In the first three months of 2023, the Nigeria Customs Service’s Ogun 1 Area Command reported seizing 21 trailer loads of foreign parboiled rice. Also, the customs claimed to have seized 107 bags of cannabis sativa worth more than N98 million, 1,375 wraps of bread and coconut sizes, and other items in various locations throughout the state, Entrepreneurng report.
This information was revealed by the controller, Bamidele Makinde, during a news conference on Thursday at the NCS headquarters in Abeokuta. According to Makinde, the state’s National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency will get the confiscated cannabis sativa on the specified date.
Commenting about the foreign rice that was captured, Makinde claimed that his agents recovered 740 pieces of Chinese rice stored in 25kg sacks in a warehouse in the state of Sagamu.
Nonetheless, the customs official warned Nigerians against consuming anything that would “hamper their health.” In all, 181 items were seized, including 12,610 bags of illegally-imported rice (50kg and 25kg), which Makinde claimed was the equivalent of 21 trailer loads.
It is important to note that on March 15, 2023, at 10:30 p.m., we made a spectacular seizure of 740 bags of Chinese rice weighing 25 kg apiece that were stored in a warehouse in the Sagamu axis of Ogun State.
The head of NCS reported that during the period under consideration, 1,1446 cartons of imported cigarettes with Chinese labels and addresses were also impounded.
Makinde continued, “Other seizures conducted in the first three months of this year include 77,250 liters of gasoline, 29 units of used vehicles used to transport illegal products, 29 items of art, 73 bales of used apparel, 14 sacks of foreign-made used shoes, and 900 pieces of foreign-made used tires; “1,120 frozen poultry goods, 240 body cream pieces, 107 bags, and 1,382 wraps of cannabis sativa were also purchased.
The Duty Payable Value (DPV) of the items seized is N704,482,601, which is a 61 percent increase from the (N432,337,690) DPV of the items seized in the first quarter of 2022. He also revealed this information.
According to Makinde, the command made N44,857,053.50 in total revenue between January and March 2023 from the duties it collected on goods packed in luggage, the sale of trash cars at auction, and the sale of petroleum products.
The sum of N5,512,901.50 that was collected in revenue over the same period in 2022 is lower than the amount of money that was created above, according to him.
In conclusion, the Controller reiterated that the command’s revenue-generating activities include the assessment of merchandise in baggage and the importation and exportation of legal goods under the ECOWAS Trade Liberalization Scheme. However, he also insisted that the command is actively promoting exports to support the nation’s foreign exchange earnings.
Source: PunchÂ
