Bayero, ACF, Others Warn against Abduction of Kano Children

Ahmad Sorondinki in Kano

The Emir of Kano, Alhaji Aminu Ado Bayero, the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), and other ethnic groups living in Kano have issued a stern warning over abductions of children in the north, especially Kano State.

Speaking, at a meeting organised by the ACF over the weekend in Kano, the Emir urged the government at all levels to address the menace of trafficking, abduction, buying, and selling of children in Kano and other parts of the country.

The Sarkin Shanu Kano, Alhaji Shehu Muhammad, who represented the Emir expressed concern over the recent incident of recovery of abducted children made by the Kano Police Command.

He urged all community leaders, and security agencies in the state to put hands on deck to proffer lasting solutions in addressing the menace before it goes out of hand.

the ACF organised a meeting of all stakeholders on Saturday in Kano to proffer a solution to the crime.

Speaking on behalf of the ACF, the Chairman, Dr Gwani Umar urged traditional institutions, security agencies, community leaders, judiciary, and legislature to work together towards finding a solution to the problem.

“We called for this stakeholders meeting to show our concern with the way children are abducted and sold in the state. Not even abducted, some were sold by their parents, and some were sold by doctors in the hospital after delivery, as confirmed to us by the police commissioner when we visited him.

“We visited the police commissioner and thanked him when he rescued eight children recently.

“The children were from Bauchi, they bring them to Kano, collaborate with to give them certificates of birth, backdate them, and then sell the children.

“One of them who bought a child at N480,000 was arrested and the police commissioner told us that she said she bought the child because in the Igbo culture if you don’t have a male child you will not inherit your husband,” Umar stated.

The representative of Eze Ndigbo, Chief Uwaimo Ifeanyi who represented Igwe Igbokwe of Kano condemned the act and called for the wrath of the law on the perpetrators.

“We received with shock and disbelief the abduction of children that were recovered by the police in Kano. We condemn this criminal act in its entirety.

“We call on the law to deal with the perpetrators as we dissociate with the act and remain law abiding” Ifeanyi stated.

Other ethnic leaders present at the meeting included the Sarkin Edo of Kano, Fred Akhigbe, the leader of the Igala community, Abubakar Ibochi, and the Yoruba leader in Kano, Yunus Olanrewaju, who all condemned the act, and dissociated themselves from it.