Author: Platform Times Newspaper

The Senate has issued a stern rebuke to Pastor Tunde Bakare following his criticisms of the National Assembly’s role in the ratification of a state of emergency in Rivers State and the suspension of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan. Bakare, the serving overseer of The Citadel Global Community Church, on Sunday lambasted both the executive and legislative arms of government, accusing them of attempting to turn Nigeria into a “mafia state.” He described the National Assembly’s actions as part of an “institutional immorality Olympics.” In response, the Senate, through a statement by Yemi Adaramodu, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Media and…

The Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, has ordered a thorough investigation into the alleged extortion of N5.2 million by some personnel of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC). This follows a viral social media post alleging that a group of young men travelling from Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State, to Akure in Ondo State were extorted by the security operatives. The directive was conveyed in a statement on Tuesday by the minister’s media aide, Babatunde Alao. Tunji-Ojo expressed strong disapproval over the incident, assuring Nigerians that any officer found culpable will be brought to book. “We are building a paramilitary…

The Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) has arrested over 300 individuals for engaging in indiscriminate waste disposal across the state, as part of its intensified efforts to maintain environmental cleanliness and uphold sanitation laws. The disclosure was made in a statement signed by the Director of Public Affairs, Folashade Kadiri, and made available to the News Agency of Nigeria on Tuesday. According to the statement, the arrests were the outcome of a collaborative operation between LAWMA and the Lagos State Environmental Sanitation Corps (LAGESC), utilising both day and night surveillance to track and apprehend offenders dumping waste illegally. LAWMA Managing…

The Gateway Front Foundation (GFF), in partnership with Senator Otunba Gbenga Daniel, on Tuesday unveiled a five-year food and humanitarian intervention programme in Ijebu North East Local Government Area. Tagged the 2025–2030 Food Security & Humanitarian Funding Initiative, the project is designed to support President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda by providing sustained palliative support to vulnerable groups across the Ogun East Senatorial District. The initiative also marked the formal launch of the GFF Loyalty ATM Card, a digitised support platform aimed at delivering emergency assistance for food, medication, and essential needs to mothers, widows, children, and low-income households.…

Despite the government’s push for a cashless society, Nigerians continue to favour physical cash, with the value of currency held outside the banking system rising to N4.6 trillion in March 2025—accounting for an overwhelming 91.9% of the total currency in circulation. This surge marks a 26.7% increase from the previous year and underscores the deep-rooted reliance on cash in an economy where electronic payment alternatives have yet to fully capture trust and usage. The latest figures from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) highlight a stark contrast to the nation’s push for a more digital economy. While the total currency…

In a chilling reminder of Nigeria’s escalating insecurity crisis, two deadly incidents in Zamfara and Kwara states have underscored the widening reach and audacity of non-state actors terrorising rural communities. In Zamfara State, a notorious bandit group has imposed a N60 million levy on 12 communities in Maru Local Government Area, allegedly as retribution for aiding a recent military operation that neutralised several terrorists in the Dan Kurmi forest. The affected communities—Koloma, Dan Hayin Zargado, Zargado, Dan Godabe, Sabuwar Tunga, Makini, Bubaka, Yelwa, Bahwada, Koda, Manya, and Kabusu—were summoned by the armed group under the pretext of brokering peace. Instead,…

Quadri Yusuf Alabi, the young man who gained nationwide attention in 2023 after standing boldly in front of Peter Obi’s campaign convoy, has recounted a chilling tale of police brutality, wrongful imprisonment, and dehumanising treatment while in custody at Kirikiri Prison. Speaking during an emotional interview aired Monday on Channels Television, Alabi revealed he was framed by thugs in his neighbourhood, detained by the Divisional Police Officer of the Amukoko Police Division, and later remanded in prison over allegations of conspiracy and armed robbery. “My duty in prison from morning till night was to clean faeces,” Alabi said, his voice…

Hundreds of Kano residents have been thronging a muddy pool in the Hotoron Arewa area on the outskirts of the city, where water is reportedly seeping from markings believed by locals to be the sacred footprints of Prophet Muhammad. The site, now resembling a spiritual healing ground, has drawn people from within and outside the state—many of them battling illnesses and convinced of the water’s purported healing powers. In a video seen by PLATFORM TIMES, scores of men, women, and children were seen jostling and pushing to access the dirty water. Some scooped it into plastic bottles, others drank directly…

The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria has raised concerns over the rising stockpile of unsold finished goods in 2024, which it said hit N2.14tn amid surging production costs, weak consumer demand, and inflationary pressures. Director-General of MAN, Segun Ajayi-Kadir, disclosed this in the association’s second half 2024 economic review report released on Monday. He noted that the inventory of unsold goods jumped by 87.5 per cent year-on-year, although there was a 27.9 per cent drop compared to the first half of the year. Ajayi-Kadir explained that sectors such as food, beverage and tobacco, as well as textile, apparel and footwear, were…

The Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, has ordered the immediate and indefinite suspension of the Okumagbe of Uwano Kingdom in Agenebode, Etsako East Local Government Area, Dr George Oshiapi Egabor, over worsening cases of kidnappings and killings in his domain. The directive was contained in a statement on Monday by the governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Fred Itua, who said the measure was part of efforts to restore peace and security to the troubled area. According to the statement, the decision followed the recent killing of a palace chief, John Ikhamate, and the arrest of the monarch’s secretary, Chief Peter Omiogbemhi,…