The Ogun State Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), this morning, declared a total of #437,860,681 as revenue generated for a period of one month. This was even as it made an unprecedented seizure of various contrabands, including a brand new 2018/2019 model of Range Rover Jeep with a Duty Paid Value (DPV) of #64,249,064.80, and tagged ‘Seizure of the month’.
Also intercepted between May 2 and June 4, 2018, were 5,103 bags (50kg)of foreign rice, 51 vehicles, comprising 19 ‘tokuboh’ and 32 means of conveyance, 135 kegs (25 liters) of vegetable oil, 33 bags of sugar (50kg each), 7 bales of secondhand, 3 bales, 36 sacks and 300 pairs of foot wears.
Other seizures made include 129 pieces of used tyres, 102 kegs (25kg) of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), and a sack of ladies hand bags, all with a total Duty Paid Value of #370,892,666.00.
Making the declaration, at a press briefing held at the Idiroko Sentry of the Command, the Customs Area Controller (CAC), Comptroller Michael Agbara, said: “We have set the ball rolling in our quest to effectively perform our core functions of revenue generation, suppression of smuggling and facilitation of legitimate trade”.
Reacting specifically to smuggling of rice, the custums boss, who conducted media men round the sentry, to assess the seized items, expressed disgust at smugglers’ desperation, and berated them for endangering the lives of consumers of foreign rice.
He laid emphasis on how the ‘economic saboteurs’ stocked the commodity in every available space in the means of conveyance (vehicles) , quintessence of which was in the battery compartments.
Aside the health hazards constituted to consumers of such grains of rice, Agbara stated that, while government was focusing on how to improve local production, smugglers were busy killing the efforts, thereby empowering neighboring countries.
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