Customs seize N5.5bn contraband-laden containers in Rivers

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The Port Harcourt Area II Command of the Nigeria Customs Service, Onne, Rivers State, has seized 56 containers laden with contraband products illegally imported into the country through the port.

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The Customs said the containers, which contained vegetable oil, tomatoes and used clothing, had a duty-paid value of N5.53bn.

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The items, classified as contraband, were concealed under declarations of machinery and spare parts and imported through the Onne Free Trade Zone.

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The Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, disclosed this at a news briefing in Onne on Tuesday.

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Adeniyi, while conducting journalists around the seized containers at Onne Wharf, lamented the abuse of concessions granted by the Federal Government to operators in free trade zones.

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He explained that the government established special economic zones, free zones and free trade zones to encourage local production, with some designated for exports and others for domestic manufacturing.

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The Customs CG said several incentives and waivers were granted to enable the zones to operate effectively, including duty-free importation of plants, raw materials and machinery.

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However, Adeniyi said the service had, over the past few years, raised concerns over the abuse of the concessions by importers.

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He said some importers now brought goods into the country under the cover of free trade zone concessions and subsequently diverted them to the local market.

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According to him, the vegetable oil and used clothing were seized because they were imported in contravention of Sections 55 and 233 of the Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023.

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He said, “The Command in Onne has been undertaking a review of operations of some goods that are imported through Onne ports but are destined for some free trade zones and other economic zones in the country.

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“What we have discovered through our intelligence and our risk-based analysis of the profiles of these importers is that so many of them have started to abuse the free zone concessions.

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“In the course of our profiling, we discovered that importers operating in the free zone had imported a total of 45 containers of vegetable oil, Delicious Pur brand, with 1,050 jerry cans inside each of the 45 containers.

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“They are 25 litres each, with a total duty-paid value of N4,252,500,000.

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“The remarkable thing about these containers is that they were declared as machinery and spare parts.

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“When we discovered them during physical examination, we found vegetable oil, and it is obvious that the intention of the importer was not to take them to free trade zones for any manufacturing activities, but to introduce them into our local markets.”

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In addition to the vegetable oil, Adeniyi said the Command seized nine 40-foot containers of used clothing with a duty-paid value of N1.045bn.

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He added that two 20-foot containers of foreign tomato paste, with a duty-paid value of N232m, were also seized during the period.

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The Customs CG assured that the owners of the seized goods would be prosecuted after investigations in accordance with relevant import laws.

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He said the action was aimed at safeguarding the nation’s economy, protecting public health and strengthening the country’s security architecture.

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“What we have done in the interception of these containers is aimed at safeguarding Nigeria’s economic interests, protecting public health, supporting domestic production and ensuring compliance with the country’s import laws and regulations.

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“Importing consignments that violate existing restrictions or involve false declarations, as we have seen in this particular case, can have serious consequences for the Nigerian economy and Nigerian security, and can further deprive the government of legitimate revenue.

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“It also exposes our manufacturers, farmers and other local producers to unfair competition,” he said.

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Adeniyi commended officers and men of the Command for their vigilance in detecting the allegedly falsely declared goods and urged them not to rest on their laurels.

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Customs inaugurates remodelled health centre

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Also on Tuesday, Adeniyi inaugurated the reconstructed Ebubu Health Centre in Ebubu, Eleme Local Government Area of Rivers State.

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The facility was renovated by the Port Harcourt Area II Command as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility programme.

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Speaking at the inauguration, Adeniyi commended the Area II Controller, Aliyu Alkali, for responding to the directive given to all commanders to carry out CSR programmes in their respective commands.

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He said the CSR initiative was part of the service’s Customs Care policy, through which the NCS had supported the construction of schools, healthcare interventions and other community projects across the country.

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Adeniyi called on the Ebubu community to take ownership of the facility and protect it from vandalism.

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Also speaking, Alkali appreciated Adeniyi for his support and encouragement towards the renovation of the health centre.

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He said the facility had been in a state of abandonment, with its equipment allegedly looted before the Customs intervention.

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Alkali said the renovated health centre would ease the burden on healthcare seekers in the area, adding that the project demonstrated the Command’s commitment to the welfare of communities within its area of operation.

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In his remarks, the Director of Medical Services of the Rivers State Primary Healthcare Management Board, Dr Tonye Lawson-Jack, expressed the board’s appreciation to the Customs Service for intervening in the renovation and upgrading of the facility.

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Lawson-Jack assured the community that the board had sufficient manpower to attend to the needs of healthcare seekers at the centre.

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