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Tag: Nigeria Customs Service

  • Ships and Ports Maritime Football Cup: Navy sets up final clash with Customs

    Ships and Ports Maritime Football Cup: Navy sets up final clash with Customs

    The Nigerian Navy football team has set up a final encounter with the Nigeria Customs Service of Lagos in the ongoing Ships and Ports Maritime Football Cup competition in Lagos.

    The Navy sailed to the final after a 2-1 defeat of Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) on Wednesday at the Astro Turf pitch of the National stadium in Lagos.

    On the other hand, Customs edged Josephdarm Port Services 2-0 at the NPA sports ground in Surulere, Lagos o also berth at the final.

    The NPA drew first blood through striker, Taiwo Monsoh in the 19th minute and took command of the game and eventually claimed the first half.

    However, a spirited performance by the Navy team saw them draw level through a loan strike by Musa Mohammed in the 50th minute.

    Dick Precious confounded NPA’s woes when in the 75th minute he scored directly through a corner kick which will arguably stand as the goal of the tournament.

    All efforts for the NPA team to get their all important equaliser were unsuccessful as they became too immature to convert their numerous chances.

    The tournament which began on May 15 had six companies from the maritime industry competing for honours in the annual event which began in 2009.

    Haji Babangida, Captain of the Navy team, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that their hard-fought victory against the NPA was their ultimate target as they hoped to win the championship’s trophy.

    “We are in this championship to win, we will do our best against Customs and hopefully win the trophy which is our utmost desire,’’ Babangida said.

    The Navy was the champions of the maiden edition in 2009 and has yet to repeat such feat.

    Coach Monsuru Adebayo of Customs team in his account said that the competition had brought the best out of his team and nothing would stop them from winning the cup.

    The Customs teams who also are the defending champions of the competition are all times highest winners of the exclusive competition with four championship trophies in its eight years.

    NAN reports that the third place match and the final match come up at the Astro Tuff Pitch of the National Stadium, Surulere on May 26.

  • Customs reconstitutes management        

    Customs reconstitutes management        

    Following the statutory retirement of some members of Management, within the last three months, the Management of the Nigeria Customs Service has been reconstituted with appointments of four Ag. Deputy Comptroller-Generals and seven Ag. Assistant Comptroller-Generals.

    While re-constituting the new team, the Comptroller-General of Customs Col. Hameed Ibrahim Ali (Rtd) also approved slight redeployment of 8 Comptrollers to re-engineer the management of the Service for efficient service delivery.

    Its Public Relations Officer, Mr. Joseph Attah, who made this known in a statement yesterday said the new NCS Management members include:  Alu Sule Robert, Mrs. Olubiyi Ronke, Dangaladima Aminu, Mrs. Iferi Patience, Chidi Augustine, Hanza Ladan, Mrs. Ekekezie Kaycee, and others.

    The statement added that DCG Umar Iya Abubakar who was formally in charge of Tariff and Trade now moves to Finance Administration and Technical Services.

    Attah said that as the new members of Management come on board, the CGC has charged them to bring their experiences to bear in the administration of the Service.

    He said the modest achievements of the ongoing reform agenda in the areas of revenue generation, anti-smuggling operations and trade facilitation must be sustained and improved upon in the interest of the nation.

     

