The Oyo/Osun Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) says it has seized 9,000 bags of smuggled rice from a warehouse in Ibadan.
The Area Controller of NCS, Tolutope Ogunkua, made this known on Monday in Ibadan while briefing newsmen.
The Service, he said, had been vested with the right to confiscate such smuggled items.
He said the service had always been proactive in its anti-smuggling campaign by seizing such goods before they enter into the market.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that one person was arrested in the incident.
Ogunkua also said that the command had sharpened its intelligence gathering skills, adding that this was responsible for the successes being recorded.
He said the measures led to a total revenue collection of N1.53 billon in January 2017, compared to the N932, million collected in the same month in 2016.
The command, he said, also generated N14.8 billion between January 2016 and December 2016, an increase of over N200 million when compared with the N14.6 billion generated within the same period in 2015.
Ogunkua further disclosed that a total of 1, 207 vehicles paid duty to the tune of N320 million between January 2016 and December 2016 as against the 2,784 vehicles in the same period in 2015 with a total duty collection of N294 million.
“This shows an increase of N25.96 million. It is worthy to note that inspite of the low number of vehicles which paid duty in 2016, there is an increase in revenue more than 2015.
“”This is because recently manufactured and high profile vehicles paid more duty in 2016, ” he said.
The customs boss said that the command had resolved to rid the axis of recalcitrant and unpatriotic Nigerians who engage in nefarious activities.
“”The ban on importation of rice and fairly used vehicles through the border is still in place and the Oyo/Osun command is committed to enforcing this to the letter, ” he said.
(NAN)