Conversion to Christianity: Bashir Tofa-led Kano elders, parents demand release of 47 more abducted children

Parents of missing children in Kano State are demanding the release of 47 more children suspected to be abducted by a criminal Igbo syndicate who specialize in seizing young Muslim children, renaming, converting them to Christianity and selling them into slavery in the South Eastern part of the country.

The DEFENDER reports that the Kano Police Command had rescued nine missing children and paraded six Igbo persons who had confessed to abducting children and selling them in Onitsha, Anambra State.

However, parents of other missing children in the state, who formed a group named, “Protection Against the Abduction of Our Missing Children”, requested the government and the police I the state to intensify efforts to ensure that the 47 identified missing children are also rescued.

According to a report by Kano Focus, Secretary of the group, Malam Shuaibu Ibahim, who spoke Monday on behalf of other members said they were going through extreme trauma due to the abduction of their children by the criminal syndicates.

Mr Ibrahim said since the police had already arrested suspects in connection with the ‘kidnap for Christ’ scandal, they should interrogate the suspects to reveal their accomplices so that other children still missing could be found and returned to their parents.

The parents also released the list of the 47 missing children as well as photos of 23 of the children who were kidnapped from neighbourhoods such as Walalambe, Walawai Hotoro, Kawo and Tinshama, all in Kano city.

Also, another member of the group, Tajiri Hotoro, had told journalists that the number of missing children abducted within the last four years in Nasarawa local government area alone, is more than 100.

“Quite a number of parents have resigned to their fate. Some do not even have the transport fare to attending our meetings.

“We are calling on government and other relevant agencies to join together to rescue our children. We are in deep agony,” he was quoted as saying.

‘Dangerous trend’

In a statement on Monday, a group of Kano elders, under the platform of Kano Concerned Citizens Initiative (KCCI) condemned what it described as “a specialized organized crime that manipulates religion to exploit the innocent children.”

Alhaji Bashir Othman Tofa, Chairman of the group warned that the abduction of Kano children and converting them to Christianity “is a very dangerous dimension.”

“Whatever was the purpose of these abductions it is still frightening because of the newspaper reports of the horrendous experiences the children underwent. This is a specialized organized crime that manipulates religion to exploit the innocent children. It is widely re-ported that the names of the children were changed and they were “converted” to Christianity. This is a very dangerous dimension,” the statement read.