The Nigeria Customs Service, Apapa Area Command, has said that it seized 27 containers of prohibited and illegally imported items between January and June 2025.
This is even as the command announced that it sealed three bonded terminals for various infractions. The Customs Area Controller in charge of the command, Babatunde Olomu, disclosed this during a half-year press briefing at the command on Thursday.
He explained that the sealing of the bonded terminal was a fallout from uncompromising anti-smuggling operations, with one terminal already undergoing prosecution at the court, while investigations are ongoing on the remaining two.
Giving a breakdown of the seizures, he emphasised that nine containers were carrying unregistered pharmaceuticals, used clothing, expired margarine, codeine syrup, wild animal skins, and stolen vehicles.
“Other seizures include an additional 10 containers of unregistered pharmaceuticals, two containers of codeine syrup, two containers of stolen vehicles, four containers of second-hand clothing, amongst others, contrabands, with a duty paid value of N9.2b,” Olomu said.
Olomu said these seizures are a fallout of efforts at preventing Nigerians from unwholesome foods and drugs, stopping illicit trade, and protecting our local industries.
He mentioned that a container of imported matches without the required End User Certificate was also detained in line with existing regulations.
“All consignments passing through Apapa Port are subjected to rigorous screening via scanning and physical examination where necessary. We are fully committed to protecting our nation from harmful imports and illegal trade,” he stated.
The Apapa Customs boss condemned the importation of wild animal parts, stressing that such acts violate the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, to which Nigeria is a signatory.
On revenue generation, Olomu said the command achieved a total revenue collection of N1.37tn, which represents a 35 per cent increase when compared with N1.02tn collected in the same period of 2024, marking a N354bn increase in collection within the period under review.”
Olomu also emphasised that the command has opened talks with officials of the Nigerian Railway Corporation and other stakeholders from various associations on developing a standard operating procedure for the movement of goods by rail from Apapa Port to other states.