  • Customs moves to reduce trade facilitation time by 50%

    Customs moves to reduce trade facilitation time by 50%

    The Nigeria Customs Service has moved to reduce the time it takes to import and export goods (trade facilitation) by 50 per cent.
    Customs Public Relations Officer, Mr. Joseph Attah disclosed this in a statement on Monday.
    According to him, the NCS is now required to schedule and coordinate the Mandatory Joint Examinations and sign-off Form to ensure that there is only one point of contact between importers and officials.
    The statement explained that as a key stakeholder, and in the Federal Government’s quest to make businesses work, the NCS joined other MDAs in making commitments towards delivering reforms that would progressively make it easier for businesses in Nigeria to start and thrive.
    Attah said that: “Our commitments at the NCS are focused on “Trade  Across Borders,” where a target was set to reduce import and export time by up to 50 percent, and ensure that import procedures adhere to international standards.
    “One of the most crucial functions of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) is the promotion and facilitation of trade and competitiveness. We will be the first to admit that the reality at the Nigerian ports is challenging and can be improved upon.”
    In its bid to improve the facilitation, NCS said that the minimum cargo placement notice time for the examination required by Terminal Operators has been reduced from twenty-four hours to a maximum of twelve hours.
    This, said Attah, means that after the NCS agrees with all parties on a suitable time for physical examination, Terminal Operators now only require a twelve-hour notice to place the cargo for examination.
    The statement noted that whereas export processes average between two and three weeks in Nigeria, compared to only four days in Kenya.
    According to Attah, Nigeria requires up to fourteen documents for imports, compared to just five in Rwanda.
    Factors like these, said the spokesman, are responsible for the country’s lowly rank of 14th out of 15 ECOWAS economies and 182nd out of 190 economies worldwide in the ‘Trade Across Borders’ indicator on the most recent World Bank “Doing Business” Rankings.
    The statement noted that Nigeria’s desire to restore growth through economic diversification, as enunciated in the recently released Economic Growth and Recovery Plan (EGRP) of the Federal Government requires a holistic reformist approach.
    It added that reforming procedures is required to stimulate important sectors of the Nigerian economy like agriculture and manufacturing, which contribute 23.1 and 13.3 percent respectively to its Gross Domestic Product.
    The statement reads in part: “
    On February 21, 2017, the Comptroller-General of Customs (CGC), Col. Hammed Ali (Rtd.), was among several heads of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) who gathered at the Conference Room of His Excellency, the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo (SAN) for the launch of the 60-Day National Action Plan on Ease of Doing Business by the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC).
    “A major first step was taken to achieve the target when the Department of Home Finance of the Federal Ministry of Finance revised Nigeria’s Import and Export Guidelines following a directive from the Honourable Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, to streamline current procedures.
    “The Guidelines addresses some of the issues causing inefficiency and delays at the ports. Several of the newly inserted clauses in the Guidelines relate directly to the operations of the NCS. I will attempt to explain the stipulations and implications of the revised Guidelines in this piece as it pertains to the NCS.
    “Before this intervention, the burden was on importers to reach out to all relevant agencies and the Terminal Operator to schedule a suitable time for the joint examination of cargo. We have however decided to take this tedious process off the backs of the importers and coordinate same.
    “Under the revised Guidelines, Shipping Lines are required to electronically transmit advanced manifest of their cargoes to the NCS and the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) as soon as the vessel departs the last port of call – this is to ensure there is enough time for risk assessment, profiling and optimised placement of cargo.
    “NCS Officers will then circulate the cargo manifests to other examination agencies and the Terminal Operators as soon as same are received from the Shipping Lines. Shipping Lines which fail to transmit the advanced cargo manifest may be denied berthing rights.
    “The above guideline is critical because one major reason for delays at the ports is the less than optimal cargo placement and offloading processes. Most times, Terminal Operators are unaware of the contents of a container and are thus unable to determine if same requires physical examination or not. With prior knowledge of contents, Terminal Operators can ensure that containers which do not need physical examination and would consequently require less time to offload are placed ahead of those that will require examination in order to prevent delays and pileup of cargo.
    “Another reason for the delays at the ports during the import process is the haphazard manner in which goods are packed in containers. Different types of goods are just dumped in the container and imported into Nigeria, slowing the pace of physical examination and making it impossible for modern equipment to be used to examine containers.
    “To solve that problem, Shipping Lines are now required to ensure that imports into Nigeria are well arranged in pallets. Shipping Lines which fail to ‘palletise’ cargo will be sanctioned and  and maybe asked to take back onboard the non-palletised cargo.
    “Even beyond the 60-Day Plan, which came to a close on April 21, 2017, the NCS is already collaborating with other stakeholders to further reform the import and export processes.  Our efforts are strengthened by the complete support of the Federal Government, through the PEBEC, chaired by His Excellency, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo; the Federal Ministry of Finance; and other stakeholders.
    “Reduction of documents required for the import and export process will continue to engage the attention of relevant authorities  in recognition of the fact that Nigeria presently requires more documents than most of its peers.
    “Finally, the on going move by  FG towards the establishment and launch of a National Single Window (NSW) will contribute to the attainment of seamless interface by all stakeholders in the import and export chains. It will achieve an electronic, one-stop shop portal for Nigeria’s cargo clearance procedures.
    “The strong steering committee co-chaired by the Comptroller General of the NCS, Col. Hameed Ali (Rtd.) and the Managing Director of the NPA, Hadiza Bala Usman demonstrates government’s desire to entrench more business friendly environment for importers, exporters and investors wishing to do manufacturing business in Nigeria.
    “We intend to show Nigerian exporters and importers through our actions that the NCS is not just a ‘tax-collecting’ agency, but a progressive partner determined to make it quicker, cheaper and easier for exporters and importers to trade and carry out their legitimate  business operations through the Nigerian ports.”
  • Customs destroy N1b worth of imported poultry

