Author: Platform Times Newspaper

The Federal Government has commenced moves to abolish the option of fines for convicted drug traffickers, proposing mandatory prison sentences of between 15 and 25 years in a bid to strengthen Nigeria’s fight against illicit drug trafficking. The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency said the proposed amendment to the NDLEA Act is being driven through the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice and would soon be transmitted to the National Assembly as an executive bill. Speaking  on Monday, on a private TV programme, the NDLEA spokesman, Femi Babafemi, described the existing provision allowing convicted…

Nigeria has recovered 23 cultural artefacts from Switzerland, including 18 looted Benin Kingdom treasures and five other historical objects, in what authorities described as another milestone in the country’s campaign to reclaim its stolen cultural heritage. The artefacts were formally handed over to the Federal Government at the National Museum in Lagos on Monday during a restitution ceremony attended by senior Nigerian and Swiss officials. The returned collection comprises 18 Benin artefacts—commonly referred to as the Benin Bronzes—which were looted during the British invasion of the Benin Kingdom in 1897 and later found their way into Swiss museums. The Swiss…

A civil society organisation, the Centre for Reform and Public Advocacy, has approached the Federal High Court in Kano seeking an order disqualifying President Bola Ahmed Tinubu from contesting the 2027 presidential election over renewed allegations of certificate forgery. The suit, marked FHC/K/CS/312/2026, names President Tinubu, the Independent National Electoral Commission and Chicago State University as defendants. According to court documents, the plaintiff alleged that Tinubu presented forged academic credentials from Chicago State University as well as a fake National Youth Service Corps discharge certificate to INEC during the 2023 presidential election. The organisation further claimed that the President did…

…Introduces New Uniforms, Tech-Driven Mobilisation …Six-Week Orientation To Focus On Digital Skills, Entrepreneurship Daud Olatunji The Federal Government has approved a sweeping overhaul of the National Youth Service Corps, proposing to end over five decades of military leadership of the scheme by appointing a civilian Director-General, while introducing technology-driven mobilisation, redesigned uniforms and a revamped orientation programme focused on digital skills and entrepreneurship. The reforms, approved by the Federal Executive Council on Monday, represent the most extensive restructuring of the NYSC since its establishment in 1973 and are aimed at making the scheme more responsive to Nigeria’s security realities, labour…

A notorious terrorist commander, Kachalla Maha, has claimed that members of the Nigerian security forces deployed to hunt him are secretly working for his network and leaking classified operational information ahead of military offensives. The claim was contained in a viral audio recording in which the wanted kingpin allegedly held a conversation in Hausa with a government-linked intermediary identified only as “Comrade,” who repeatedly urged him to embrace peace and end the wave of killings across communities in Katsina State. In the recording, Maha, who has been linked to several deadly attacks in Katsina and the killing of retired General…

Suspected Boko Haram insurgents on Monday invaded Lassa community in Askira/Uba Local Government Area of Borno State, abducting an unspecified number of students writing the ongoing National Examinations Council examinations and several teachers, while killing at least one teacher. The attack, which occurred on a busy market day, threw the community into panic as the gunmen, reportedly dressed in military camouflage and riding motorcycles, stormed the town, firing sporadically before whisking away the victims. Residents told journalists that the insurgents struck while candidates were sitting for their NECO examination, taking the students and teachers to an unknown destination. A teacher…

Grace Adeleke Kwara State Governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, has relieved all political aides serving in his administration of their appointments as part of a cabinet reshuffle aimed at injecting fresh energy into governance and creating opportunities for more members of the ruling party. The affected officials include all Special Advisers, Advisers, Senior Special Assistants, Special Assistants, the Deputy Chief of Staff, and the Principal Private Secretary to the Governor. The development was announced on Monday in a statement issued by the Deputy Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mashood Agboola, who described the exercise as a minor cabinet shake-up. According to…

Former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, Atiku Abubakar, on Monday alleged that there were fresh moves by unnamed forces within the ruling establishment to prevent the ADC from participating in the 2027 general elections. Atiku claimed he had received “credible information” indicating that political and legal strategies were being coordinated to stop the opposition party from appearing on the ballot, warning that such a move would amount to a serious assault on Nigeria’s constitutional democracy. The allegation was contained in a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu. According to…

The Nigerian Education Loan Fund has threatened to take action against tertiary institutions allegedly withholding tuition refunds from students who paid their fees before receiving loans under the Federal Government’s Student Loan Scheme. NELFUND also expressed concern over what it described as arbitrary increases in tuition fees and other institutional charges by some higher institutions, warning that such practices undermine the objectives of the student loan initiative. In a statement issued on Sunday by its Director of Strategic Communications, Oseyemi Oluwatuyi, the Fund said it had received reports that some institutions were delaying or refusing to refund students whose tuition…

…Action comes hours after Abeokuta NBA announced three-day court shutdown Zaynab Abioye The industrial action by lawyers in Ogun State widened on Monday as the Nigerian Bar Association, Ota Branch, declared a three-day boycott of courts over what it described as anti-lawyer policies introduced by the state judiciary. The disclosure  came just hours after the NBA Abeokuta Branch announced a similar three-day boycott of courts in the state capital, signalling an escalation of the dispute between legal practitioners and the Ogun State Judiciary. In a notice signed by the Chairman of the NBA Ota Branch, Chief K.K. Ajose (Mrs.), and…