Author: Platform Times Newspaper

Daud Olatunji  The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has urged journalists across Southwest Nigeria, Edo and Delta States to uphold the highest ethical standards in reporting issues concerning children, warning that sensational or exploitative coverage can cause lifelong harm. Speaking at a two-day training workshop for media practitioners held  in Ibadan, UNICEF’s Chief of Lagos Field Office, Celine Lafoucriere, stressed that ethical journalism is not only a professional responsibility but a moral duty that safeguards children’s dignity and future. “At UNICEF, we believe that every child has the right to be seen, heard, and protected,” Lafoucriere said. “Ethical reporting is…

An Ekiti State High Court sitting in Ado Ekiti has sentenced three persons to death by hanging for robbing an 87-year-old woman, Mrs. Victoria Folorunso, of her money and valuables during a midnight attack in her home at Ifaki Ekiti. The convicts — 30-year-old Shadrack Apos, 33-year-old Lucky Akpos, and 24-year-old Adunola Precious — were found guilty of conspiracy and armed robbery in violation of Sections 421 and 321 (2) (b) of the Criminal Laws of Ekiti State, 2021. Delivering judgment on Monday, Justice Lekan Ogunmoye declared that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt, noting that the…

Tension is mounting within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as former Jigawa State governor, Alhaji Sule Lamido, has accused the party’s leadership of subverting internal democracy after he was denied access to purchase the nomination form to contest for the position of National Chairman. Lamido, a founding member of the PDP and one of its vocal elder statesmen, arrived at the party’s national secretariat, Wadata Plaza, Abuja, on Monday morning, only to be turned back by officials who allegedly informed him that the forms were “no longer available.” Visibly angered by the development, Lamido told journalists that the action was…

Daud Olatunji  Prominent Muslim scholars, activists, and citizens under the aegis of Concerned Muslim Scholars, Civil Society, and Citizens for Justice and Peace in Nigeria have raised alarm over the persistent mass killings, abductions, and displacement of innocent civilians across Northern Nigeria, describing the silence of authorities and the public as “complicity before God and history.” In a strongly worded statement titled “Muslim Response to the Mass Killings in Northern Nigeria: Between Faith, Justice, and Survival,” the group, led by Prof. Taofiq Abdulazeez of the University of Abuja, condemned what it called “criminal neglect” of the predominantly Muslim victims in…

The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has faulted growing criticisms against Yoruba Muslim monarchs who choose to live and be buried according to Islamic rites, describing such attacks as an infringement on their constitutional rights. In a statement on Monday, the Executive Director of MURIC, Prof. Ishaq Akintola, said it was wrong and discriminatory for anyone to condemn Muslim traditional rulers for preferring Islamic practices in their private lives, including worship, death, and burial ceremonies. Akintola noted that some Yoruba traditional worshippers and critics had lately accused Muslim monarchs of abandoning cultural practices, insisting that kings must embrace traditional rituals because…

President Bola Tinubu on Monday met with the newly appointed Service Chiefs at the State House, Abuja, in what sources described as a decisive session focused on strengthening Nigeria’s security architecture. The closed-door meeting came three days after the President announced a major shake-up in the military hierarchy — a move many analysts have interpreted as part of Tinubu’s renewed drive to curb insecurity and restore stability across the country. Those in attendance included the Chief of Defence Staff, General Olufemi Oluyede; Chief of Army Staff, Major-General Waheedi Shaibu; Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Idi Abbas; Chief of Air…

Former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Attahiru Jega, has expressed deep concern over the entrenched desperation of Nigerian politicians, warning that their “do-or-die” attitude continues to undermine the credibility of elections and slow down the country’s democratic development. Jega, who currently serves as Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Livestock Reforms, spoke on Monday while delivering a keynote address at the joint graduation ceremony of the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS) and the University of Benin (UNIBEN) in Abuja. The former INEC boss lamented that despite over two decades of uninterrupted democracy,…

Governor Caleb Mutfwang of Plateau State has disclosed that he is under intense pressure from political figures to dump the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). Mutfwang, however, vowed not to bow to the pressure, insisting that only God and the people who elected him have the authority to determine his political future. Speaking during an event at the Banquet Hall of the Government House in Jos over the weekend, the governor dismissed rumours of an imminent defection, describing them as false and politically motivated. “It is true that they have been putting pressure on…

Africa’s richest man and Chairman of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has reaffirmed his company’s commitment to ensuring uninterrupted fuel supply across Nigeria as global oil prices continue to rise, assuring that there will be no scarcity or pump price increase during the upcoming festive season. Speaking during an update on the progress of the 650,000-barrels-per-day (bpd) Dangote Refinery, Dangote disclosed that the facility’s ongoing expansion will create thousands of new jobs, strengthen Nigeria’s industrial base, and attract both local and foreign investors. “This expansion will create additional jobs, support thousands of SMEs, and deepen our industrial base. Our goal has…

Five years after the #EndSARS protest that shook Nigeria and led to the establishment of judicial panels across the country, Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, has yet to implement the recommendations of the state’s panel on police brutality and extrajudicial killings — leaving victims stranded and hopeless. The PLATFORM TIMES gathered that the nine-member Justice Solomon Olugbemi-led Judicial Panel of Investigation, inaugurated in October 2020 by Governor Abiodun, had submitted its report in July 2021 after months of public hearings and testimonies from victims of torture, unlawful detention, and killings allegedly perpetrated by operatives of the disbanded Special Anti-Robbery Squad…