    Customs destroy N1b worth of imported poultry

    The Nigeria Customs Service, Federal Operations Unit (FOU) Zone C Owerri, covering the Southeast and South-South states, Saturday destroyed impounded frozen poultry products with Duty Paid Value of N1, 275,712,500.

    The 102, 099 cartons of frozen poultry products which were intercepted at various point within the Zone, were said to be illegally imported.

    The Customs Area Controller in charge of FOU Zone ‘C’, Comptroller Mohammed Uba, said the figure was the total of seizures of poultry products made by the Zone since he assumed duty in October 2016, adding that the impounded products have been destroyed in accordance with government policy.

    Mohammed restated that poultry products are still under import prohibition, warning that “any of such found will be seized and destroyed in compliance with the relevant laws and government policies”.

    Given a graphic detail of how one of the seizures was made, the Controller, revealed that “operatives of the FOU Zone ‘C’ Owerri on Thursday 19th April 2017 intercepted 24,032 cartons of imported frozen poultry products with Duty Paid Value of N259, 545,600, conveyed in a Mack Truck with registration number AJL 861 XA along Benin Ekiadolor axis by Lagos Expressway, Edo State. The poultry items include turkey parts, chicken parts, poultry gizzard amongst others”.

    Speaking during the destruction of the seized poultry in Benin, Mohammed, noted that the seizures were achieved through the diligence of his officers and men, who he said have recently been encouraged to put in their best with the recent promotion of Officers and men of the Service by the Comptroller General of Customs, Col Hameed Ali (Rtd).

    He reiterated the commitment of his officers to ensure that smuggling is brought to a minimal level.

    According to him, “as trained officers in the course of our duty when we intercept any suspected goods and confirm it to be brought in contrary to the laws it will be seized and disposed of. We will continue to make sure that the public is adequately informed so that importation will be done in conformity with the laws and we will stem the menace of smuggling”.

    He further advised Nigerians against the importation of frozen poultry products, stressing that, “it adversely affect the nation’s poultry industry and have been adjudged by health authorities to be injurious to health”.

    Mohammed continued that, “we have to encourage farmers and those in the agriculture sector to be productive, self-reliant, provide employment and boost the economy instead of sending out our foreign exchange and encouraging capital flight”.

    He disclosed that three suspects were arrested in connection with the recent seizures made in Benin, adding that they will soon be charged to court, while enjoining smugglers to shun the illicit business and engage in legitimate trade to boost the nation’s economy.

    On hand to witness the destruction of the poultry products were representatives of other security agencies including the Nigerian Police Force, Department of State Security (DSS), National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC)

     

  • NCS redeploys 4,072 senior officers

    The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has approved the redeployment of 4,072 senior officers to commands across the four zones of the service.

    The deployment is contained in a circular issued on Tuesday in Lagos by Customs Acting Assistant Comptroller-General, Human Resources Department, Mrs. T.M Isa,

    According to Isa, the redeployed officers are from the rank of Assistant Superintendent of Customs I to the rank of Chief Superintendent of Customs.

    The assistant comptroller-general said 2,699 Assistant Superintendents of Customs 1, 227 Assistant Superintendents of Customs 11 and 441 Chief Superintendents of Customs were affected by the deployment.

