REVENUE: MMAC CUSTOMS RAKES IN OVER FORTY BILLION IN FIRST QUARTER

REVENUE: MMAC CUSTOMS RAKES IN OVER FORTY BILLION IN FIRST QUARTER

The Murtala Muhammed Airport Command of the Nigeria Customs, Lagos State, say it generated the sum of Forty-Five Billion, Two Hundred and Thirty-Two Million, Four Hundred and Eighty-Three Thousand, Five Hundred and Twenty-Eight Naira (N45,232,483,528) as revenue in the first quarter of 2024.

This marks an 111.7% increase when compared to the Twenty-One Billion, Three Hundred and Sixty-Two Million, Seven Hundred and Fifty-Two Thousand, Six Hundred and Seventy-Six Naira, and Forty-Four Kobo (N21,362,752,676.44) it raised during the period under review in 2023, with an appreciation of Twenty-Three Billion, Eight Hundred and Sixty-Nine Million, Seven Hundred and Thirty Thousand, Eight Hundred and Fifty-One Naira and Fifty-Six Kobo (N23,869,730,851.56).

The CUSTOMS AREA CONTROLLER, MOHAMMED SANI YUSUF, disclosed this during a briefing at Ikeja, where he noted that the revenue amassed despite the harsh economic realities is in line with the Service’s resolve to ensuring that it collect the much-needed revenue for the Federal Government and also sees to the safety and well-being of the citizenry through curbing smuggling to its barest minimum while facilitating legitimate import and export trades.

On its anti-Smuggling activities, the Command noted improvements which have resulted in the interception of fifty (50) pieces of 9mm live ammunition, which was discovered in a joint examination conducted by the Service and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).

The number of first-quarter seizures in the command includes One Thousand, One Hundred and sixty-four (1,164kg) sea cucumbers, fifty-eight Eight Kilograms (58kg) of donkey genitals and seventeen packages (17) of Tramadol.

The cumulative Duty Paid Value (DPV) of the aforementioned items stood at Five Billion, seven hundred and ninety-four million, ninety-nine thousand, three hundred and seventy-one naira and one hundred and nineteen kobo only (N5,794,099,371.119k).

The Comptroller stressed that all the seized items contravened some of the provisions of existing laws as enshrined in the Nigeria Customs Service Act (NCS) 2023.

On stakeholder engagement, the command revealed that it has maintained its open-door policy and resolved a lot of issues of common interest with concerned stakeholders, as it extended appreciation to its sister agencies for their cooperation in ensuring that duties are effectively carried out.

CONTROLLER YUSUF also lauded the Comptroller General of Customs, Bashiru Adewale Adeniyi MFR, and his management team for their continued support, as well as the officers and men of the command, whom he urged to remain focused and steadfast in discharging their assigned responsibilities.