The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Seme Area Command, Lagos, has seized a truckload of beans, totaling 400 bags, stockpiled in a warehouse at one of the exit corridors in the border.
Timi Bomodi, Comptroller, Seme Area Command, disclosed this during a news conference on Tuesday in Lagos.
Bomodi said the command seized the beans in the light of the present economic realities, where massive food shortages had been reported across the country.
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He added that it was seized in line with the directive to avoid illegal export of grains.
Bomodi said the Duty Paid Value ( DPV) of the seized items was ₦61.45 million.
According to him, this item has since been deposited in the government’s warehouse for safe keeping and eventual sale to the public.
“In the same vein, the continuous surveillance of the border by our officers and men, has resulted in the interceptions of 400 x 30liters of petrol equivalent of 12,000 liters with a DPV of ₦8,347,680 in the early hours of March 2, 2024 along the creeks.
“The petrol seized will be auctioned in line with Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) of sales of seized perishable items as directed by the service,” he said.
On revenue generation, he said the command had generated N1.16 billion between Jan. and Feb., 2024. He noted that the command was given a revenue target of N7.88 billion in the current year.
“This represents an increase of over 400 per cent compared to the target of 2023.
“This also translates to a monthly collectable revenue of N656.26 million.
“In Jan. 2024, the command collected ₦643,038,611, while in February, we collected ₦517,950,286 making a total of ₦1,160,988,897,” he said.
He said the command had processed 184 export declarations for 43 items with a total weight of 65,185.96 MT and a FOB of N13.06 billion.
“Total amount collected for the Nigerian Export Supervision Scheme was N65.3 million, and N24.4 million as export surcharge for previously imported goods.
“It is important to highlight the numerous challenges encountered by officers in the course of enforcing government policies, primary among which is the difficult terrain.
“However, since the provision of special purpose vehicles, and other critical assets by the NCS Management, and the rejigging of inter agency affairs, things have taken a positive turn here at Seme/Krake joint border post,” he said.
Bomodi said the command successfully made 168 interventions in two months which resulted in the seizures of 2,193 bags of 50kg of rice equivalent of three-trailer load.
“Others are 81,930 litres of petrol, nine vehicles, one 1,425 general merchandise, 265 parcels of cannabis sativa and other narcotics, 149 packs of codeine and two locally manufactured guns.
“All with a combined DPV of ₦365,888,696.00. A total of 13 suspects were arrested in connection with these seizures, six of them were granted administrative bails, three were handed over to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency for further agency action.”
“One was handed over to the Nigerian Police, while three suspects are still in our custody,” he said.
He said Lagos-Abidjan corridor of which the Lagos Badagry Expressway is a major composite is a singular passageway accessible via multiple tributaries.
‘Our creeks and the Atlantic traverse this single entry point.
“That is why collaboration with the Nigeria Navy is imperative and significant.
“The Nigerian Air force and Army have provided critical support throughout this period,” he said.
