By Adedapo Adesanya
The Oyo/Osun Area Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has generated N50.98 billion between January and October 2021.
This was disclosed by the Customs Area Controller, Mr Adamu Abdulkadir, in Ibadan on Friday while displaying 5,046 bags of foreign rice and other contraband seized by the command.
Mr Abdulkadir said that the revenue generated by the customs command in the period under review signified a 14.4 per cent increase when compared to revenue generated in the same period of the year 2020, which was N43.63 billion.
The comptroller said that the seizures made during the same period had a cumulative Duty Paid Value of N617.05 million.
“Today, as part of the aforementioned, displayed before you are the array of seizures which include 5,046 of 50kg bags of foreign parboiled rice; and 22 bales of second-hand clothing.
“Others are, one unit of 2017 Honda Accord car; and one unit of 2020 Toyota Prado Jeep.
“Others are 500 units of 25 litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) which shall be auctioned due to its inflammable nature and proceeds remitted accordingly,” Mr Abdulkadir said.
He said that the officers of the command would not relent in their effort at combating the menace of smuggling.
The controller noted that the service would further sharpen its intelligence and widen its dragnet to ensure all nooks and crannies of the command were well covered.
Mr Abdulkadir said that the Comptroller-General of Customs, Mr Hameed Ali, had been magnanimous enough to the command by providing 10 new fully-kitted Toyota Hilux vehicles to enhance operations.
He said that the comptroller-general had also boosted the morale of officers with the provision of other necessary facilities and equipment that could aid their performances.
“All these have further re-awakened the vigour and strategies in our anti-smuggling drive as exemplified in the seizure of 500 bags of foreign parboiled rice made in a residential building in Osun State in the early hours of Thursday.
“To this effort, we owe him, his erudite management team and the nation at large our commitment and focus in fighting the menace of smuggling that has bedevilled our country,” he said.
Mr Abdulkadir called on residents of Oyo and Osun States not to attack officers performing their lawful duty as there were sanctions prescribed against such offenders under the law.
The controller called on those blocking the roads and other access points and thereby preventing officers from accessing smuggling areas, to refrain from such act as it was also punishable under the law.
He said that Section 158 of the Customs and Excise Management Act (CEMA) gave Customs officers the power to patrol freely across the nation and appreciate citizens that contributed to the successes recorded by the command.
Modupe Gbadeyanka