The Donkey Dealers Association of Nigeria has frowned at the activities of officials of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) towards its members in the course of doing their businesses.
President of the association, Dike Ifeanyi, in a statement on Thursday, expressed displeasure over the status of donkey business in Nigeria.
“We are dealers of donkeys and its derivatives throughout the country. Our industry has directly employed more than twenty-five thousand people and one hundred and eighty thousand jobs created indirectly.
“The harassment of NCS is painful and counterproductive, and it is really sad to see an industry with such economic prospect dying silently,” he said.
He said instead of encouraging the development of ranches to support the breeding of donkeys, and make Nigeria a donkey hub in Africa, the NCS has resorted to harassing and exploiting its members.
“The activities of the Nigerian Customs Service who incessantly arrest our members and impound their goods is regrettable and it needs to stop.
“The association is also of the view that only the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS) is legally empowered for certification of all agricultural products and as a result of its duty of certification of agricultural products, NAQS should be allowed to do their job as it is obtained globally.
“The Nigeria Customs Service recently in Kebbi State confiscated about 1,390 bags of donkey meat heading to Onitsha, Anambra State, valued about N42.534 million and destroyed it.
“It is painful to note that these meat are not being exported out of the country. Their claim is that it is prohibited that Nigeria is a signatory to the international convention on wildlife,” Ifeanyi stated.
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