigeria Was Living In ‘Fiscal Illusion’ Before Reform Daud Olatunji The Federal Government has defended President Bola Tinubu’s decision to remove fuel subsidy, admitting that the policy pushed more Nigerians into poverty but insisting that the reform was necessary to rescue the country’s economy from what it described as years of “fiscal illusion.” Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, Taiwo Oyedele, stated this on Thursday at the Seventh Africa Emerging Markets Forum in Abuja. According to him, while the subsidy removal worsened poverty in the short term, the policy laid the foundation for long-term…

… Abiodun says no ransom paid for victims’ release • One student hospitalised after sustaining gunshot injury The seven students of Gateway ICT Polytechnic, Saapade, in Remo North Local Government Area of Ogun State who were abducted by gunmen last week have regained their freedom following a coordinated rescue operation involving security agencies, local hunters and vigilantes. Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, announced the rescue on Thursday in Abeokuta, saying none of the victims’ families paid ransom before they were freed. The governor said the operation, which culminated in the arrest of two suspected kidnappers, underscored the state’s determination to…

Former Inspectors-General of Police have submitted fresh recommendations to the Nigeria Police Force on the proposed establishment of state police, raising concerns over aspects of the framework as the Federal Government moves closer to implementing the long-debated policing reform. The Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja during a workshop organised by the National Institute of Police Studies, saying the contributions of the retired police chiefs would be incorporated into the final draft of the proposed framework. According to the IGP, the former police chiefs met with him to review the draft and suggest improvements aimed…

…Directs institutions to focus on engineering, technology, innovation The Federal Government has directed polytechnics across the country to begin phasing out non-technical programmes that fall outside their statutory mandate, in a major policy shift aimed at strengthening Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) and boosting Nigeria’s industrialisation drive. The Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Alausa, issued the directive on Thursday in Abuja during the inauguration of the Governing Board of the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE). Alausa said polytechnics must return to their core mandate by prioritising science, engineering, technology, innovation and other technical disciplines capable of…