Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, generates between N1 billion and N1.5billion on a daily basis through various import duties,the Comptroller-General of Customs, Col. Hameed Ali (rtd.), has revealed.
Ali made this known on Thursday, November 5, when he paid a courtesy visit to the Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas, at the Naval Headquarters in Abuja.
The Customs Boss said the NCS presently lacks the capacity to generate the needed revenue for the country and will therefore require the assistance of the Nigerian Navy.
The Comptroller-General noted that apart from the daily revenue generation, the nation loses billions of naira during most of its numerous public holidays.
Ali said: “Part of our job on trade certification is dependent on the navy, the more we get the more likely our revenue rises.
“Any day we declare public holiday we lose money, in practical terms the customs, our ports generates about N1 billion to N1.5 billion a day, so any day they say public holiday that is N1.5 billion gone. And Nigerians love holidays, if Christmas falls on Saturday we will say we want to have Monday as holiday but to us it’s a pain because we are now looking at it in terms of raw cash.”