    She added that 332 Superintendents of Customs and 373 Deputy Superintendents of Customs were also affected.

    Isa noted that the deployment was a routine exercise in line with the three-point agenda of the Customs Comptroller-General, Hameed Ali, which focused on reform, revenue and restructuring.

    The official said the deployment was aimed at strengthening the service and improving service delivery.

    NAN

  • Customs distributes over 136,000 bags of seized rice to IDPs–Offical

    Customs distributes over 136,000 bags of seized rice to IDPs–Offical

    The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), has distributed 136,476 bags of rice to  Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps across the country in the last one year.

    Mr Joseph Attah, NCS Public Relations Officer, who stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Abuja, said this was in line with the Presidential directive on seized perishable items.

    Attah said that the reinstatement of the ban on rice importation through the land borders few months after lifting it in 2016 was to stem the tide of rice smuggling.

    Cue-in audio

    “I can assure you that our anti-smuggling strategy is yielding positive dividends in the last three months, we made a total seizure of 136,506 50kg bags of rice.

    “The last one year, we made a seizure of 205,825 bags with a duty paid value of more than N1billion; that is just rice alone.

    “To build another layer of policing, we have what we call the compliance team that in the last three months alone, made a total of 921 seizures with a DPV (that is Duty Paid Value) of more than N1 billion.

    ‘’Most of these seizures are rice and vehicles.

    Cue-out audio

    The NCS spokesman said that customs in its relentless war against rice smugglers had record successes and paid great prices through the loss of its officers.

    NAN recalls that the distribution of relief materials by the NCS to the IDPs across the country was in compliance with the presidential directive to distribute seized perishable items to IDPs in the Northeast.

  • Lawmaker accuses security personnel of sexual harassment

    A member of the House of Representatives, Abudulrahman Abubakar (Adamawa-APC), on Tuesday alleged that security personnel at checkpoints in the North-East sexually harassed girls under the guise of conducting checks.

    Abubakar made the allegation while moving a motion on the need to investigate the activities of security personnel at the checkpoint along the Yola-Girei road in Adamawa.

    He said the checkpoint was manned by officers of Nigerian Army, Nigeria Police Force, Nigeria Customs Service, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).

    According to him, commuters on the road are regularly subjected to harrowing experiences at the checkpoint by the officers.

    The lawmaker alleged that commuters were often diverted into secluded areas under the guise of intensive checks and were harassed and intimidated.

    According to him, the officers, oftentimes, allegedly abuse hapless young girls sexually.

    He said that due to lack of substantive evidence, appropriate authorities often turned blind eyes to these unfortunate incidents.

    The legislator said that the situation had turned the checkpoint into a tool of flagrant extortion, harassment and abuse of commuters at gunpoint.

    According to him, if the brutality and harassment of commuters are not checked and officers duly sanctioned, they can become more emboldened to commit worse crimes.

    In his ruling, Speaker of the House, Mr Yakubu Dogara, mandated the Committee on National Security and Intelligence to investigate the allegation and report back to the house within six weeks.

     

  • Customs: Command generates N649.1m in March

    Customs: Command generates N649.1m in March

    The Tin-Can Island Port 2 Customs Command, Ijora in Lagos, on Thursday, said it generated the sum of N649.11 million in March.

    According to a statement by the command’s Public Relations Officer, Mr Godwin Andishu, the figure is N270.1million lower than the N919.6 recorded in February.

    The spokesman said the figure was also N95.5million short of the N834.6million generated in January.

    He attributed the fall in revenue to a decline in general importation activities but expressed the optimism that the figure would rise again as soon as activities picked up.

    Andishu said the Area Controller, Alhaji Abdulkadir Dalhatu, had put in place measures to totally transform the command and make it a major revenue earner for the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS).

    He listed such measures to include: blockage of revenue loopholes, training and retraining of officers and deepening of co-operation with stakeholders.

    Andishu said that though, activities at the ports were currently low, the command would continue to do its best to record consistent rise in revenue generation.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the command had announced N8.12 billion as its total revenue for 2016.

