Nigeria’s premier border, Seme has proved its prominence once more as the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) raked in not less than N9.6 billion as revenue in the area in 2014.
By the NCS nomenclature, the Seme Command is an enforcement formation but the high cargo traffic in the area has made it the cynosure of all eyes.
The revenue, which was generated between January to December 2014 was contained in a statement signed by the Seme Command’s Public Relations Officer Mr. Ernest Olottah.
According to the statement, the revenue was a 9.12 per cent increase over the 8.4 billion the command collected in 2013.
Giving an insight into the increase in the revenue earning of the command compared to what it earned in 2013, Ollotah said it was due to the improvement to earnings from the vehicle import transit (VIT) regime .
“In 2014, the Vehicle Import Transit regime was introduced by the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service and this boosted the revenue of the command. We are sure that we will surpass our N13 billion target for this year because we have been brainstorming to identify and block all perceived sources of revenue leakages,” he said.
According to the statement, the command made 686 seizures with a duty paid value (DPV) of N294.3 million during the period. This figure is lower than the 1,102 seizures made in 2013.
A breakdown of the seizures within the period, according to him, included vehicles, rice, frozen poultry products, petroleum products and shoes, amongst other items.
“It is rewarding to know that out the anti-smuggling sensitisation exercise at the grassroots is paying off, which is why we made less seizures than in the corresponding year,” the command added.
Similarly, 18 suspects were arrested and arraigned within the period under review and were at various stages of investigation and prosecution.
Source-Sweetcrude