Author: Platform Times Newspaper

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has issued a fresh warning of an impending nationwide strike, accusing the Federal Government of deliberately reneging on long-standing agreements on the revitalisation and proper funding of public universities. Speaking at a press conference on Thursday at the University of Jos, ASUU President, Prof. Christopher Piwuna, said university lecturers have been subjected to over two years of “broken promises and endless delay tactics” from the government. He listed unresolved issues including the renegotiation of the 2009 ASUU-FGN agreement, unpaid salary arrears, withheld promotions, poor welfare packages for retired lecturers, and the government’s failure…

The Ogun 1 Area Command of the Nigeria Customs Service has intercepted a Rolls Royce valued at N905 million alongside other contraband items worth over N1.4 billion. The Area Controller, Comptroller Godwin Otunla, disclosed this on Thursday during a press briefing at Idiroko, Ogun State. Otunla explained that the luxury car, a 2021 Rolls Royce Ghost, was seized along with a 2014 Mercedes Benz 4Matic valued at N21.4 million and a 2018 Honda Accord worth N32.2 million. He added that the command also impounded 4,424 bags of foreign parboiled rice—equivalent to more than seven truckloads—1,936 parcels of cannabis sativa, and…

The Borno State Government has sentenced seven young Nigerians, including teenagers, to prison terms, public flogging and community service over their alleged roles in last year’s #EndBadGovernance protests, sparking outrage from Amnesty International. Amnesty International Nigeria, in a statement posted on its X handle on Thursday, described the trial as a “sham” and demanded the immediate and unconditional release of the youths. The global rights watchdog disclosed that the youths, aged between 15 and 17, were accused of creating a WhatsApp group named Zanga Zanga to mobilise against the administration of Governor Babagana Zulum. According to Amnesty, the Borno authorities…

Crisis is brewing in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as some leaders from the South-East and South-South have kicked against what they described as a “clandestine” zoning meeting scheduled to hold in Lagos on Thursday. The aggrieved party leaders, including state chairmen, lawmakers and former governors, accused Bayelsa State Governor, Duoye Diri, who chairs the PDP zoning committee, of convening the meeting through the panel’s administrative secretary, Tombra Jumbo, without due consultation with critical stakeholders. Their protest comes barely a week after the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) inaugurated a 44-member zoning panel to allocate key offices ahead of the…

A National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) member, Jennifer Elohor Edema, who was brutally assaulted and stripped by operatives of the Agunechemba Vigilante Group in Anambra State, has narrated her harrowing experience and demanded justice. A viral video released on August 19 captured the shocking moment armed vigilantes stormed a corps members’ lodge in Oba, Idemili South Local Government Area, on July 23, accusing the occupants of internet fraud. The video showed Elohor being beaten, stripped, and humiliated by gun-wielding men who ignored their pleas of innocence. In an interview with vlogger Aprokoking, the Delta-born corps member revealed that the operatives,…

Pandemonium broke out on Wednesday at the All Progressives Congress (APC) Delta South women’s meeting in Oleh, Isoko South Local Government Area, following a heated dispute over the alleged hijack of more than N50 million ‘kola-nut’ funds. The money, reportedly donated by politicians and government appointees from the senatorial district to support transportation and refreshment allowances for participants, was said to have been cornered by top women leaders of the party. Trouble started when delegates from the eight local government areas of Delta South demanded accountability and transparency in the disbursement of the funds. Eyewitnesses told PLATFORM TIMES that the…

Terrorists have unleashed a new wave of coordinated attacks on communities in Zamfara State, abducting several residents, looting property, and forcing villagers to flee their homes in fear. The attacks, which residents said occurred between Tuesday and Wednesday, spread across Yan Uku community in Garbadu Ward, Talata Mafara Local Government Area, and extended to nearby villages, including Farin Dutse. Eyewitnesses told PLATFORM TIMES that the terrorists struck on Tuesday night around 8 p.m., whisking away a man identified as Muhammadu Lakada, his son, and a neighbour, Lauwali. His son was later released, but with a chilling instruction to return home…

The Enugu State Police Command has arrested an 18-year-old, identified as Obodoagu Ikediekpere Wisdom, for allegedly kidnapping and murdering his five-year-old cousin after failing to secure a ₦1 million ransom from the child’s family. Police also paraded a 24-year-old accomplice, Sunday Michael, a security guard from Mayo-Belwa Local Government Area of Adamawa State, who was said to have helped the teenager in executing the crime. According to the Command’s spokesperson, SP Daniel Ndukwe, the suspects were arrested on August 11 and 12 by operatives of the Anti-Kidnapping Tactical Squad following credible intelligence. “The child was declared missing on July 26,…

The George Uboh Whistleblowers Network (GUWN) has sued the Federal Government, Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), and other parties in a bid to halt the planned payment of $396.6 million to Senator Ned Nwoko and his firm, Linas International Limited, over the controversial Paris and London Club refunds. The civil society group, in an originating summons filed at the Federal High Court, Abuja, on Tuesday, described the planned disbursement as “unlawful, unjustified and a violation of due process.” Also listed as defendants in the suit are the Federal Ministry of Finance Incorporated, the Minister of Finance, and…

The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has blamed incessant national grid collapses on the rising wave of vandalism and illegal structures built under power lines across the country. General Manager of TCN, Benin Region, Charles Iwuamadi, raised the alarm on Tuesday during a sensitisation programme at Umelu community in Benin, Edo State. Iwuamadi explained that vandalism of transmission towers and lines had grown by more than 30 per cent in the last five years, describing it as the leading cause of frequent grid failures. “Vandalism is directly proportional to the number of system collapses. Most times when the national grid…