Author: Platform Times Newspaper

A fresh crisis is rocking the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ijebu East Local Government Area of Ogun State as party leaders and stakeholders are sharply divided over which local government should produce the party’s candidate for the Ijebu North/Ijebu East/Ogun Waterside Federal Constituency seat in the House of Representatives ahead of the 2027 general elections. The current lawmaker, Hon. Joseph Adegbesan, who was elected in 2023, is said to be eyeing a return bid. But growing opposition is mounting against his re-election on grounds of alleged poor performance and fears that his continued stay will further marginalise other local…

Troops of the Nigerian Army have rescued seven kidnapped passengers and arrested nine suspected terrorist informants during a series of operations across Zamfara, Katsina, and Sokoto States. A top military source confirmed the development to the News Agency of Nigeria on Thursday, noting that the raids were conducted under Operation FANSAN YAMMA, the ongoing offensive against terrorists and bandits in the North-West. In Katsina State, troops of the 17 Brigade responded to a distress call along the Sheme–Funtua highway, where terrorists had blocked the road with two trucks and abducted travellers. Soldiers engaged the gunmen in a fierce shootout, forcing…

A popular Nigerian comedian, Odey Mathias, widely known as General Odey, has recounted his harrowing 50-day ordeal in the custody of kidnappers, who collected a total ransom of ₦8 million before releasing him. Odey, who shared his experience on The Morning Brief programme on Channels Television on Thursday, said he was abducted on April 18, 2025, alongside 23 others while traveling to Calabar through the Oron/Uyo waterways. According to him, armed kidnappers ambushed their boat, opened fire, and forced them onto another vessel before ferrying them to an unknown creek community. “It was a very horrible experience, an unimaginable one…

The leadership of the Lagos State Council of the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) has been thrown into fresh crisis as its State Delegates’ Conference collapsed in disarray on Tuesday following allegations of government meddling in the electoral process. The election, convened to usher in new executive members of the Lagos TUC, was abruptly halted after delegates accused the state government of attempting to impose a candidate who was not duly nominated by his own union, the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN). Angry delegates stormed out of the venue after the national leadership of the TUC…

The Anambra State Police Command has arrested five suspected members of a violent armed robbery and kidnapping gang, including a former soldier who deserted the Nigerian Army. Spokesperson of the Command, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, disclosed this in a statement on Thursday, noting that the suspects were apprehended following an intelligence-led operation by the Rapid Response Squad in Awkuzu on Wednesday, August 27, 2025. Ikenga said the arrests came after the abduction of a farmer at Isiagu, Awka. The victim was later released after a ransom was paid. Acting on credible intelligence, operatives stormed the gang’s hideout at Notoko, Awka, where…

…Job creation, infrastructure top agenda …FG Pledges inclusive Process With States, Private Sector The National Economic Council (NEC) on Thursday approved the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Medium-Term Development Plan (2026–2030) and endorsed fresh measures to consolidate gains in polio vaccination coverage across the country. The 151st NEC meeting, held at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, was presided over by Vice President Kashim Shettima. Briefing journalists after the meeting, the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Atiku Bagudu, explained that the new medium-term plan would serve as a bridge between the outgoing 2021–2025 national development plan and the Nigeria Agenda 2050, the…

The Federal Government on Thursday destroyed no fewer than 1,316 illegal firearms recovered from terrorists, bandits, and other criminal groups, in what authorities described as a bold step to curb the proliferation of small arms fuelling insecurity across the country. The weapons were set ablaze and later smelted at the Muhammadu Buhari Cantonment in Giri, Abuja, under the supervision of the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW), with the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) providing oversight. National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, who led the exercise, said the spread of illicit weapons remained…

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has faulted the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) first Permanent Voter Card (PVC) pre-registration report, describing the figures as “statistically implausible” and “suggestive of manipulation.” INEC had recently published data from its online pre-registration exercise, broken down by gender, state, occupation, and disability status. However, the ADC, in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, on Thursday, alleged that the figures released by the electoral body contained glaring anomalies. Citing Osun State as an example, the party said the state reportedly recorded 393,269 new pre-registrations in just one week, far higher than…

The Oba of Benin, Omo N’Oba N’Edo Uku Akpolokpolo, Ewuare II, has suspended two palace chiefs for allegedly abandoning their traditional responsibilities. A statement issued on Thursday by the Secretary of the Benin Traditional Council, Frank Irabor, announced that the Izuwako of Benin, Chief John Igiehon, and the Oyenmwensoba of Benin, Chief Aimuiukpomonyako Oghogho (popularly known as Ebengho), were relieved of their duties with immediate effect. The council explained that the chiefs had been absent from palace activities for an extended period, a development which it said hindered their obligations to the throne. “The public is hereby advised to be…

The Federal Government on Thursday warned that Nigeria is battling a “triple burden” of malnutrition, with millions of citizens suffering from undernutrition, overnutrition, and severe micronutrient deficiencies. Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Daju Kachollom, disclosed this in Abuja at the Nigeria Health Watch Roundtable, themed “Fortifying Nigeria’s Future: Strengthening Nutrition through Local Solutions.” Represented by the Director of Nutrition, Ladidi Bako-Aiyegbusi, Ms Kachollom said the country’s worsening food crisis had left children, adolescent girls, and pregnant women most vulnerable. “Micronutrient deficiencies impair cognitive development, reduce productivity, and increase maternal and child mortality,” she said. Citing the 2024…