Author: Platform Times Newspaper

The Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, has raised the alarm over the widespread misdiagnosis of malaria in the state, revealing that 95 percent of fever-related illnesses reported in health facilities are not caused by malaria. Abayomi made this startling disclosure on Saturday during a three-day programme tagged “Pathway to Pre-Elimination and Digitisation Project” held in Lagos. The initiative is supported by a World Bank grant and coordinated by Professor Wellington Oyibo, Director of the Centre for Transdisciplinary Research for Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases. According to Abayomi, the state’s latest data analysis has shown a concerning trend…

The Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) has suspended two of its personnel after uncovering an attempt by a convicted inmate to secure an international passport while still serving a sentence. The suspension, announced in a statement on Saturday by the Service’s spokesperson, Abubakar Umar, followed the detection of the incident through the Nigeria Immigration Service’s (NIS) automated passport application system. Umar said the irregularity, which was discovered two weeks ago, was a direct result of recent technological reforms and enhanced inter-agency collaboration between the NCoS and the NIS. “This misconduct was uncovered through reforms introduced in the Nigeria Immigration Service, which…

In a decisive move to tackle the rising wave of insecurity, the Ondo State Government has approved the implementation of the death penalty for individuals convicted of kidnapping. This was disclosed by the State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Dr. Kayode Ajulo, on Saturday, shortly after the monthly meeting of the State Executive Council held in Akure. Ajulo, who spoke on behalf of Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, said the state government resolved to introduce the capital punishment as a deterrent against what he described as the “menace of kidnapping and cultism” that has increasingly endangered the lives of residents. “This administration…

There is growing outrage in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) following allegations by the Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) that N4.1 billion released for the payment of striking primary school teachers was diverted by chairmen of the six area councils. The Treasurer of the FCT chapter of the union, Emmanuel Ameh, made the claim during a recent appearance on Arise News, accusing the council bosses of misappropriating funds approved by the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, for the implementation of the 2024 national minimum wage for teachers. Ameh revealed that the union, which has been on strike since March 24, had…

The Benue State Government on Saturday confirmed the arrest of no fewer than 50 individuals posing as Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) at a relief camp set up for victims of the recent Yelwata attack in Guma Local Government Area. Commissioner for Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management, Mr. Aondowase Kunde, disclosed the development while speaking with journalists in Makurdi, the state capital. Kunde explained that the arrests followed intelligence reports and internal investigations which revealed that criminal elements, including residents of the host community and market women, had infiltrated the camp located at the International Market along George Akume Way. “We…

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arrested the Special Adviser to the Benue State Governor on Documentation, Research, and Planning, Dr. Mkor Aondona, over allegations of sextortion, cyberbullying, and criminal blackmail. Aondona was picked up on Friday by operatives of the Commission’s Makurdi Zonal Directorate following a series of petitions filed by multiple female students, who accused him of luring them into sexual relationships under false pretences and coercion. The petitioners alleged that the governor’s aide routinely selected slim and attractive young women for ushering jobs under the guise of offering them legitimate employment, only to demand sexual…

Despite widespread institutional distrust and poor life satisfaction, Nigeria has emerged as one of the world’s most hospitable nations to strangers, ranking 7th globally in the 2025 World Happiness Report. The report, released by the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network in collaboration with the University of Oxford’s Wellbeing Research Centre and Gallup, assessed 147 countries based on various indices, including prosocial behaviours such as helping strangers, volunteering, and charitable giving. Nigeria’s high ranking highlights the country’s strong culture of interpersonal generosity, even as it struggles with weak public institutions and overall low happiness levels. The country placed 105th in…

A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has sentenced seven Chinese nationals to one year in prison for their involvement in a large-scale cyberterrorism and internet fraud operation uncovered by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). The convicts — Peng Li Huan, Zhang Jin Rong, He Kun, Rachelle Cabalona, Caselyn Pionela, Guo Long Long, and Zhang Hua Zhai — were among the over 700 suspects apprehended in December 2024 during a massive anti-cybercrime raid on a building located on Oyin Jolayemi Street, Victoria Island. Justices Ayokunle Faji, Chukwujekwu Aneke, and Yellim Bogoro, who presided over the cases in separate…

Vice President Kashim Shettima has raised the alarm over the deepening link between poverty, climate change, and rising insecurity in Nigeria, urging for stronger international collaboration to address the crisis. Shettima made the call on Friday during a courtesy visit by the Chief of Mission of the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) in Nigeria, Sharon Dimanche, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. According to the Vice President, the convergence of poverty, illiteracy, and environmental degradation is at the heart of widespread displacement and escalating violence across the country, particularly in the North-East, North-Central, and North-West regions. “There is an incestuous relationship…

A fresh wave of traditional leadership crisis has erupted in Oyo State as the Soun of Ogbomoso, Oba Ghandi Olaoye, declared the Olugbon of Orile-Igbon, Oba Francis Olusola Alao, and the Onpetu of Ijeru as “strangers” in Ogbomoso land, ordering them to vacate territories he claimed were historically granted by past Souns. The monarch, in a strongly worded video address circulated online and monitored by PLATFORM TIMES, accused the two prominent Obas of historical revisionism, insubordination, and sowing disunity within the traditional institution of Ogbomoso. “Some of those whom past Souns accommodated during the inter-tribal wars, who were given land…