Customs FOU records N1.7bn seizures .Intercepts bulletproof vehicle, foreign rice in cement trucks

Customs FOU records N1.7bn seizures

.Intercepts bulletproof vehicle, foreign rice in cement trucks

 By Udeme Clement

 It was another moment of astonishment yesterday in Lagos, as the  Federal Operations Unit, FOU Zone ‘A’ of Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, unveiled seizures of vehicles, drugs, Donkey skin and other prohibited items intercepted by officers through intelligence.

The Customs Area Controller, CAC, of the Unit, Comptroller Aliyu  Mohammed took news men round the seized items during a press conference, stressed that the anti-smuggling war of the Unit is yielding positive result with the number of seizures recorded within a short period,.

Comptroller Aliyu disclosed that the seized drugs and other items are estimated at a Duty Paid Value, DPV, of over N1.7billion.

The CAC who frowned at nefarious activities of smugglers showcased seizures of 1157 cartons of codeine syrup, 348 cartons of diclofenac tablets, 1056 cartons of chest and lungs tablets, about 49 cartons of paracetamol injection, among others.

Other seizures displayed were Donkey skin, cannabis sativa, used tyres, textile materials and other prohibited items.

The most shocking part was when Comptroller Aliyu revealed the callous attitude of the dare-devil smugglers carrying rice in cement trucks meant for construction work, thereby making the item poisonous for human consumption.

The Customs boss advised Nigerians to patronise rice produced locally, in order to avoid the dangers associated with foreign rice smuggled into the country in unhealthy manner.