Barely two weeks after the Comptroller-General of Customs working visit to Lagos where he showcased various seizures made by the Federal Operations Unit (FOU) Zone A worth over N10 billion Naira, the Unit has again intercepted contraband worth forty million, one hundred and forty-four thousand, two hundred and fifty Naira (N40,144,250.00).
This is the acting Customs Area Controller of the unit, Deputy Comptroller Usman Yahaya’s unrelenting effort has continued to yield more result in its anti-smuggling drives.
The Customs Public Relations Officer of the Unit, Mr. Jerry Attah who disclosed this in a statement in Lagos on Tuesday observed that the contraband were intercepted from unapproved routes within Ogun State between 5th and 17th February, 2020 based on surveillance and routine patrol.
He gave the breakdown of the seizures to include; one thousand, three hundred and ninety-three (1,393) bags of smuggled foreign parboiled rice, one hundred and eighty-seven (187) jerrycans/sixty-six (66) drums of foreign vegetable oil, six hundred and twenty-five (625) cartons of poultry products and fifty (50) jerrycans of foreign vegetable oil.
The Unit’s spokesman disclosed that the rice, vegetable oil and poultry products were conveyed in twelve (12) different motor vehicles and also concealed in gas cylinders even as he gave the breakdown of the Duty Paid Value (DPV) of the seized items as follows; rice – twenty-seven million, eight hundred and sixty thousand naira (N27, 860,000.00), Vegetable oil – six million, two hundred and eighty-four thousand, two hundred and fifty naira (N6,284,250.00) and frozen poultry products – six million naira (N6,000,000.00).
He stated that this desperate act by those dare devil smugglers concealing edible items in a gas cylinder further justified the hard chase by operatives of customs.
“DC Usman Yahaya warned that unless the economic saboteurs repent from their unscrupulous activities, they will continue to count their losses. He also advised legitimate traders to be compliant in their declarations as the unit is ever ready to facilitate their trade in line with world best practices.
“While thanking the Comptroller General of Customs, Col. Hameed Ibrahim Ali (rtd.) and the entire management team of the Nigeria Customs Service for providing necessary logistics and motivation that led to this feat, Acting Comptroller Usman Yahaya called on all meaningful Nigerians to support the service’s fight against smuggling activities by providing intelligence that could assist the unit achieve more monumental seizures”, he said.
Photo: DC Usman Yahaya (right) showcasing parts of the intercepted rice and other edibles concealed in gas cylinder at the Unit’s headquarters, Lagos.
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