Akwanga, former minister abducted by gunmen

A former Minister of Labour and Productivity, Mr HuAkwssaini Akwanga, who served during the administration of President Olusegun Obasanjo, has been kidnapped in his village in Nasarawa state.

Confirming the abduction, the Nasarawa State Police Command said that Akwanga was kidnapped by gunmen at his farm on Wamba Road in Akwanga on August 22, Akwanga town is about 46km north of Lafia, the capital of Nasarawa State.

The spokesman of the Nasarawa State Police Command, DSP. Kennedy Idirisu, disclosed in Lafia that the Commissioner of Police, Mr Abubakar Sadiq-Bello, has directed the mobilisation of policemen, led by the deputy commissioner in charge of operations to search for the abducted former minister.

“As we speak, the commissioner himself has gone to Akwanga to boost the rescue operation to ensure that the victim is released unhurt,” he explained.

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National Daily learnt that a member of the family has been contacted by the kidnappers, demanding for an unspecified amount of money as ransom.

It would be recalled that on May 6, the mother and sister of a member of the Nasarawa State House of Assembly, Hon. Kassim Mohammed, were similarly abducted in Akwanga.

Akwanga was removed from office on December 4, 2003, following an alleged $214 million national identity card scam.