CGC Adewale Adeniyi
Apapa Customs Command generates N11.3bn in one day, N1.72trn a year
The Nigeria Customs Service, Apapa Area Command, recorded a remarkable feat in the areas of revenue collection and trade facilitation by generating a total of N1,172,414,793,960.32 (N1.72trn) in 2023.
A statement signed by the Command’s Public Relations Officer, CSC Abubakar Usman, said the command also made seizures worth N22bn in 2023.
It says the revenue generated represented a 14.6 percent increase as it was over N149.8b above the revenue collection of N1,022,530,523,699.40 in 2022.
Usman noted that the Command had sustained the tempo of improved revenue collection by crossing the N1 trillion mark in the face of declined trade volume.
He said that the command, which is headed by Area Comptroller Jaiyeoba, recorded a single day’s collection of N11.3 billion on November 22, 2023, the highest daily collection recorded in the history of the NCS.
Usman also disclosed that the Command recorded N145 billion revenue collection in October 2023, which represented the highest monthly revenue collection by any Customs Command.
He said that the command also recorded laudable feats in its anti-smuggling war by making 54 seizures with a Duty Paid Value of N22,847,295,900.00 within the period under review.
The command’s spokesman noted that the seizures were made “due to infractions like a contravention of extant import/export prohibition lists, false declaration, unlawful concealment and others.
He listed the seized items to include: used clothing, foreign parboiled rice, vegetable oil, and tomato paste, among others.
Usman quoted Comptroller Jaiyeoba as sounding a note of warning to smugglers and traders involved in any form of illegality.
“Apapa Port is a no-go area as any attempt to test our resolve will be met with seizure of their wares, arrest and prosecution of suspects in accordance with the Nigeria Customs Service Act (NCSA) 2023.
“We operate an open-door policy and our collaboration has yielded gains in ensuring Apapa port remains safe for users.”
“Since my assumption of office here, dispute resolution, query, and amendment seats have been more active. I urge complaint traders to keep up their good deeds while advising others to emulate the virtue of honesty,” Usman quoted the CAC as saying.
He said that the CAC also assured of more robust collaborations with sister government agencies like the NPA, police, NDLEA, NAFDAC, DSS, NAQS, Port Health Service and others in the area while also stating the Command’s readiness to facilitate legitimate trade.
The PRO said the CAC solicited the support of every player in the port system, including haulage operators, terminal operators, clearing/forwarding agents, and shipping companies, towards achieving 48-hour cargo clearance.
He added that Comptroller Jaiyeoba urged compliant traders to keep up their good deeds while advising others to emulate the virtue of honesty, noting that integrity is critical to achieving 48-hour cargo clearance.
