The Nigeria Customs Service ( NCS) has intercepted seven containers laden with sexual enhancement drugs, expired food items and different kinds of unregistered pharmaceuticals.
Also intercepted were 113 units of high tech drones and other restricted imports valued at N912million between January and April 2025.
Displaying the seized items before journalists at Apapa port in Lagos on Wednesday, Comptroller General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi expressed concern over the influx of unregistered pharmaceutical products into the country.
He said some of the intercepted drugs lacked requisite regulatory approvals and quality assurance certifications adding that they pose public health risk and could lead to death if allowed into the open market.
“Of particular concern is the alarming prevalence of unregistered pharmaceutical products entering our supply chain without requisite regulatory approvals and quality assurance certifications. These items constitute a clear and present danger to public health, with potential to cause significant morbidity and mortality if permitted to infiltrate our domestic markets.
“The service has documented with concern the increasing sophistication of smuggling tactics targeting our maritime domain, particularly the nation’s premier port facility at Apapa. Intelligence reports indicate an increase in attempts to import prohibited and restricted items through container shipping in the first quarter of 2025 compared to the corresponding period in 2024.
“The Apapa Port Command has, between January and April 2025, executed a series of targeted interdictions resulting in the seizure of prohibited and restricted imports.
“The seizure operations yielded a total of 11 seizures comprising:
five units of 40-foot containers, two units of 20-foot containers, four additional seizures of loosely concealed contraband items. The aforementioned seizures have an aggregate Duty Paid Value (DPV) of N921,021,213.00 million as calculated in accordance with Service valuation protocols.
“The contraband items fall into three principal categories. The first category is unregistered pharmaceutical products lacking mandatory NAFDAC registration numbers and certification, a direct contravention of Section 28 of the NAFDAC Act Cap N1 LFN 2004 (as amended). These constitute 63.7% of the total seizure value.
“The second category are expired food items with compromised safety profiles that pose imminent danger to public health if introduced into the consumer market, in violation of the Food Products (Registration) Regulations and the Pre-Shipment Inspection of Exports Act.
“The third category are controlled equipment including drone technology and telecommunications devices imported without requisite End-User Certificates from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) as mandated by the National Security Agencies Act, ” he said.
Giving a further breakdown of the seizures, Adeniyi said they include five 40 foot containers of sexual enhancement drugs and unregistered pharmaceutical products including 891 cartons of Redsun Silddnafil citrate oral jelly, Dr. ICO Cypropheptadine with multivamin tablet, Samson oil, Rocket Sildenafil citrate tablet, Dr. Ico herbal inhaler, Dr. Ico pain relief and Col caps.
Others are Chloropheniramine- Maleate capsules, Hyegra Sildenafil citrate tablets, original chest and lungs, Vita plus ( big booty tablets, Cyprohiptadin with B- complex tablets, Gbogbonise skin cream, skin chemist cream, among others.
On the expired food items, Adeniyi said two 20-foot containers were found to contain expired margarine products, posing a significant threat to public health.
He added, “For the controlled equipment, we have (60 units of WARRIOR drones and 53 units of different helicopter drones) and 10 units of professional FM transceiver walkie-talkies were intercepted due to the lack of requisite End-User Certificates from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA). ”
Adeniyi commended officers and men of the Apapa Port Command for their vigilance, professionalism, and dedication to duty, which he said led to the successful execution of the interceptions.
He reiterated the NCS’s commitment to enforcing import regulations and warned importers, exporters, agents, and other stakeholders within the international trade environment that the Service intelligence network, technological capabilities, and inter-agency collaborations have been significantly enhanced to detect and intercept prohibited items regardless of concealment methods or documentation subterfuge.
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