Author: Platform Times Newspaper

Fawaz Adebisi The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA has revealed that in three years, 1,057.33348 hectares of cannabis farmland was destroyed as 50,901 perpetrators were also arrested. The chairman of the agency, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa revealed this on Monday while at the commissioning and handing over ceremony of an operational facility built and donated to NDLEA by the British government in Lagos. Marwa added that within the period, the agency prosecuted and convicted 9,034 of the perpetrators, seize 7,561 tonnes of illicit substances as well as 46 drug barons. In his words, the development has sent the right…

Fawaz Adebisi The South-West Caucus of the House of Representatives have described the acts of some recent agitators of Yoruba Nation as threat to the peace and stability of the region. In a statement signed, jointly, on Monday by the Chairman, Secretary, and Deputy Chief Whip of the caucus, James Faleke, Taofeek Ajilesoro, and Adewunmi Onanuga, respectively, the lawmakers totally condemned the act, calling for quick dialogue in addressing any grievances that led to the invasion. Recall that some masked men in military uniforms, armed with rifles and charms invaded the Oyo State Governor’s Office and the State House of…

Febe Falodun Former Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, highlighted leadership and not fuel subsidy removal or exchange rate, as Nigeria’s major problem. He made this statement during his speech at the Capacity-Enhancement Workshop for Senior Government Officials of Borno State on Monday. The workshop, with the theme ‘Enhancing Skills of Government Officials in Policy Implementation and Productive Human Resource Management’, took place in Maiduguri, the state capital. Mallam Nasiru El-Rufai, the lead presenter at the workshop, shared that he has only visited Kaduna State five times since leaving almost a year ago. He mentioned that he prefers not to…

Deborah Hundenu The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Monday, says inflation rate has increased from 31.70% in February 2024 to 33.20% in March 2024. According to the Inflation Report in March 2024, the Bureau in its Consumer Price Index (CPI) says, the inflation rate showed an increase of 1.50% points related to the previous month. However, the NBS also indicated that on a month-on-month basis, the headline inflation rate within March 2024 was 3.02%, which was 0.10% lower than the rate recorded in February 2024 (3.12%). The Bureau furthermore explained that this means in March 2024, the rate of…

Jelili Gbadamosi Nigeria, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger Republic have pooled €100 million to bolster the agricultural resilience of small-scale farmers in the Sahel region, aiming to combat desertification and land degradation. The initiative, announced by the International Fertilizer Development Centre, seeks to integrate soil, water, and biodiversity management through participatory planning. It was gathered that In 2023, the Food and Agriculture Organization warned of a looming food crisis affecting 26.5 million Nigerians by mid-2024, with states like Borno, Sokoto, Zamfara, and the Federal Capital Territory at higher risk due to insecurity and other challenges. The initiative aims…

Fawaz Adebisi The Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN has restored the national grid that collapsed in River State earlier today. This development comes four hours after a fire incident occured at the Afam Power Generating Station, resulting to total blackout in some states in the country. According to a statement by the spokesperson for the commission, Ndidi Mbah, the collapse led to the tripping of units at Afam III and Afam VI. He further noted that the fire incident destabilized the grid, causing partial collapse. “The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) announces the full restoration of the national grid following…

Febe Falodun Oyo State police command on Monday, paraded 21 persons  suspected to be Yoruba Nation agitators, including a woman and two elderly men. The suspects were apprehended for forcefully invading the Oyo State Government Secretariat on Saturday  They were arrested by a joint operation of security forces at the government Secretariat while attempting to seize control of the State House of Assembly, waving Yoruba Nation flags. During a press briefing, CP Adebola Hamzat, the State Commissioner of Police, confirmed the arrest of these 21 individuals and issued a strong warning to others with criminal intentions to vacate the state. …

Matthew Oladokun, the husband of abducted businesswoman Risikat Oladokun, has expressed frustration over the failure of the police to secure his wife’s release, even after paying a ransom of N5 million to her kidnappers. PLATFORM TIMES gathered that Risikat Oladokun was abducted by armed gunmen at her residence in Awa Ijebu, Ijebu North local government area of Ogun state, on Tuesday, March 12, aftet she returned from work. According to Matthew, the police have seemingly abandoned efforts to find his wife, while the abductors continue to demand additional ransom despite receiving the initial N5 million payment. Speaking to our correspondent…

As the global community marks the 10th anniversary of the abduction of Chibok Girls in Borno state in 2014, Amnesty International on Sunday said it will document crimes and violations committed by Boko Haram and the Nigerian military against girls since the start of the conflict in North East Nigeria in 2013. The organisation said the report will also detail their unique reintegration needs and aspirations to rebuild their lives. The Director of Amnesty International Nigeria, Isa Sanusi, in a statement said over 1,700 children have been abducted by gunmen since 2014 from 17 mass school abductions recorded in six…

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has officially verified the data released by the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), indicating a consecutive decline in Nigeria’s oil production for the second month in a row. According to NUPRC reports, crude drilling operations in March saw a notable decrease, with production dropping from 1.42 million barrels per day (bpd) in January to 1.23 million bpd in March, marking a significant loss of approximately 2.8 million barrels over the month. Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, acknowledged the declining trend, attributing it to issues on the Trans…