  • Uzodinma denies link with 30 seized containers

    Uzodinma denies link with 30 seized containers

    Chairman, Senate Committee on Customs, Excise and Tariff, Senator Hope Uzodinma Tuesday washed his hands off the 30 seized containers of rice.

    Uzodinma who was reacting to an online publications alleging that he was mounting pressure on the Comptroller General of Customs, Col. Hammed Ali (rtd) to release 30 containers of smuggled rice imported by Nigeria Customs Service as yeast.

    He noted that contrary to the reports, the letter sent to the NCS was based on a petition by one Masters Energy Commodities Trading Limited to the committee, he chaired.

    He said that with the power reposed in the legislature to among other things attend to concerns of Nigerians, the committee decided to play its part.

    He said, “Sometime around November last year, the committee received a petition from Masters  Energy Commodities Trading Limited company alleging that 30 containers of rice imported by them was seized by Nigeria customs even when they paid the necessary duties and the necessary assessments were done by Nigerian Customs  and that they needed our intervention.

    “Of course you know, as representatives of the people, that is why we are here. What I did was, the committee met and then sent out the petition to Customs Service asking them to react to the petition.

    “The Customs reacted through a letter sent to the Committee on 25th November, 2016, confirming that this rice was imported and that the rice was seized because it was not declared according to the right classification.

    “When I got that letter, to my surprise, the tone of the response was suggesting a kind of innuendo as if our letter was for them to release the rice.

    “No. what we wrote was very clear, you can see the copy of the letter, it said make comment, react to this comment because every Nigerian citizen is entitled to fair hearing.

    “And when we got their reply, we looked at the response from the Nigerian customs Service, signed by the comptroller General.

    “We immediately resolved and did a letter thanking him for his quick response to our enquiry and also reminding him that the sole intention in the matter was that justice should be done in line with their extant rules.

    “The decision neither suggested that I have any link or any relationship with the importer nor did we suggest to the Nigerian Customs to wave any procedure or any internal mechanism by them as to the treatment of issues like this.’’

    Uzodinma expressed surprise at the display of the letter sent to the Customs boss on social media.

    He said it was obvious some people were trying to play politics with governance, adding that he would not succumb to their diversionary tactics.

    He said that he would continue to oversight the Nigerian Customs Service as long as   he remained the Chairman of the committee.

    “You will agree with me that there was nothing in that letter suggesting ulterior motive, rather it was consistent with what is expected of me or the committee that is over sighting customs and as it has to do with their relationship with the public.

    “That is what we did and I believe very confidently that what we did is still within the purview of our oversight powers and function.

    “I was surprised to see my letter posted on social media, carrying inuendos like Customs Committee Chairman linked with rice importation.

    “I don’t import, I don’t do business of rice. Each time I want to do my constituency outing, if it is necessary to include rice in what  I will distribute, I buy my rice in from either rice mills in  Abakiliki, Benue  state and I distribute to my constituents.

    “I don’t even eat parboiled rice because it is not healthy. I am not also in the business of rice trading, so I don’t know what is the intention of whoever that has decided to create this situation.

    Speaking on whether the committee invited the service to give its side of the matter, the chairman said the committee does not invite people on just any matter until deemed necessary.

    He added that the committee wrote a second letter to Ali to clarify that the letter was generated as result of a petition and not he had any link with the seized rice.

    The chairman stressed that that the committee thereafter respected the stands of the Customs Service, asking it to ensure that justice was done.

    He further blamed the service for not doing a thorough job and thereafter trying to indict him in a matter he had no link with.

    “Our major concern in the whole of this is whether the seizure was legitimate seizure or was done in error and the customs explained to us that it was not done in error and we have no reason  not to believe them.

    “There is an evidence of by the Customs, issuing a pre-arrival assessment report showing how much duty is payable.

    “The question is that you customs did this assessment. You issued the invoice, you received the duty. Why did you do wrong assessment.

    “While I am not speaking for the importer, it is also important for Customs  to share in the blame, because why in the first place did they not do the right assessment given the declaration given by the importer.

    “They said it was wrongly classified but there is a declaration that it is parboiled rice.  Are there two types of par boiled rice, the answer is no.

