Customs seizes 400 bags of beans at Seme border

The officers of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Seme Area Command, Lagos, have seized a truckload of beans, totalling 400 bags, and stockpiled in a warehouse at one of the exit corridor in the border.

The Comptroller of Seme Area Command, Timi Bomodi, disclosed this at a press conference in Lagos on Tuesday, March 5, 2024.

Bomodi said the command seized the beans in the light of the present economic realities, where massive food shortages had been reported across the country.

He added that the bags of beans were seized by Customs officers in line with the directive to avoid illegal export of grains.

Bomodi said the Duty Paid Value (DPV) of the seized items was N61.45 million.

He stated that the seized bags of beans have since been deposited in the government’s warehouse for safekeeping and eventual sale to the public.

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The Comptroller added: “In the same vein, the continuous surveillance of the border by our officers and men, has resulted in the interceptions of 400 x 30liters of petrol equivalent of 12,000 liters with a DPV of N8,347,680 in the early hours of March 2, 2024, along the creeks.

“The petrol seized will be auctioned in line with Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) of sales of seized perishable items as directed by the service.”

On revenue generation, Bomodi said the command generated N1.16 billion between January and February 2024.

He noted that the command was given a revenue target of N7.88 billion in 2024.

He said: “This represents an increase of over 400 per cent compared to the target of 2023. This also translates to a monthly collectable revenue of N656.26 million.

“In January 2024, the command collected N643,038,611, while in February, we collected N517,950,286 making a total of N1,160,988,897.”

The Star