Author: Platform Times Newspaper

The Chairman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), Abike Dabiri-Erewa, has announced that the Federal Government will soon repatriate an additional 250 Nigerians from the United Arab Emirates (UAE).  This follows the recent repatriation of 190 Nigerians from the UAE, underscoring the government’s ongoing efforts to assist citizens abroad. On Tuesday, a total of 190 Nigerians returned to the country and were received at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja at 5:57 a.m.  The returnees were welcomed by a combined team of government officials led by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).  This effort is part of a…

Dangote Industries Ltd. has commended the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission for its various interventions in the oil company’s crude supply requests from International Oil Companies. The Vice President of Dangote Industries, Mr Devakumar Edwin, commended the commission in a statement on Wednesday in Lagos. Edwin said that NUPRC should also be commended for publishing the Domestic Crude Supply Obligation (DCSO) guidelines to enshrine transparency in the oil industry. He said: “If the Domestic Crude Supply Obligation (DCSO) guidelines are diligently implemented, this will ensure that we deal directly with the companies producing the crude oil in…

A 23-year-old Islamic school teacher, Yusuf Yunusa, has been arrested for allegedly sodomizing 12 of his students in Gwaram Local Government of Jigawa  State. The State Commissioner of Police, A T. Abdullahi, disclosed this during the  parade of  the suspect at the Command’s headquarters in Dutse, He  revealed  that the suspect had formed a habit of taking his pupils to different locations and forcing them to engage in sexual acts with him. According to the Commissioner, the suspect would take the children out under the guise of massaging his penis and sucking it, forcing them to swallow his semen. “On…

The Kano State Commissioner for Higher Education, Dr. Yusuf Kofar-Mata, on Wednesday, lost three of his family members to a devastating early morning fire outbreak at his residence in Kofar-Mata quarters, Kano metropolis. The tragic incident, which occurred while the family members were asleep, claimed the lives of the commissioner’s daughter, Maimuna, his elder sister, Khadija, and a close relative, Juwairiyya.  PLATFORM TIMES gathered that the  commissioner narrowly escaped the disaster, but his grief is immeasurable. Eyewitnesses reported that the fire caused significant destruction to the residence, reducing several valuables to ashes.  However, the exact cause of the inferno…

Daud Olatunji  President Bola Tinubu has formally requested the National Assembly to amend the 2024 Appropriation Act and the 2023 Finance Act to increase the budget by N6.2 trillion. This request, articulated in a letter addressed to the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, was read during the plenary session on Wednesday.  The letter, invoking section 58, subsection two of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), outlines the President’s rationale for the substantial budget increase. President Tinubu stated, “I forward herewith the above bills for consideration and passage by the Senate. “The Appropriation Act Amendment Bill 2024 seeks to amend the…

Daud Olatunji The Senate, on Wednesday, relieved Senator Mohamed Ali Ndume (Borno South) of his duties as Chief Whip.  Senate President Godswill Akpabio officiated the removal during a plenary session, putting the decision to a voice vote where members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Senate Caucus overwhelmingly endorsed the action. Following his removal, Ndume was promptly replaced by Senator Tahir Mungono (Borno North).  This decision arrives on the heels of Ndume’s recent public criticisms of President Bola Tinubu’s administration, which have stirred controversy within the ruling party. In a significant development, the national leadership of the APC has called…

Daud Olatunji  The Federal High Court on Wednesday, in Abuja reinstated Philip Shaibu as the Deputy Governor of Edo State.  Shaibu had been impeached several months prior by the Edo State House of Assembly. Presiding over the case, Hon Justice James Omotosho declared that Shaibu’s removal from office and the subsequent appointment of Omobayo Godwin as his replacement by the Governor of Edo State were illegal, unconstitutional, and void.  The court found that the impeachment process breached the procedural provisions outlined in Section 188(1) to (9) of the Nigerian Constitution. Justice Omotosho stressed that the ouster clause in Section 188(10),…

The police on Tuesday arraigned a suspected fraudster, Oluwatobi Ajibola, before the Ikeja Chief Magistrates’ Court in Ogba for defrauding a traditional ruler, Emmanuel Olofinjana, to the tune of N6.3 million. The defendant, 29, was arraigned on three counts bordering on stealing by extorting the traditional ruler that she was pregnant and had given birth to twin babies for him, knowing it to be false. Appearing before Magistrate Lateef Owolabi, the police counsel, Insp. Oluwasegun Dada urged the court to take the defendant’s plea. Mr Owolabi said the offence was committed between August 2023 and July 2024 at Kayode Oduba…

The spokesman for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC),Felix Morka, has called for comprehensive electoral reforms to ensure that the recent Supreme Court ruling on local government financial autonomy translates into effective governance at the grassroots level.  Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme on Tuesday, Morka said  that while the Supreme Court’s decision to grant financial autonomy to local governments was a significant step forward, it is insufficient on its own to guarantee robust local governance. In his comments, Morka praised the Supreme Court’s landmark judgement delivered last Thursday, which mandates that the Federal Government directly disburse 20.60% of…

Daud Olatunji A former Minister of Agriculture and one-time National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Audu Ogbeh, has recounted his narrow escape from an assassination attempt during his tenure as party chairman.  Speaking at a public event broadcast by TVC on Tuesday, Ogbeh provided a rare glimpse into the perilous nature of political leadership in Nigeria. Ogbeh, who held the position of PDP national chairman from 2001 to January 2005 and served as the Minister of Communications in the Nigerian Second Republic from 1982 to 1983, revealed that the chairpersons of political parties often lack the influence over…