Apapa Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), has recorded massive seizures worth N292,244,857.00 according to CAC Babatunde Olomu.
Speaking at a press briefing, the CAC announced the seizure of 2x40ft containers carrying 12,000 pieces of cutlasses and machetes, 2x40ft containers with 4,129 packages of frozen hens, a 40ft container with 368 jumbo bales of used second-hand clothing, and a 40ft container of expired pharmaceuticals imported from China.
The CAC disclosed that the combined duty paid value (DPV) of the items amounts to ₦292,244,857.00.
According to Olomu, the importations are illicit as they violate Schedule 3 of the revised import prohibition list of the Common External Tariff (CET) and Section 233 of the Nigeria Customs Service Act, 2023. He credited the seizures to a combination of intelligence and diligent enforcement, ensuring that without proper examination, no consignment will exit Apapa Port or any terminal under the Command.
In his words: “As a working principle, the Command will continually sustain and improve on trade facilitation and maximum revenue collection without compromising the enforcement of our extant laws as they pertain to false declaration, concealment, under-declaration, and under-valuation,” Olomu explained.
He emphasized that the Command is committed to enforce the requirements of sister regulatory agencies such as NAFDAC in the case of food and drugs, and the strict implementation of end-user certificate rules for products requiring authorization from relevant authorities like the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).
CAC Olomu made it clear that only consignments that meet the integrity test of compliance as per the Comptroller-General’s strict directive on prohibited items will be allowed to pass through the port whether as import or export cargoes.
The Customs Area Comptroller expressed gratitude for the massive support and cooperation from sister government agencies and promised that the seized items would be handed over to the appropriate agency for further investigation and regulatory action.
