Author: Platform Times Newspaper

Nigerian banks are intensifying efforts to meet the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) 2026 recapitalisation deadline as the sector’s overall capital shortfall narrows to ₦783.4 billion, following a major funding breakthrough by Stanbic IBTC Holdings. Stanbic IBTC recently concluded a ₦148.7 billion rights issue, which was oversubscribed by 21.9 per cent, raising a total of ₦181.4 billion. Combined with an additional ₦140 billion capital injection from its parent company, the bank has now met the apex bank’s ₦200 billion minimum capital requirement for national banks. This development leaves six banks — FCMB, Fidelity Bank, GTCO, UBA, Sterling Bank, and…

…Losses exceed $1.5bn annually as lawmakers seek urgent action The Presidency has raised alarm over the deepening malnutrition crisis in Nigeria, disclosing that the country now ranks second globally and first in Africa for child malnutrition. Senior Special Assistant to President Bola Tinubu on Public Health, Dr. Uju Anwukah, made the disclosure in Abuja during a Nutrition and Food Security Summit organised by the House of Representatives Committee on Nutrition and Food Security. Anwukah, who spoke on the topic “Strengthening Nutrition Coordination in Nigeria through the N-774 Initiative,” described the situation as a national emergency requiring urgent and coordinated response.…

Economic experts and civil society groups have raised alarm over Nigeria’s mounting debt burden, warning that the country may be heading toward a fiscal cliff, as debt servicing alone is projected to gulp ₦14.32 trillion—representing 25 per cent of the 2025 national budget. The alarm was sounded on Wednesday in Abuja during the National Debt Conference, jointly organised by the African Network for Economic and Environmental Justice (ANEEJ) and the African Forum and Network on Debt and Development (AFRODAD). The conference brought together development economists, anti-corruption campaigners, and policy advocates, all expressing deep concern over the government’s growing reliance on…

…  Hotel Manager, Staff Arrested Operatives of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) have busted a major human trafficking ring operating out of a popular hotel in Katsina State, rescuing three young women who were allegedly forced into prostitution. The raid, which took place in the heart of Katsina township, led to the arrest of the hotel manager and two of his staff, all suspected to be part of an interstate trafficking syndicate that recruits young women from southern Nigeria and forces them into sexual slavery in the North. According to a statement signed by…

Yusrah Lawal  A 200-level student of Babcock University, Olaoluwa Subomi Lawson, has died by suicide at his father’s residence inside the Redeemed Christian Church of God’s Redemption Camp, along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway in Ogun State. PLATFORM TIMES gathered that the 19-year-old student was found hanged in his room, with family sources saying he took his life under yet-to-be-determined circumstances. The tragic incident was confirmed to security operatives by a relative of the deceased who resides in Festac Town, Lagos. According to sources close to the family, Olaoluwa’s mother, Mrs. Olufunke Lawson, who lives in the United Kingdom, reportedly alerted the…

The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, has called on the National Assembly to urgently pass the bill seeking to criminalise unexplained wealth, stressing that Nigeria cannot win the war against corruption without it. Speaking on Wednesday at the National Conference on Public Accounts and Fiscal Governance in Abuja, Olukoyede said the bill, which was rejected by the last assembly, is critical to empowering anti-graft agencies to investigate individuals whose assets exceed their known legitimate earnings. “If we don’t make individuals accountable for what they have, we will never get it right,” Olukoyede said. “Help…

Presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 general elections, Peter Obi, has debunked claims linking him to the late Gen. Sani Abacha’s infamous military regime, saying his engagement under the junta was purely civic and not political. Obi, a former governor of Anambra State, came under renewed criticism over allegations that he was politically affiliated with Abacha’s administration—an era marred by massive corruption, human rights abuses, and clampdowns on civil liberties. In a statement posted on his official X handle on Wednesday, Obi clarified that his only engagement with Abacha’s government was as a co-opted member of a…

A former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, has alleged that several governors and top-ranking members of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) are secretly aligning with an emerging opposition coalition ahead of the 2027 general elections. In a revealing interview with TVC News, Lawal—who officially dumped the APC on June 29—said these influential figures, though still publicly loyal to the party, are covertly working to unseat President Bola Tinubu’s administration. “Yes, there are APC members working with the coalition, and they will speak for themselves. Some may not be bold like me, but many—governors included—have privately…

…Ordered To Refund Victim Within 30 Days An Abuja-based lawyer, Everestus Chinedum Ugwuowo, has been suspended from legal practice in Nigeria for five years over his involvement in a N29 million property fraud. The Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC), in a damning verdict, found Ugwuowo guilty of “infamous conduct” after he was accused of fraudulently collecting N29 million from a client, Mrs. Grace Dauda, for the sale of a property he had no legal authority to sell. Delivering the ruling, a five-member panel led by former Chief Judge of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Justice Ishaq Bello, directed that…

…Only those above 45 with $10,000 bank balance eligible for tourist visa The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has again imposed strict travel restrictions on Nigerian passport holders, banning all transit visa applications and introducing tougher requirements for tourist visas. In a new directive circulated to travel agents on Tuesday, UAE authorities declared that Nigerian citizens between the ages of 18 and 45 are no longer eligible to apply for tourist visas unless they are traveling in groups or with official sponsorship. The UAE also announced a total suspension of transit visa applications from Nigerians, a move that has raised…