The Apapa Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) yesterday said it has collected N159. 047 billion in the first three months of year 2021 as Customs duty and other charges. Area Controller of the Command, Comptroller Yusuf Ibrahim, who stated this while addressing newsmen, said the revenue collected represents 44.8 per cent increment in duty collection when compared to the last year figure of over N110 billion of the same corresponding months, January-March 2020.
According to him, the difference recorded was made possible because of robust stakeholders engagement, officers resolute in discharging their duties and an increased level of compliance in the trader’s zone.
However, he said in the area of anti-smuggling, the command made significant seizures of 23 containers of various items such as unregistered pharmaceuticals like tramadol/codeine, used clothing, foreign parboiled rice with the duty paid value of N773,809 million between the months of February to March 2021.
“However, the total seizure for the the first quarter (January-March) stands at 28 containers with a duty paid value of N1,872 billion. “These are all importations in breach of sections 46, 47, 161 of the Customs and Excise Manegement Act CAP C45 LFN 2004 and schedules 4 and 6 of the Common External Tariff (CET). These cases are in various stages of investigation,” he added.
Speaking on trade facilitation, he said the export statistics extracted from the system revealed that goods worth N41.559 billion have been exported through Apapa Port between January and March 2021.
He said the export include manufactured products such as soap, textiles, noodles, agricultural products and other mineral resources, adding that the total tonnage of the said export stood at 116 million tones with Free on Board (FOB) value of $109.655 million. “We have improved on our existing collaboration in the areas of information sharing and other areas that will further make it difficult for perpetrators of trade malpractice to succeed in our port,” he said.
