Author: Platform Times Newspaper

A former Deputy Speaker of the Ogun State House of Assembly, Remmy Hazzan, has expressed confidence that the governorship ticket of the All Progressives Congress in Ogun State, led by Olamilekan Solomon Adeola and his running mate, Kudirat Adegunwa Balogun, will accelerate development and deliver good governance across the state. Hazzan, who represented the same local government area as Balogun during his time in the state assembly, described her nomination as a “well-deserved recognition” of her competence, integrity, and longstanding service to the people. PLATFORM TIMES reports that the new deputy governorship candidate for APC was unveiled by the party…

… Africa Accounts For 94% of $3.18bn Total …Rising Hardship Fuels Surge In Telecom-Based Lending Daud Olatunji Mobile phone users in Nigeria and other emerging markets borrowed airtime worth $3.18bn (about N4.61tn) on credit in 2025, underscoring growing reliance on short-term digital lending amid worsening economic conditions. This was disclosed in the 2025 consolidated financial statements of fintech firm, Optasia, which showed that airtime advances rose by 12.3 per cent from $2.83bn recorded in 2024. The report indicated that Africa remained the dominant market, accounting for $2.99bn or 94.2 per cent of total airtime credit disbursed during the period, compared…

President Bola Tinubu has assured Nigerian inmates held in Ethiopian correctional facilities that his administration has not abandoned them, following the signing of a prisoner transfer agreement between both countries. The assurance was delivered on his behalf by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, during a visit to Nigerian inmates at the Aba Samuel Prison in Ethiopia on Thursday, June 11. Odumegwu-Ojukwu also announced the activation of a Transfer of Sentenced Persons Agreement recently concluded between Nigeria and Ethiopia, describing it as part of the Tinubu administration’s citizen-centred diplomacy under the 4-D foreign policy framework. She said the initiative…

…Affected Staff Found Guilty Of Abuse Of Office, Intimidation … Disciplinary Action Targets Faculty Of Law, Science Departments Daud Olatunji The Governing Council of Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University, Anambra State, has dismissed five staff members, including two professors, over allegations of sexual abuse, harassment, intimidation, extortion and other forms of unethical conduct. The decision was taken at the university’s 122nd Governing Council meeting held on June 12, 2026, according to a statement issued on Sunday in Awka by the institution’s Public Relations Officer, Harrison Madubueze. Those affected include Prof. C.C. Nwabachili, immediate past Dean of the Faculty of Law;…

Human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, has warned the Federal Government and state governors against negotiating, rewarding, or granting amnesty to terrorists and armed groups, insisting that such actions are not only unlawful but punishable under Nigeria’s anti-terrorism legislation. Falana said the growing practice of engaging in dialogue with terrorists and bandits, coupled with alleged payments and rehabilitation packages for so-called “repentant” fighters, amounts to a breach of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act. He stated this while delivering the keynote address at the Amnesty International Second Annual General Meeting held in Abuja on Friday, June…

The Ogun State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has mocked the All Progressives Congress (APC) over an alleged claim that its deputy governorship candidate possesses “30 decades of experience,” a description the opposition party described as misleading and exaggerated. A PDP chieftain, Waliu Oladipupo, in a statement credited to Oyekoya Akintunde, ridiculed the claim following the unveiling of the APC running mate, Mrs Kudirat Abiodun Balogun (née Adegunwa), ahead of the 2027 governorship election in Ogun State Ogun State. The PDP, in the post which circulated briefly on social media before being deleted, lampooned the description of “30…

No fewer than 11 persons, including a pregnant woman and six children, have died following a tragic boat mishap in the Makurdi area of Benue State. PLATFORM TIMES gathered that the incident occurred on Saturday evening when the victims were returning to their community after attending a burial ceremony. Eyewitness accounts indicated that the ill-fated boat, carrying over 40 passengers, capsized midstream between Wadata and Daududawada communities during a heavy downpour accompanied by strong winds. A local vigilante commander, Nura Umar, who confirmed the incident, said the victims were residents of Daududawada, an island settlement located behind the Nigerian Army…

The Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU) has demanded equal allowance structure with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), insisting that workers across the university system face identical economic pressures and should not be treated differently in welfare allocation. The union’s General Secretary, Peters Adeyemi, made the demand on Sunday while speaking with journalists on the sidelines of the 114th session of the International Labour Conference International Labour Conference in Geneva, Switzerland Geneva. Adeyemi said the ongoing renegotiation with the federal government must reflect fairness across all categories of workers in the university system, arguing that…

The family of a former Director of Defence Information, Rabe Abubakar, has raised concerns over the circumstances surrounding the release of his corpse by bandits, describing the development as unclear and troubling. The deceased’s son, Isyaka Rabe Abubakar, said the family had no knowledge of how his father’s remains were retrieved from his abductors before burial, hours after the Katsina State Government announced his death. The retired Major General was abducted alongside his wife about two weeks ago in Katsina State. The state government had on Saturday disclosed that he died in captivity due to complications arising from diabetes and…

Former Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Yusuf Buratai (retd.), has raised fresh concerns over Nigeria’s deteriorating security situation, warning that top political office holders, including ministers, governors and senators, could become targets of bandits and insurgents if urgent action is not taken. Buratai issued the warning in a statement on Sunday while reacting to the killing of a senior military officer, Maj.-Gen. Rabe Abubakar, describing the incident as a dangerous escalation in the country’s security crisis. According to him, the killing of a general by non-state actors signals a significant breakdown in the nation’s security architecture and a weakening…