Seme Customs Command Seized 2242 Bags of Rice, 7 Tankers of PMS, Records Shortfall In Revenue

      Comptroller Dera Nnadi

Seme Customs Command Seized 2242 Bags of Rice, 7 Tankers of PMS, Records Shortfall In Revenue 

By: Bisi Akingbade

Seme Border Command of Nigeria Customs Service disclosed that it has seized 2242 bags of rice being smuggled into the country and 7 tankers of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) in the first quarter of the year 2023

The Controller of the Command, Comptroller Dera Nnadi, during the press briefing at the Command in Seme stated that  items seized by the command at the first quarter of the year includes 550 pieces of donkey skin with duty paid value (DPV) of N10,689,504; 6 Maltese International Passports with the same picture of a lady but with different names, 2 Senegalese International Passports.  Also, seven tankers were made of 227,610 liters of PMS with DPV of  Fifty One Million Seventy Five Thousand, Six Hundred and Eighty Four Naira  (N51,075,684).

Also seized items were 3 Togolese International Passports; Four (4) Republic of Benin International Passports, One (1) Republic of Niger International Passport and Ten (10) International Driving License of these various countries were seized and will be handed over to the Nigeria Immigration Service on the orders of the CGC and in line with the Service desire to consolidate the synergy between NCS and partner agencies.

Others seized items by the Command were 1160 pieces of dead rats, 1102 pieces of dead tiny birds and 34 pieces of monkey skin and 14 parcels of cannabis sativa.

Controller Nnadi noted that there was shortfall in revenue recorded during the period compared to what was recorded during the same period last year.

 “Recall that I had earlier informed you that the economic policy of the Republic of Benin who charge fees on goods in transit to Nigeria constitute tariff barriers to trade along the corridor. These affected the Command’s revenue and there is a need for urgent review.


“One of the core mandates of the Service in Seme as elsewhere is trade facilitation. The Command is conscious of its strategic location as the foremost frontier for trade and tourism in West and Central Africa particularly the ECOWAS Trade Liberalization Scheme (ETLS) and the emerging African Continental Free Tade Area (AFCFTA). Nigeria has lots of potentials in both trade regimes considering its GDP. population and industrial capacity which is the highest in the West and Central Africa subregion and indeed Africa.

“One of the core mandates of the Service in Seme as elsewhere is trade facilitation. The Command is conscious of its strategic location as the foremost frontier for trade and tourism in West and Central Africa particularly the ECOWAS Trade Liberalization Scheme (ETLS) and the emerging African Continental Free Tade Area (AfCFTA).

“Nigeria has lots of potentials in both trade regimes considering its GDP, population and industrial capacity which is the highest in the West and Central Africa subregion and indeed Africa.

“However, I wish to repeat as I had earlier mentioned in my previous interactions with the media that the major source of revenue of the Command (import/export) have not been enhanced since the opening of the land Borders as directed by the Federal Government of Nigeria as the traders are still bracing with the challenges of having been out of business for over two years.

“Where few have embraced the reality of the circumstances, they have requested and appealed for a review of the process of obtaining approvals for re-exportation which requires that they go to Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning at Abuja for every application for re-exportation,” 

Comptroller of the Command affirmed that its handed over $6m fake bills to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

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