Author: Platform Times Newspaper

Despite a steady rise in allocations from the Federation Account and improved internally generated revenue (IGR), several state governments, including Ogun, Ekiti, Lagos, Ondo, Plateau and Imo, have failed to announce any end-of-year bonus or 13th-month salary for workers, heightening concerns over government priorities as civil servants grapple with worsening economic hardship. Findings by PLATFORM TIMES across the states reveal a growing sense of frustration among workers, many of whom say the silence from their governments contrasts sharply with public claims of fiscal stability and expanding revenues. While a few states have moved to cushion the festive season for workers…

The Presidency has clarified that the recent United States airstrikes carried out in parts of Sokoto State were strictly targeted at terrorists and not directed at any ethnic or religious group, amid growing public debate over the operation. According to the Federal Government, the strike was a joint military operation between Nigeria and the United States, executed after weeks of intelligence gathering, surveillance and strategic coordination by both countries. The Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Policy Communication, Mr Daniel Bwala, made the clarification in a statement posted on his official X (formerly Twitter) handle on Tuesday. “For clarity,…

Veteran Nigerian singer, Innocent Idibia, popularly known as 2Baba, has declared that he has put an end to what he described as reckless lifestyle choices that once defined public perception of his private life. The award-winning musician made the statement in Benin City, Edo State, during the MC EdoPikin Undiluted with StarBoy and Legends show, moments before stepping on stage to perform. Speaking candidly to the audience, the African Queen crooner said he now feels compelled to openly address long-standing narratives surrounding his relationships with women, insisting that he no longer lives the way many people assume. “I get confession.…

Prominent Islamic cleric, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, has strongly condemned the United States military airstrike carried out in parts of Sokoto State on Christmas Day, describing it as a dangerous “neo-Crusade” and a direct assault on Islam and Northern Nigerian Muslims. Gumi, in a statement issued on Friday, faulted the justification given by U.S. authorities for the strike, warning that foreign military involvement would further destabilise Nigeria and deepen religious divisions. “The attacks are symbolic of a harbinger of a neo-Crusade war against Islam,” the cleric said. “Why attack Sokoto, where over 90 per cent of the population are Muslims and…

The Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) and the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) have thrown their weight behind the United States’ Christmas Day airstrikes on camps of the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP) in Sokoto State, describing the action as a timely intervention in Nigeria’s protracted war against terrorism. However, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has cautioned against civilian casualties, alleging that some of the strikes destroyed farmlands and private buildings in Sokoto and Kwara states. The strikes, announced by U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday, marked America’s first direct kinetic military action on Nigerian soil. They came…

The Nigeria Police Force has arrested two notorious bandits linked to a spate of killings and kidnappings across Katsina, Zamfara, Niger and Kwara states, following public outrage over a viral video in which one of the suspects openly flaunted firearms and large sums of cash. The suspects, identified as Abubakar Usman, popularly known as Siddi, and Shehu Mohammadu, also called Gide, were apprehended on December 19 along the Komen–Masallaci axis of Kaiama Local Government Area of Kwara State by operatives of the Force Intelligence Department–Intelligence Response Team. In a statement issued on Friday, the Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer,…

A security analyst, Zagazola Makama, has faulted the United States military airstrikes carried out in parts of Sokoto State on Christmas night, describing the operation as a case of wrong targeting with no impact on terrorist groups operating in Nigeria. The airstrikes, which triggered panic among residents, were reportedly carried out in Jabo community, Tambuwal Local Government Area of the state. A viral video circulating on social media showed frightened villagers fleeing as flames rose from the site of one of the strikes. As of the time of filing this report, details of the operation remain sketchy, while no casualties…

The Ogun State chapter of the Labour Party has faulted Governor Dapo Abiodun over the procurement of new Sports Utility Vehicles for the 20 local government chairmen in the state, describing the move as insensitive and a reflection of misplaced priorities. The party said the purchase came at a time when residents across the state are contending with deteriorating road networks, rising cost of living and poor access to basic amenities. In a statement issued on Thursday and made available to journalists, the state chairman of the party, High Chief Oluwabukola Soyoye, criticised the Abiodun-led administration for what she described…

The Ogun State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has launched a scathing attack on Governor Dapo Abiodun over his Christmas presentation of 20 Sport Utility Vehicles (SUVs) to local government council chairmen, describing the gesture as a “brazen affront” to local government autonomy and transparent grassroots administration. In a statement issued on Friday, by its Publicity Secretary, Otunba Arc. Kayode Adebayo, the opposition party alleged that the gift was suspicious and smacked of quid pro quo, warning that it could amount to trading luxury vehicles for statutory rights and financial allocations due to the councils. The PDP accused…

A prominent grassroots political advocate, Chief Olalekan  Shoyinka, popularly known as Ayinla Egba, has commended Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, for gifting brand-new 2025 Toyota Corolla Cross vehicles to local government chairmen across the state, but warned that the gesture has reopened critical questions about the autonomy and funding of local councils. Shoyinka, the Convener of the United Premier Movement (UPM), Abeokuta, in a statement on Thursday, described the Christmas Day presentation of the vehicles as a “commendable and symbolic” act that reflects the governor’s recognition of grassroots administrators and fulfilment of a campaign promise. He noted that the gesture,…