Twenty passengers who were travelling along the link road between Mariga and Kontagora area of Niger state have been kidnapped.
The passengers were said to have been kidnapped by some bandits operating along the axis, the speaker of the Niger House of Assembly, Abdulmalik Sarkin-Daji has confirmed.
According to the lawmaker, the bandits mounted a blockade along the road and forced the passengers into a nearby forest.
The speaker noted that the area has become and breeding camp for the bandits with families of victims taking ransom to the bandits there.
He said, “The passengers kidnapped on Thursday on the Mariga-Kontagora road were also taken to the same forest.”
“Despite the military’s previous dismissal of one Assembly member’s statements, bandits blocked the road between Baban-Lamba and Beri on Thursday, October 31, abducting over 20 passengers and relocating them to the same forest, he said.
While urging the military leadership to make efforts towards ridding the area of bandits, the lawmaker said the Federal Government and relevant authorities need to understand the challenges faced by the residents.
