Author: Platform Times Newspaper

The Chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS), Zacch Adedeji, has called for a radical overhaul of Nigeria’s economic strategy, warning that the country’s reliance on raw material exports threatens long-term prosperity. A statement by his special adviser on media, Dare Adekanmbi, said  Adedeji made the appeal on Thursday during the maiden distinguished personality lecture of the Faculty of Administration, Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State, titled “From Potential to Prosperity: Export-led Economy.” The NRS chief lamented that Nigeria’s economy is characterised by a high-tech oil sector juxtaposed with a low-productivity informal sector, and a lack of a “vibrant,…

Freed Christian worshippers abducted from three churches in Kurmin Wali community, Kajuru Local Government Area of Kaduna State, on Thursday recounted chilling tales of hunger, beatings and strict confinement during their days in bandits’ captivity. The victims, numbering 172, were received by Governor Uba Sani at the Government House, Kaduna, after their release from the kidnappers’ camps in the forests. The worshippers were seized on January 18 during Sunday services, triggering widespread outrage and renewed concerns over insecurity in rural communities. Of the abductees, 83 escaped and returned home last Sunday, while the remaining 89 were released in the early…

The Federal High Court in Abuja on Thursday ordered the Nigeria Police Force and the Department of State Services to investigate a court registrar accused of tampering with key exhibits in an ongoing N10bn fraud trial involving Ali Bello, Chief of Staff to the Kogi State Governor. Justice James Kolawole Omotosho issued the directive after the court registrar, Nasiru Onimisi Zubairu, allegedly confessed to deleting crucial WhatsApp messages from a mobile phone tendered as evidence by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. The judge disclosed in open court that Zubairu told him privately that Daudu Sulaiman, the second defendant in…

Security agencies intensify operations as communities demand lasting protection More than 160 worshippers abducted by bandits in Kurmin Wali village, Kajuru Local Government Area of Kaduna State, have regained their freedom after weeks in captivity, PLATFORM TIMES has learnt. Sources with knowledge of the development confirmed on Thursday that the victims, who were kidnapped during a religious gathering on January 18, were released and were being evacuated to the Kaduna State Government House for medical checks, profiling and reunion with their families. Although details surrounding their release remained sketchy as of press time, security sources said efforts were ongoing to…

The crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) worsened on Thursday after a faction loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, vowed to take control of the party’s national headquarters next week, following what it described as official recognition by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The Wike-backed group made the declaration shortly after INEC admitted its representatives to the commission’s first quarterly stakeholders’ meeting with political parties in 2026, a move widely interpreted within the PDP as conferring legitimacy on the faction amid the party’s protracted leadership dispute. Speaking to journalists after the meeting, the…

The Imo State Police Command has detained a man, Kelechi Prince Okeke, over the death of his wife, Olumma Chizoba Lucy Akataobi, following an alleged domestic altercation in Owerri. PLATFORM TIMES gathered that Okeke, a native of Ngor-Okpala Local Government Area, was arrested and is currently being interrogated at the Homicide Section of the State Criminal Investigation Department after his wife reportedly died on Monday, February 2. Family sources said the incident was triggered by a disagreement over ₦35,000 paid by a customer into Okeke’s bank account for goods sold by his wife at Relief Market, Owerri. According to the…

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned a former Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University Dutsinma (FUDMA), Katsina State, Professor Armayau Hamisu Bichi, over an alleged N19.7 million bribery and contract kickback scheme. Bichi was on Thursday docked before Justice Musa Danladi Abubakar of the Katsina State High Court alongside two co-defendants, Lawal Tukur Mani and Aliyu Lawal Jari, on a five-count charge bordering on bribery and abuse of office. The Kano Zonal Directorate of the anti-graft agency accused the former vice-chancellor of using the two co-defendants as conduits to receive illicit payments from contractors in exchange for the…

An aide to former Kano State Governor and leader of the Kwankwasiyya Movement, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, has dismissed reports suggesting that the former presidential candidate travelled abroad for medical treatment, insisting the trip was purely personal. Speaking with journalists on Wednesday, the aide, Kurugu, said Kwankwaso was in high spirits and actively engaged in political activities in Kano barely hours before leaving the country. “Yes, it is true that Engr. Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso has travelled out of the country, but it is a personal trip and not medical tourism,” Kurugu said. “We were together with him throughout yesterday and…

A chieftain of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), Alhaji Buba Galadima, has faulted key provisions of the Electoral Act 2026, warning that recent amendments could weaken Nigeria’s democracy, undermine electoral integrity and pave the way for manipulation ahead of the 2027 general elections. Galadima, who spoke on Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, criticised the reduction of the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) statutory timeline for election preparations, describing it as unrealistic and counterproductive. “Even if you calculate backwards, INEC could not meet the 360 days timeline, not to talk of a shorter one. You…

The Committee for the Defence of Human Rights (CDHR) has condemned the National Assembly’s rejection of Clause 60(3) of the Electoral Act amendment bill, describing the move as a dangerous setback to Nigeria’s democratic development. The clause, which sought to make real-time electronic transmission of polling unit results to the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) Result Viewing Portal (IReV) mandatory, was voted down by lawmakers on Wednesday. In a statement issued on Thursday and signed by its National President, Comrade Yinka Folarin, and National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Adewunmi N. Adesina, the rights group said the decision amounted to a “deliberate…