Abductors of 14 Zaria Local Council workers in Kaduna State, on Friday, contacted individual families to demand ransom, ranging from N15m, N20m to N100m for each person.

Spokesperson of the Coalition of Northern Groups (CNG), Abdul-Azeez Suleiman, yesterday, confirmed this in Abuja. He said: “It has come to our notice that the abductors had made contact with their families separately on Friday.

“We learnt the captors assured individual families of the captives’ safety and demanded ransom. With the unfolding scenario, the CNG headquarters has resolved to direct its Kaduna State students’ wing to put its planned mass protest on hold, so as not to disrupt the fresh development.

“We assure affected families, particularly the aggrieved students, who are in solidarity with their fellows, whose parents are among the victims, that CNG would remain vigilant, concerning the direction the situation would turn, until their parents are brought back alive.

“We, however, frown at the discouraging silence by the authorities in the past four days, since the captives, who are legitimate government workers were abducted while carrying out an official assignment,” he said. The group called for special prayers for safe return of all victims currently in captivity anywhere.

(The Guardian: Excluding headline)