Twenty-seven traders of the popular Kantin-Kwari textiles market, in Kano, have been reportedly kidnapped by gunmen on their way to Aba town, in Abia State.
It was gathered that the traders were traveling to Aba to buy textile materials when they were abducted by gunmen on Sunday in Okene, Kogi State.
The spokesman of the market, Mansur Haruna, who confirmed the incident, said however that not all of the 27 traders that are from Kantin-Kwari market. According to him, among the kidnapped traders, there were others from Kofar-Wambai, Sabon-Gari and other markets, who joined those from Kantin-Kwari for the trip.
Haruna disclosed that the leadership of the textile market had sought for God’s intervention, as it constituted a committee for prayers at mosques and residences for the safe release of the kidnapped traders.
The market spokesman also called on the State governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje and other concerned authorities to intervene to secure a safe release of the traders, noting that most of them are small-scale entrepreneurs that run their business on not more than N400,000 capital.
A trader in the market, Lawan Garba, said there had been communication between the families of the kidnapped traders and the kidnappers, adding that they initially demanded N45 million for a single person. “As I speak to you now, a somber atmosphere has covered the market”, he stated.