    “So you do all these things and when you are not able to have your way, you begin to look for whom to blame. So we must be sincere and honest,’’ he said.

    On whether it was an attempt by Customs to avenge  Senate’s  stand on the suspended policy on payment of customs duties on old vehicle, the lawmaker said that he could not be deterred.

    “I will not want to lower the integrity of the Senate to begin to compare this institution with the Nigerian Customs Service.

    “We are one government and by protocol the Senate is far superior to the Nigeria Customs Service, a paramilitary outfit of government.

    “The constitutional powers as contained in the Constitution that ushered in  this administration  empowers the senate to invite any public officer that is in charge of public expenditure to appear before the senate and appear in a proper manner.

    “The head of the Customs service is the Comptroller general of Customs.

    “That is the highest rank and every beneficiary of the service should be proud of the service and as a way of encouraging motivation for the upcoming officers, whose aspirations among other things may be one day to become the head of customs.”

    He said it was important for the head of the service to be properly dressed to motivate officers.

     

  • Packaged poison

    Packaged poison

    • Nigeria must do more to combat re-packaging of expired products

     

    The discovery of a large amount of expired consumer goods being repackaged for sale in two four-storey blocks of flats in Kirikiri, Lagos, points to how extensive the despicable trade in products unfit for human consumption is in Nigeria.

    The discovery was made by the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), which was acting on a tip-off from concerned Nigerians. The eight apartments were filled to overflowing with a huge variety of consumer products, including personal hygiene products, beauty creams and baby products.

    The apartments were, in effect, warehouses where wrappings and packages bearing old expiry dates were replaced with new ones set well into the future. The alleged culprit is a well-known wholesaler and distributor of consumer products, and is likely to have exploited his extensive network to shops and supermarkets across the nation to perpetuate his nefarious activities.

    It is difficult to over-estimate the inhumanity of the trade in expired products. Many goods become harmful if not downright toxic when they reach their statutory expiry dates; selling them to an unsuspecting public amounts to virtual mass-poisoning. Since most of these goods are sold in heavily-patronised markets and shops all over the country, it is difficult for customers to suspect that anything is amiss.

    The extensive planning which goes into repackaging expired goods for resale is a grim testimony to the cold-blooded cruelty of those who perpetrate it. Careful attempts are made to ensure that the wrapping and packaging used is very similar to the original; efficient logistics and distribution processes are established in order to ensure that the expired products reach every nook and cranny of the nation without being traceable to their original source; deliberate efforts are made to suborn officials of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), the Nigeria Police Force and regulatory bodies in order to guarantee the safe passage of such goods into and across the country.

    Indeed, what is most shocking about this particular case is the way in which the alleged culprit has apparently been able to get away with his activities for years without detection. He was able to convert several residential apartments into virtual warehouses without attracting any suspicion. Dozens of trucks were able to deliver expired goods to the houses and take them away over time without challenge. In spite of the police, military and customs checkpoints which litter the country’s roads and expressways, the repackaged goods were never apprehended in transit.

    None of the established procedures for identifying, isolating and destroying expired goods appear to have been adhered to. As goods approach their expiry date, they are normally withdrawn from shop shelves and sent to bodies like SON, where they are destroyed in controlled environments. In this case, there was a clear failure to track the distribution and sale of these goods in order to ensure that they could be promptly recalled and destroyed upon expiry. The collusion of retail outlets in achieving this dubious end cannot be ruled out.

    SON must transcend the ritual of self-congratulation that it often indulges itself in when it makes seizures like these. Far from demonstrating its vaunted effectiveness, these incidents actually underline a troubling lack of institutional capacity. The trade in expired products is profitable only because SON and sister organisations like the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) are not making it more difficult for criminal entrepreneurs to get away with it.

    SON must improve its capacity to monitor consumer goods and ensure that expired products undergo the statutory process of withdrawal, recall and destruction. Routine checks of all importers, wholesalers and distributors must become standard practice. A reporting system must be developed to enable retailers to update SON on the status of their goods. Nigeria can no longer be a country in which poisonous profits are easily amassed.