By Stephen Ubanna
This is not the best of times for smugglers operating operating between the south west and the south-south / south east geo-political regions.
This is because Kayode Olusemire, Comptroller , Federal Operations Unit, FOU, Zone C, Owerri, Imo state, and his men have effectively blocked all the porous routes used by the criminal elements to carry out their nefarious activities.
This is evident going by the number of bullet proof and other exotic vehicles seized by the Command over the last year including the seizure of the Asian country Thai produced par boiled rice, and other Contrabands, valued at about N500 million.
A visitor to the Command warehouse at Benin, Edo state , recently, would be surprised at the number of Armoured and other exotic vehicles as well as several dilapidated vehicles that liter the premises . This is in addition to hundreds of ‘’50’’ bags of the Asian Country of Thailand of produced parboiled rice found at the Government warehouse awaiting for orders from Hameed Ali, a retired Army Colonel and Comptroller General, to be evacuatedto the Internally Displaced Peoples, IDPs, Camp, in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states in the north east geo-political region or motherless babies home.
One of such exotic vehicles was a 2012 Rolls Royce model valued at about N87 million. Another was an Armoured Range Rover valued at about N16 million and a Mercedes Benz Actros Truck worth about N8 millon among others. The seizure that may have shocked many was the interception of a Truck carrying over 500 ‘’50 Kg bags ofThai par boiled rice imported through Cotonou Terminal, Benin and Bollore port in the smuggler country of Benin Republic.
The question on the lips of most people was : how did these Armoured and exotic vehicles, and the truck load of rice, beat the tight security mounted by the Federal Operations Unit, FOU, Zone A, Ikeja, under the close of Aliyu Mohammed, now an acting Border Drills, Acting Assistant Comptroller General, ACG, and sector4 Commander, Kaduna, the CGC Strike Force under the close watch of Yahaya Usman, a Deputy Comptroller in-charge of the Strike Force and now acting Comptroller, FOU, Zone A, and the south west Border Drill patrol teams to broke into the FOU Zone C, jurisdiction comprising of states in the south east and south-south.
Only last Thursday, January 9, 2020, Olusemire, the FOU, Zone C , Comptroller, accompanied by some of his key officers, including Ahmadu Shuaibu, a Deputy Comptroller, in- charge of the Command operations were at the Benin outstation to showcase the seizures made over the last one year which liter the premises, particular vehicles and foreign par boiled stored in the Government Ware House. The Customs Comptroller may have used the opportunity of his presence at Benin to chrocicle the Command modest achievements in the anti-smuggling war in 2019.
Many believe that he may have read the riot act to his anti-smuggling Patrol Teams from the beginning of the year to ensure that all prohibited items, including Containerised cargoes cleared from the seaports found to have contravened the government policy were intercepted and transferred to the government Warehouse for proper Valuation and Demand Notice, DN, issued to the genuine importer caught in the act while that of the caladestine importers’ Consignment were seized seized.
It was not surprising why eight Armoured and other exotic vehicles smuggled into the country from Republic of Benin which escape the eagle eyes of the FOU, Zone A , CGC Strike Force or the Border Drillls personnel on the Ondo-Benin axis within the southwest were impounded and transferred to the Command Warehouses in the regions.
The situation was the same in other parts of the south east and south-south. Note that over the last two years, seizure and detention of bullet proof and other exotic vehicles had remained the exclusive preserve of FOU, Zone A but Oluseemire the FOU, Zone C, Comptroller appears to have broken the jinx.
The Customs Comptroller, could not understand why Nigerians could go to any length to smuggle prohibited cargoes into the country. recall that President Muhammadu Buhari had banned the importation of vehicles and foreign rice through the land borders into the county on January 1, 2017. The ban was extended to the ports last year. Ali, the Customs Comptroller General and his men were given the mandate to ensure that none of such banned items e are imported or re-exported into the from Benin Republic and other neighbouribg countries.
In the south west geo-political region ,which has many porous borders that could be used by smugglers to bring into the country these prohibited items, by beating the customs anti-smuggling officers to it. They may not have been lucky with Olusemire’s patrol officers on the road in Delta and Edo states, particular.
The fall out was that smugglers who had succeeded in beating the south west Anti-smuggling patrolTeams and found their way to the south east or south-south road were said to have fallen into the waiting hands of FOU, Zone C Ptrol Teams who are strategically positioned in different parts of the two region.
Note that the Patrol Teams may not have only had eyes in intercepting Contraband but also in ensuring that suspects were arrested to make a bold Statatement. At least six suspects were said to have been arrested in connection with the seizures made within the last one year and who are currently being prosecuted by the Command.
Perhaps to encourage genuine importers to turn a new leaf to avoid running into trouble with his men on the road, the FOU, Zone C, Customs boss, was said to have appealed to them to acquit themselves with the government fiscal policy to know the approved cargoes for import and their relevant duties as well as knowing the items on the import prohibition list . He insists that importers who fail to comply with the law would be treated as smugglers and their goods confiscated.
He cited the seizure of a ‘’40’’ Container carrying 312 bales of used clothing allegedly imported from China, and another ‘’40’’ Container loaded with 1,182 cartons of analgin injection including the seizure of a truck load of foreign furniture.
It could not be ascertained whether the two ‘’40’’ Containers were released from Lagos seaports of Apapa, Tin can island or the West African Container Tterminal, WACT, Onne, in Rivers state.
. An insider information disclosed that the Comptroller is working on the report handed over to him by the Team that intercepted the two Containers in order to take up the matter with the Comptroller of the Command over- seeing the seaport where the cargoes were released to avoid such occurrence in the future.
He may have sent a signal to the clandestine seaport smugglers and their Collaborators that even if the government is committed to trade facilitation but it is constrained by the Customs and Excise Management Act, CEMA, to seize prohibited cargoes which are not allowed to be imported into the country either by sea, air or the land borders.
He was said to have made clear to those that cares to listen that as long as smugglers are not ready to turn a new leaf , the Command anti-smuggling officers are out to force them out of the nefarious business , stressing that smuggling is inimical to the growth of the nation’s economy . He described smugglers as ”economic saboteurs who must be stopped at all costs”.
Appealing to Nigerians to assist the Customs in the fight against the economic saboteurs by giving out relevant information, he opined that it is the only that the battle against them could be won.
He further urged Nigerians to stop patronizing the smugglers who are in the he informal trade business operating from the neighboring countries of Benin Republic, Niger and the Central African country of Cameroon in order to run them out of the illicit trade.
