[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he Murtala Mohammed Airport (MMA) Area Command of Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) collected N29.1billion in the first and second quarter of 2019 as against N22.7billion attained within same period in 2018.
According to the command, the revenue collected from January to June 2019 represents 112.4%; adding that the development “this did not only surpass the set revenue target of Q1 & Q2 2019 with ₦3,219,843,233.00 but also surpassed that of 2018 Half Year with ₦6,399,747,155.00”.
A statement issued by J. Ephraim, CPRO explained that within the period, the command made an unprecedented number of seizures and detentions of various items with Duty Paid Value (DPV) of Three Hundred and Eighty Two Million, Two Hundred and Twenty Thousand, Sixty Two Naira (₦382,220,062.00).
Amongst the items seized within the period are –
One Thousand and Two (1002) PCS of Air-Force Berets
Two Hundred and Eighty Nine (289) PKGS of different makes of Drones
Two Hundred and Seventy Two (272) PCS of two way Walkie-Talkie Radios
One Hundred and Fifty Two (152) PKGS of Camouflage Inner Vest, Combat Shorts, and Camouflage Polo Shirt (No End User Certificate)
One Hundred and Fifty (150) PKGS of Camouflage Peak Caps
One Hundred (100) PCS of Trackers
Seventy Nine (79) Pairs of Camouflage Footwear
Fifty Nine (59) Cartons of Tramadol (handed over to NAFDAC)
Forty Three (43) Bags of Donkey’s skin
Forty Three (43) PKGS of Desert Camouflage Combat shorts
Twenty Seven (27) PKGS of Complete set of Camouflage Uniforms, Safety Belts and rope
Seven (7) PGKS of Pangolin Scales
Hard Drugs (Cocaine) imported from Pakistan, concealed in two cartons and declared as household items in NAHCO Shed (handed over to NDLEA)
Hard Drugs suspected to be American Cannabis concealed in baby doll (handed over to NDLEA)
Also, the sum of 50,000,000 US Dollar arrived the country without proper documentation, which was seized and handed over to EFCC in the presence of the DSS for further investigations.
The Customs Area Controller, Comptroller JT Shoboiki (Mrs) PhD on her Parade that was held on Wednesday 17 April, 2019 gave out awards of recognition to twelve selected officers who excelled in their various Sheds for their dedication to duty, discipline and revenue generation.
She explained that henceforth, hardworking officers will be celebrated by the Command as a means of motivation to enhance their productivity.
OFFICERS PERFORMANCE AND DEDICATION TO DUTY:
The Customs Area Controller, Comptroller JT Shoboiki (Mrs) PhD on her Parade that was held on Wednesday 17 April, 2019 gave out awards of recognition to twelve selected officers who excelled in their various Sheds for their dedication to duty, discipline and revenue generation. She said henceforth, hardworking officers will be celebrated by the Command as a means of motivation to enhance their productivity. Under listed are the twelve (12) awardees:
| S/N | RANK | NAME | SHED/UNIT | REMARKS |
| 1 | SC | AE IBOK | NAHCO SHED | Most hardworking NAHCO Shed officer |
| 2 | DSC | PN OKONKWO | CIU | Most hardworking CIU officer |
| 3 | DSC | HC OSONDU | INTERNATIONAL | Hardworking in Revenue collection at Int’l Airport |
| 4 | DSC | PIU OCHONMA | CAC OFFICE | Most hardworking and discipline officer in CAC Office |
| 5 | ASC I | AK UMAR | N/COURIER | Most hardworking NAHCO Courier officer |
| 6 | ASC I | A USMAN | CAC OFFICE | Most Dedicated And Reliable Officer in CAC Office |
| 7 | ASC I | OB OYEWALE | CAC OFFICE | Meticulous and hardworking officer in CAC Office |
| 8 | ASC I | AO OTIKO | SAHCO SHED | Most hardworking and discipline SAHCO Shed officer |
| 9 | IC | S IBRAHIM | TALLY | Most hardworking Tally officer |
| 10 | AIC | CS NWANZE (mrs) | S/COURIER | Most hardworking and well dress S/Courier officer |
| 11 | CA I | AM UMAR | DHL | Most hardworking DHL officer |
| 12 | CA II | M SANI | S/EXPORT | Most hardworking and well dress Quarter Guard officer |
The CAC at the last regular stakeholders’ meeting held on Monday 27th May, 2019 advised Customs Brokers, Airline Operators and importers alike to imbibe the habit of making truthful and clear declarations which must agree with all other documents required for clearance of cargos; such as PAAR, AWB, SGD, Form M as well as Packing lists. She said Customs can only facilitate compliant trade when correct declarations are made, while those with discrepancies are naturally delayed for one correction of DN or the other.
More so, she frowned at the way legitimate and licensed Customs Brokers sublet jobs to miscreants and touts who have nothing to lose thereby perpetrating all acts of frauds, in order to circumvent revenue.
She added that the Command has put in place system to fish out such touts by checking their Form C30 and will not hesitate to prosecute them and blacklist such Brokers to serve as deterrent to others.
By : Ike Abiagom