The FT-IR and laser-Raman spectra of five new complexes of the formula ML2Ni(CN)4 (where M=Mn, Fe, Ni, Zn or Cd; L=3-chloropyridine) are reported. The complexes are shown to have a structure consisting of two dimensional polymeric layers formed with Ni(CN)4 ions bridged by ML2 cations. For a given series of isomorphous complexes, the effects of metal ligand bond formation on the ligand vibrational modes are examined and the metal-sensitivity sequence of the ligand frequencies is found to be Mn≈Cd<Fe<Zn<Ni.