Author: Platform Times Newspaper

The Supreme Council for Shariah in Nigeria (SCSN) says the decision by some northern governors to close primary and secondary schools during Ramadan is appropriate. A statement by its Secretary-General, Nafiu Baba-Ahmad, in Kaduna on Thursday said the closure prioritises students’ well-being amid extreme heat conditions during the fasting period. Baba-Ahmad criticised organisations, including the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), for opposing the move, stating that state governments have full authority over school schedules. “Threats of legal or industrial action over the closures are unnecessary. CAN opposed a structured 25-day adjustment but remained silent during prolonged ASUU strikes,” Baba-Ahmad…

Ogun State Deputy Governor, Noimot Salako-Oyedele, has urged members of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) Information Chapel to leverage their professional platform to expose and shame perpetrators of domestic violence in society. She emphasized the urgency of addressing this societal blight during the Year 2025 Ramadan lecture themed ‘Domestic violence, growing global concern, Islamic panacea to the rescue’. Addressing attendees at the event held at the mini Arcade Ground, Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta, Engr. Salako-Oyedele stressed that domestic violence impacts everyone, whether as witnesses, victims, or perpetrators. Quoting Islamic teachings that forbid such acts, she stressed the need for collective action…

Daud Olatunji A former Minister of Communications, Maj. Gen. Tajudeen Olanrewaju (retd.), has condemned the reinstatement of Mudashiru Obasa as Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, describing it as a blow to democracy and a betrayal of legislative independence. In a statement issued on Thursday, Olanrewaju argued that democracy in Lagos suffered a fatal setback on March 3, 2025, when the House “re-elected” Obasa after his impeachment, despite Hon. Mojisola Lasbat Meranda securing majority votes to become Speaker. Olanrewaju questioned the legitimacy of the decision, warning that such actions erode democratic principles and set a dangerous precedent. “When…

Feyi Ogunbiyi The Chairman/CEO of Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, has revealed that Nigerians living abroad contribute over $90 billion annually in remittances, making the country one of the highest recipients in Africa. She described the diaspora community as a vital asset for national development and urged them to remain connected to their roots. Dabiri-Erewa made this call while delivering a Ramadan Lecture organized by No Dull Moment in Islam (NDMI) on the theme, “The Intricacies of Japa Syndrome.” While acknowledging that migration is a fundamental human right and a long-standing global phenomenon,…

Daud Olatunji A professor of law and health policy at Babcock University, Prof. Cheluchi Onyemelukwe-Onuobia, has called for a constitutional review to address critical gaps in Nigeria’s healthcare system, particularly in surrogacy, assisted reproductive treatments, mental health, and emergency medical services. Delivering the 52nd inaugural lecture of Babcock University, Onyemelukwe-Onuobia emphasized that outdated laws and weak implementation remain major obstacles to quality healthcare access. “Laws and their implementation can become a stumbling block if not properly addressed,” she said, highlighting the criminalization of attempted suicide as an example. She noted that the law, a colonial-era relic, had been repealed in…

Pensioners who retired between 2010 and 2015 from the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital (OOUTH), Sagamu, have appealed to Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State to intervene urgently in addressing discrepancies in their pensions and gratuities. Speaking on behalf of the retirees, Junaid Adeniyi, during a press briefing held in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, lamented that their retirement benefits had been incorrectly calculated using the Consolidated Health Salary Structure (CONHESS terminal salary) instead of the Consolidated Tertiary Institutions Salary Structure (CONTISS). This error, he explained, has resulted significantly reduced monthly pension payments and gratuities for the affected pensioners. Adeniyi…

Daud Olatunji The management and staff of the Neuropsychiatric Hospital, Aro, Abeokuta, have expressed their condolences to the Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Iziaq Adekunle Salako, over the passing of his mother, Alhaja Fadilat Anike Salako. PLATFORM TIMES reports that in  a letter signed by the Provost and Medical Director, Dr. Afis Agboola, the hospital extended its sympathies to the Salako family, describing the late Alhaja Fadilat as a revered community leader whose impact was felt beyond Yewa Land and Ogun State. Alhaja Salako passed away on Wednesday, March 5, 2025, at the age of 95.…

Things are not always what they seem to be. The meaning of some words cannot just be guessed based on the words they seem to look like. In fact, some of them could come with antonymous implications. Two pairs of words came to mind on this matter. They are: (1) rest and restive (2) infinite and infinitesimal. While rest could mean a state of motionlessness or inactivity, restive implies stubbornly resisting control. Also, infinite means endless and infinitesimal is extremely small. These simply show that language is arbitrary. Once again, you are welcome to my English Language Classroom.

Daud Olatunji Nigeria has moved up to the sixth position in the latest Global Terrorism Index (GTI) 2025, signaling a worsening security crisis as 565 people were repeatedly killed in terrorism-related attacks in 2024. The Institute for Economics & Peace, which compiles the annual index, reported that Nigeria’s score of 7.658 reflects an increase in fatalities over the past two years. PLATFORM TIMES reports that the country previously ranked eighth in 2023 and 2024 but now sits among the top six most terror-affected nations globally, following Burkina Faso, Pakistan, Syria, Mali, and Niger. PLATFORM TIMES further reports that, despite previous…

Six senior officers have been compulsorily retired, with an additional two officers demoted before their retirement, according to a wireless message dated March 4, 2025, obtained by our correspondent. Among those affected by the directive is former Commissioner of Police for the Federal Capital Territory, Bennett Igweh, who had recently been promoted to Assistant Inspector General and assigned to head Zone 7 Police Headquarters in Abuja. Igweh was demoted to the rank of Commissioner of Police before being retired, effective May 1, 2023. Similarly, Deputy Commissioner of Police Simon Lough was demoted to Assistant Commissioner of Police before his retirement,…