Ijumu Local Government Council has shut down the Iyara Zango cattle market with immediate effect.
Alhaji Haruna Ibrahim, the executive chairman of the local government, confirmed this to Media Talk Africa on Friday.
The closure follows intelligence reports that kidnappers and other criminal elements have been using the market to carry out their nefarious activities.
It was gathered that after the closure of Zango markets in some parts of the state, particularly in Kogi Central, the criminals relocated to Iyara, in Ijumu Local Government Area.
The council chairman stated that the market would remain closed until further notice, as security agencies have been mobilised to enforce the order.
“I have been mandated by the state governor, Alhaji Ahmed Usman Ododo, to eradicate criminal elements tarnishing the image of the local government and the state through kidnapping and banditry.
“The safety of the people of Ijumu and travellers remains our priority, and anyone or any group frustrating government efforts will face the full wrath of the law,” he said.
