Author: Platform Times Newspaper

Michael Babatunde The Ogun State Government has  ordered the temporary closure of seven lead-acid battery recycling factories in Ogijo, Sagamu Local Government Area and   imposed a temporary ban on the exportation of lead ingot from the state. The emergency measures followed a PLATFORM TIMES investigative report exposing widespread lead contamination in Ogijo, which drew attention to the health and environmental risks associated with the local recycling industry. Leading the government’s inspection team, Commissioner for Environment, Ola Oresanya, confirmed that the shutdown is part of immediate containment efforts while comprehensive assessments are conducted. The team included experts from the Ministries…

 A notorious bandit commander in Katsina State, Isiya Kwashen Garwa, on Thursday released 37 kidnapped victims, including men, women, and children, while accusing the Nigerian government of oppression, injustice, and decades of mismanagement that, he claims, have fueled the cycle of banditry and rural violence in the Northwest. The handover took place at Bakori Local Government Area, where the victims were received by Hon. AbdulRahman Ahmad Kandarawa, the Member representing Bakori Constituency in the Katsina State House of Assembly, in the presence of the local government chairman. In a video sighted, Garwa appeared in a tactical jacket, armed and flanked…

Lagos State has recorded a sharp decline in HIV testing, with only 222,415 tests conducted, representing 28.9 per cent of last year’s total, as disruptions from a U.S. foreign aid freeze continue to impact critical health interventions. Dr. Animashaun, a state health official, attributed the drop to the 90-day suspension of U.S. foreign aid, enacted under President Donald Trump’s January Executive Order “Reevaluating and Realigning U.S. Foreign Aid”. The order temporarily halted funding for health programmes, including HIV testing and counselling across the state. “These pauses in community activities slowed essential interventions, limiting access to testing, counselling, and psychosocial support,”…

A Rivers State High Court in Port Harcourt has sentenced a 26-year-old University of Port Harcourt student, Damian Okoligwe, to death by hanging for the murder of his girlfriend, Justina Otuene, a 300-level Biochemistry undergraduate. Justice Chiwen Nsirim-Nwosu, in a judgment delivered on Friday, held that the prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt, establishing that Okoligwe deliberately killed Justina in October 2023 at his residence in Ozuoba, Obio/Akpor Local Government Area. Okoligwe, a 400-level Petrochemical Engineering student at the time of the incident, was arrested after neighbours alerted the police to a foul smell from his apartment. Officers who…

Three officers of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) were shot dead late Thursday when suspected Lakurawa terrorists launched a midnight assault on a border checkpoint in Bagudu Local Government Area of Kebbi State. The attack, which occurred around 12am at Bakin Ruwa, a strategic crossing point along the Maje border corridor, has triggered panic across nearby communities already grappling with rising insecurity. PLATFORM TIMES gathered that the gunmen stormed the post in large numbers and opened fire on immigration personnel on duty, killing three instantly. The attackers also set ablaze an operational vehicle and destroyed the officers’ makeshift shelter before…

The Nigerian Army Council has approved the promotion of 105 senior officers, including 28 Brigadier-Generals elevated to Major-General and 77 Colonels promoted to Brigadier-General, in what the military described as a strategic push to strengthen its leadership ranks. The Acting Director of Army Public Relations, Lt. Col. Appolonia Anele, announced the promotions on Friday, describing them as part of ongoing efforts to reposition the Army for “greater operational efficiency and enhanced national defence capabilities.” Also promoted were officers from medical, logistics, armour, and special forces formations, including Colonels O. Adole, J.A. Ikagba, D.C. Ibeh, G.S. Chohwore, O.G. Okoye, and Y.K.…

The Kano State Government on Friday called for the immediate arrest and investigation of former Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje over alleged attempts to establish an unlawful militia group in the state. The demand followed a State Executive Council meeting held on Thursday, where the Commissioner for Information, Ibrahim Abdullahi Waiya, briefed journalists on what he described as a troubling security development linked to the former governor. Waiya said the government was alarmed that bandits invaded a Kano community and abducted several residents less than 48 hours after Ganduje publicly criticised the state’s decision to establish the proposed Khairul Nas Corps,…

Former President Goodluck Jonathan on Friday narrated how he was evacuated from Guinea-Bissau aboard an Ivorian aircraft following a sudden political upheaval that left him and his delegation stranded in the West African country. Jonathan, who led the West African Elders Forum Election Observation Mission to monitor the November 23 presidential and legislative polls, was caught in the middle of a rapidly unfolding coup attempt announced by President Umaro Sissoco Mbalo. Speaking with journalists in Abuja shortly after his return, the former Nigerian leader said he felt compelled to publicly appreciate Nigerians for their concern during the tense hours that…

The Department of State Services has invited Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, the 2023 Labour Party vice-presidential candidate, over a series of public statements the agency considers inciting and capable of inflaming national tensions. PLATFORM TIMES gathered that the founder of Baze University was invited on Friday evening after the secret police reportedly reviewed his recent media appearances, where he repeatedly alleged that Nigeria was facing a “constitutional crisis” following the swearing-in of President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima. Multiple security sources were quoted to have said  that Baba-Ahmed has been under close watch in the past weeks over remarks…

Dangote Group has announced a strategic series of international partnerships aimed at expanding its fertiliser operations in Nigeria and establishing new plants in Ethiopia, in a move set to bolster food security and strengthen Africa’s position in the global fertiliser market. The group plans to raise Nigeria’s urea production capacity from the current three million metric tons to nine million metric tons annually. This expansion will involve the installation of four additional production trains, complementing the two existing trains at its facility. In Ethiopia, Dangote Group recently held the groundbreaking ceremony for a $2.5 billion fertiliser plant in Gode, which…