By Bon Peters
ONNE/Nigeria: The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) Onne, Port Harcourt Area 11 Command made a significant interception on Friday when it seized a pistol, along with 9mm munitions. Following the successful operation, two suspects were promptly handed over to the Nigeria Police Force.
Additionally, the command announced its substantial revenue generation achievement, amassing over N246 billion between January and October 2023. Comptroller Baba Imam, the Area Controller of the Command, shared this news during a media briefing and declaration of seizures held at the Command’s office in Onne, Rivers State.
Imam attributed this impressive performance to a renewed mindset among the officers, fostered through continuous training and retraining. He also emphasized the crucial role of adequate provision of logistics and incentives that had been made available to the Nigeria Customs Service. He underscored the organization’s unwavering commitment to combat smuggling, stating, “The Nigeria Customs Service of today has zero tolerance for smuggling and has no reason not to perform, as every encouragement, logistics, and other incentives have been provided by our amiable Comptroller General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi MFR.” Imam noted that this support from the Comptroller General had significantly boosted the morale of all officers to be more determined than ever to fight smuggling.
The Customs officers of the Area Command also confiscated a total of 9 containers with a duty paid value exceeding N1.16 billion. These containers held goods that violated import prohibition laws, including 724 bales of used clothing, 1,805 pieces of used tires, 4 vehicles used in concealing 76.9 kg of special cannabis (marijuana), and 2,070 cartons of tomato paste, among other items.
The Area Controller highlighted the impressive revenue generation by the command, with over N246 billion generated from January to October 2023. This marked a significant increase of more than N44 billion compared to the revenue generated in the 2022 fiscal year. In October alone, the command collected over N38 billion, surpassing its monthly revenue target of N28 billion by over N10 billion.
Comptroller Imam took the opportunity to call for the cooperation of the public and encouraged them to support government agencies working towards social justice, stability, and peace in society. He expressed confidence in the command’s ability to build on its past successes and achieve even more before the end of the year.
The Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of operations of the Eastern Ports, DCP Ashu Ottah, received the two suspects and the exhibits, including the pistol, on behalf of the Nigeria Police Force. He praised the high level of synergy and commitment between the Nigeria Customs Service and the Police and announced that the police would continue the investigation after taking over the suspects and exhibits. This successful joint operation demonstrated the importance of public participation in enhancing effective policing and reducing crime.
