The Controller, Oyo-Osun Area Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Adamu Abdulkadir, said despite the slow pace of business activities in January, N4.8bn in revenue was generated.
Abdukadir made this known at the command headquarters on Thursday.
“Mythically, January is a slow month but with the expertise, meticulousness and sense of observation of the excise officers, the command was able to collect N4,895,772,769.90 for the month of January,” he said.
He said between November 19, 2020, and January 2021, the command made a series of detentions and seizures amounting to a total duty paid value of N393.4m. Within the period under review, Abdukadir said the command seized 550 litres of petrol from smugglers.
Among items seized within the two weeks are 3,052 bags of foreign parboiled rice with a duty paid value of N124.4m. Also seized were 200 litres of vegetable oil with duty paid value of N217. 2m, as well as 60 bales of second-hand clothing with duty paid value of N15m and 246 pieces of used tyres with duty paid value of more than N200m.
The command also seized a Toyota Camry (2020 model) with duty paid value of N211.5m, a used Toyota Highlander (2019 model) with duty paid value of N33.7m.
The area commander said that if necessary, his officers will search homes to fish out smuggled items rather than waiting for smugglers at border posts.
He said: “The area command under my management has further enhanced its anti-smuggling strategies by taking the battle to the doorsteps of the smugglers, rather than waiting for them to come out, in an operation code-named ‘Operation Fish Out’ while invoking sections 147 and 151 of Customs and Excise Management Act to search premises for un-custom goods.
“For those of you who would rather be on the side of the smugglers, revealing our movement and actions to them, thereby making our job difficult, we would track, apprehend and prosecute you in accordance with section 77 of the Customs and Excise Management Act for signalling to smugglers.”