By John Ikani
The Niger State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mohammed Idris, was on Sunday kidnapped by gunmen at Baban Tunga village of Tarfa Local Government Area of the state.
Confirming the incident to newsmen, Secretary to the State Government, Ahmed Matane, said the commissioner was abducted around 1 am in his hometown, Baban Tunga.
While noting that security operatives are on the trail of the kidnappers, Matane added that they hope to rescue the commissioner unharmed soon.
Niger is one of the states in Northern Nigeria worst hit by the scourge of mass abduction and kidnapping for ransom.
About 27 students were kidnapped in Kagara in February.
There have been other mass abductions, including the kidnapping of over 100 Islamiyya pupils in Tegina area of the state.
They also routinely block highways to kidnap passengers, their favourite target being commuter buses from which they capture dozens of passengers at a time.
