Chinonye Anyatonwu.
Apapa Area 1 Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), has generated a whopping sum of #55billion into Federation Account as revenue in the month of March.
Apapa Command which is the flagship of the Service is the highest revenue earner, a record that no Command has been able to surpass.
In a chat with newsmen recently in Lagos, the Area controller of the Command, Compt. Yusuf Malanta disclosed that going by the existing development, exports may witness some level of slight drop due to the recent directive by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) of the “Out board cargoes on dedicated terminals.”
Comptroller Malanta who is looking forward to surpass the 2021 revenue in view of stakeholders high level of compliance which he explained would be the driving wheel to exceed its target, stressing that it would be recalled that as part of efforts to improve access, and service delivery at the Lagos Ports Complex as well as Tin Can Island Port.
The NPA however, announced a 14-day suspension of export receipts of the two ports and all satellite truck parks, with effect from Monday, March 22, 2021, respectively.
Compt. Malanta hinted that the development was necessitated by the need for consultations with export cargo stakeholders, and the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) on the harmonisation of procedures required by owners of this category of cargoes, he said.
The Apapa Command boss informed that the period of the directive from the Nigerian Ports Authority might have adverse effect on the revenue of export within the period under review, he said.
He stated that, “The major challenge affecting export, which shows that it would be diversified in the sense that the authority is devising a very good method of having bonded terminals where export declaration will take place adequately.
”All that you require is convey your consignment, move to the port, undermining that export has been stopped for sometime, unless essential goods, but I can’t get the figure recorded on export for now,” he disclosed.
The Controller noted that a total of 28 containers falsely declared were intercepted in the last two months.
Comptroller Yusuf explained that the Command may record over N55 billion revenue for the month of March 2021, reiterated that despite the lull in international trade and commerce, the flagship Command of the Service in a bid to renew its commitment to block all leakages that might affect boost growth has recorded the highest revenue collection in the history of Apapa Customs.
He also maintained that the Anti smuggling unit of the Command has intensified efforts, adding that 28 containers laden with contrabands were impounded in the last two months.
While giving detailed report of items intercepted by his officers and men uncompromising efforts, the Area Controller cited that tramadol, codeine, smuggled foreign parboiled rice, pharmaceutical products were among the commodities concealed in the 28 containers.
He expressed optimistic that revenue generation at the Command would get better after the Easter celebration.
He debunked reports that Apapa Customs is frustrating the E-Call up System introduced by the Nigerian Ports Authority, and wondered how the Command could alter an electronic system that is not in any way connected with its operations, he argued.
He averred that E-Call up System to address the gridlock challenges on the ports access roads has come to stay but added that a new system would always have an initial teething problem but that patience and consistence are required to achieve success with it’s sustainable goal, he said.
Malanta insisted that the mischief makers are either ignorant of the operations of Customs at the ports, or they are just haters whose interest is to tarnish the image of the command.
