Author: Platform Times Newspaper

The Minister of Education, Prof. Olatunji Alausa, has proposed the extension of the mandatory National Youth Service Corps scheme from one year to two years, as part of wider reforms to enhance national development through education. Alausa made the call on Friday during a courtesy visit by the NYSC Director-General, Brigadier General Olakunle Nafiu, to his office in Abuja. The minister also advocated for a robust review of the NYSC Skill Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development (SAED) programme to equip corps members with more practical and employable skills. According to a statement shared on the NYSC’s official Facebook page, Alausa said…

Nigeria’s total public debt stock surged to N144.67tn ($94.23bn) as of December 31, 2024, reflecting a 48.58 per cent increase from the N97.34tn ($108.23bn) recorded a year earlier, the Debt Management Office has revealed. The DMO disclosed the figures in its latest report released on Friday, showing an alarming year-on-year growth of N47.32tn in the country’s debt profile, amid rising concerns over the sustainability of Nigeria’s borrowing strategy. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, the debt rose by N2.35tn or 1.65 per cent, from N142.32tn ($88.89bn) at the end of September 2024. A breakdown of the debt components shows that external borrowings…

Some stakeholders at the Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Yaba, Lagos State, have petitioned anti-graft agencies, demanding a probe into alleged financial misconduct and administrative irregularities by the hospital’s Medical Director, Dr Olugbenga Owoeye. In the petition signed by one Victor Ajasegun and obtained by our correspondent, the petitioners alleged that Owoeye had, over the past four years, mismanaged hospital funds, particularly those meant for patients’ welfare, and diverted patients to his private clinic. The petition claimed that since his appointment, the hospital had witnessed a decline in service delivery, with decisions being made unilaterally and without stakeholder input. They accused Owoeye…

There was a wave of panic in parts of northern Nigeria and neighbouring West African countries following the abrupt shutdown of Voice of America (VOA)’s radio services, a move triggered by funding cuts ordered by the United States President Donald Trump. The unexpected disappearance of VOA’s Hausa-language broadcasts in Nigeria, Ghana, Niger, and Cameroon has left millions of loyal listeners—particularly in rural, conflict-ridden, and media-starved regions—cut off from trusted international news sources. The shutdown, which began last month, was first noticed by startled listeners in northern Nigeria when music, rather than scheduled news content, began playing during usual broadcast hours—a…

The Nigerian Army has vehemently countered assertions made by the police regarding the recent rescue operation of Israeli citizen Gil Itamar, who was abducted in Taraba State. Captain Oni Olubodunde, spokesperson for the Army’s 6 Brigade, clarified that military operatives, supported by other security agencies, executed the successful rescue mission. In a direct response to claims made by the Taraba State Police Command, Captain Olubodunde emphasized that the military, acting on credible intelligence, rescued Mr. Itamar without resorting to gunfire. He dismissed the police’s assertion that the victim had military escorts at the time of abduction as misleading and cautioned…

… Relatives, detainees cry out over 40 adjournments, allege torture, influence peddling Some former domestic workers of ex-First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan, have decried their prolonged detention and alleged inhumane treatment at the Okaka Custodial Centre in Bayelsa State, nearly six years after they were remanded over theft allegations. The 15 detainees, including male and female staff, were arrested in 2019 for allegedly stealing items including gold bangles, jewellery, air conditioners, upholstery chairs, and flat-screen televisions reportedly worth N200m. They were arraigned before the Bayelsa State High Court, Yenagoa, on an 18-count charge, including conspiracy to commit murder and…

The families and associates of the 16 hunters from Kano State who were lynched in Uromi, Edo State, have threatened to avenge the deaths of their loved ones if the Federal Government fails to arrest and prosecute those behind the gruesome act. The victims, who hailed mostly from Toranke in Bunkure Local Government Area of Kano, were travelling from Port Harcourt, Rivers State, to Kano for the Sallah celebration when they were intercepted and killed by local vigilantes on suspicion of being kidnappers. The incident, which sparked outrage nationwide, has deepened ethnic and regional tensions, with community leaders, bereaved families,…

The Islamic Movement in Nigeria, popularly known as the Shi’ites, has accused the Federal Government of President Bola Tinubu of detaining over 60 minors in a defunct police facility in Abuja following a violent crackdown on its members during a religious procession. The group’s legal team, led by Bala Dakum and Yushau Uthman, made the allegation on Friday at a press briefing in Abuja, a week after the March 28 incident that reportedly led to the death of at least 26 members of the movement. According to the lawyers, the security forces, particularly soldiers, opened fire on thousands of Shi’ite…

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has arraigned two individuals, including a repeat offender, before the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, for allegedly hawking and illegally trading in Naira notes, in violation of Nigeria’s currency regulations. Folake Adeoti, an ex-convict previously sentenced for similar offences, was brought before Justice Yellim Bogoro on Friday, April 4, 2025, on a one-count charge of Naira abuse. The EFCC accused her of hawking N3,850,000 along Jobi Fele Way in Ikeja on March 21, 2025. The charge, filed under Section 21(4) of the Central Bank of Nigeria Act, 2007, stipulates penalties for actions that…

The Benue State Police Command has rescued 14 passengers who were abducted by armed men in an attack on a commercial bus operated by Benue Links Nigeria Limited. The daring rescue operation took place on Friday, a day after the deadly ambush along the Otukpo-Makurdi route in Otukpo Local Government Area. The police spokesperson, Catherine Anene, confirmed the development in a statement issued late Friday night, revealing that the victims were rescued following a gun battle between police operatives and the kidnappers. “On 4/4/2025 at about 1500hrs, they sighted the bandits in the forest and engaged them in a gun…