Author: Platform Times Newspaper

Ayomide Awe An All Progressives Congress chieftain in Ogun State, Olootu Bolaji Adeniji, has challenged those questioning the ancestral roots of the party’s 2027 governorship candidate, Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola, popularly known as Yayi, to produce concrete evidence to substantiate their claims. Adeniji, a member of the APC Campaign Public Communication Council, made the challenge on Tuesday while featuring on the “Citizen Forum” programme of Rock City FM in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital. His comments came amid renewed controversy over Adeola’s ancestry after former Nigerian Ambassador to Zambia and Malawi, Ambassador Folake Marcus-Bello, and other critics questioned the APC…

Daud Olatunji Retired workers of Ebonyi State University have alleged that no fewer than 209 of their colleagues have died while waiting for pensions and gratuities allegedly owed them by the state government and the university management. The retirees, who spoke in a video shared online by activist Chuks Eric, appealed to the Ebonyi State Government and the university authorities to urgently settle their outstanding retirement benefits. Several of the retirees who appeared in the video described severe financial and health difficulties, saying the alleged non-payment had made it difficult for them to afford food, medication and other basic needs.…

….Workers Reject Food Palliatives ….Demand Fuel Intervention Fund, Inflation-Linked Pay Reviews Daud Olatunji Civil servants under the Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council, Trade Union Side (JNPSNC), have demanded that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu slash the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly known as petrol, to N500 per litre, while approving an immediate wage award for workers. The workers also want the Federal Government to commence negotiations for a new National Minimum Wage ahead of January 2027, with a proposed N500,000 monthly minimum salary for entry-level public servants under the new wage structure. The demands were contained in a…

The Plateau State Government has imposed an immediate dusk-to-dawn curfew on three local government areas following emerging security concerns in parts of the state. The affected local government areas are Barkin Ladi, Bokkos and Mangu, where residents have been ordered to restrict their movement between 6pm and 6am until further notice. The directive, which took effect on Monday, September 21, 2026, was announced by the state Commissioner for Information and Communication, Joyce Lohya Ramnap, in a statement issued on Monday. The government said the measure was aimed at giving security agencies room to stabilise the affected areas, protect lives and…

Daud Olatunji A compliance officer with United Bank for Africa, UBA, Williams Abimbola, has told a Federal High Court in Abuja how about ₦1.635bn allegedly moved from a Bauchi State Government sub-treasury account to a private company, JASFAD Resources Enterprises. Abimbola, who appeared as the first prosecution witness in the trial of Bauchi State Accountant-General, Sirajo Muhammed Jaja, and four others, gave details of several transactions allegedly made from the government account to the company. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission is prosecuting Jaja and the four other defendants on an amended five-count charge bordering on money laundering, diversion of…

Grace Adeleke The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has declared that the prolonged tenure of Ibrahim Magu as acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission was unlawful. The appellate court, in a judgment delivered on Monday, overturned a 2019 Federal High Court judgment which had upheld the continued retention of Magu as acting chairman despite the Senate’s rejection of his nomination as substantive head of the anti-graft agency. The ruling followed an appeal filed by Abuja-based lawyer, Johnmary Jideobi, who had challenged Magu’s continued occupation of the EFCC chairmanship after the Senate rejected his nomination twice. Magu…

…Urges party members to unite, focus on 2027 Daud Olatunji The governorship candidate of the African Democratic Congress in Ogun State, Otunba Jimi Adebisi Lawal, has celebrated his birthday with party leaders and members at the ADC secretariat in Itoko, Abeokuta, days after the Court of Appeal dismissed a challenge to his emergence as the party’s governorship candidate. Lawal, who marked the occasion alongside the state executive, local government chairmen, women leaders, candidates and other party stakeholders, said he deliberately chose the party secretariat for the celebration to demonstrate his commitment to the ADC and its members. The gathering also…

…Says 600 million Africans still without electricity Grace Adeleke Africa’s richest man and President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has announced plans to invest more than $10 billion in the continent’s power sector, saying reliable electricity is critical to Africa’s industrialisation and economic transformation. Dangote disclosed the plan in an interview with Al Jazeera, where he said his group could redirect funds from other areas of its business, including steel, to prioritise investments in electricity generation and related power infrastructure. He said the planned investment would form part of a broader transformation expected across Africa within the next three…

Toyyibat Qasim The Inspector-General of Police, Tunji Disu, has warned politicians and their supporters against hiring thugs, buying votes, moving arms or threatening voters and electoral officials ahead of the 2027 general elections. Disu said the Nigeria Police Force would not tolerate electoral violence or other forms of malpractice, declaring that political actors must compete with ideas rather than violence. The IGP issued the warning on Monday at the sixth conference and retreat for senior police officers in Owerri, Imo State, where he also unveiled a six-pillar framework for policing the 2027 elections. According to him, the police would collaborate…

Zainab  Abioye The Osun State House of Assembly has commenced moves to establish a legally backed Park Management System across the state, weeks after deadly violence over the control of motor parks claimed the lives of at least two people, including a government ally identified as Ajagungbade Emir. The proposed legislation, which seeks to provide a formal framework for the administration and management of motor parks and garages, passed its first reading at the Assembly on Monday under the leadership of Speaker Adewale Egbedun. The development followed Governor Ademola Adeleke’s decision to reintroduce the Park Management System after violence reportedly…