Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Federal Operations Unit (FOU), Zone A, Lagos has intercepted some bags of rice, Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and other contraband worth N1.72 billion from smugglers in the last one month.
Also, the service noted that six smugglers were arrested in connection with all the seizures.
The seizures, according to the Area Controller of the unit, Comptroller Kola Oladeji included 3,832 bags of 50kg foreign parboiled rice equivalent to seven trucks, 27 used vehicles, 494 Jerry cans of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) equivalent to 14,820 litres, 27 bales of used clothes, 95 bags of charcoal and 3,643kg of Cannabis Sativa.
Oladeji stated on Wednesday in Lagos that the seizures had combined Duty Paid Value (DPV) of N1.72 billion, noting that the unit would continue to enforce the provisions of the Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023 relating to import and export goods to prevent revenue losses.
He said: “The operatives of FOU ‘A’ have intensified surveillance of our borders within the South Western States. This onslaught is against the activities of economic saboteurs in areas of the service.
“Key Performance Indicators (KPI), which include revenue generation, suppression of smuggling and facilitation of legitimate trade, have continued to record significant successes through our ongoing operations code named ‘Swift Sting Operations’ and the efforts of other patrol teams.
“During the period under review, the unit recorded milestones in its anti-smuggling operations. Some of these landmark achievements comprise 82 interceptions.” The comptroller stressed that the successes recorded so far this year were not made on a platter of gold.
Also, Oladeji said that the unit generated N72.4 million from debit notes slammed on importers who underpaid Customs duty at the seaports, adding that the Comptroller General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, had since coming onboard rolled out a number of trade facilitation tools to help boost the nation’s revenue and grow the economy.
