Customs intercepts 31,500 litres of petrol at Seme border  

The Seme Area Command of the Nigeria Customs Service says it has intercepted 1,050 jerry cans (30 litres each) of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) known as petrol with a Duty Paid Value (DPV) of N5.4million.

Public Relations Officer of the command, Deputy Superintendent of Customs (DSC) Hussain Abdullahi, in a statement issued on Thursday said the items were intercepted in sacks along the creeks and beaches in the Seme/Badagry axis on December 1.

He quoted the Controller of the command, Comptroller Bello Jibo, as saying the interception was made possible by the commitment and determination of personnel of the Service in suppressing the activities of daredevil smugglers to the barest minimum across the country.

“Upon examination, 1050 jerry cans of 30litres each of petroleum products which is equivalent to 31,500 litres were discovered. The unfortunate scenario is that apart from sabotaging the efforts of the Government that is paying huge amounts of money to subsidize the products for the benefit of Nigerians, smuggling of petroleum also poses threats to their own lives and most times vehicles get burnt when accidents occur,” he said.

Commenting on the giant strike achieved by the Command, the CAC reiterated the commitment of officers and men of the Command to continue the fight against smuggling and their accomplices with a higher tempo.

He commended the Comptroller General of Customs, Hameed Ali and his management for logistical support by providing the Command with four Hilux vehicles to boost its operations.

He assured that Customs will continue to enforce federal Government policies with a view to suppress smuggling, collections of appropriate revenue and facilitation of legitimate trade.