By Steve Agbota
The Kirikiri Lighter Terminal (KLT) Area Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has intercepted 24 containers of charcoal destined for illegal export, even as it generated N32,705 billion revenue into Federation account.
Speaking at a press briefing in Lagos yesterday, the Area Controller of the command, Comptroller Hammi Swomen said that the Federal Government’s policy has placed embargo on unprocessed wood for export.
He explained that Nigeria is a signatory to the international society convention of flora and fuana but has not been able to get any approval in respect of these containers destined for export.
However, he said N32.705 billion generated between January and November 2021 as Customs duty and other charges surpassed the N19.7 billion it collected during the same period in 2020.
According to him, the N32 billion collected from January to November 2021 represents a 65.5 per cent increase on the command’s total collection for the previous year.
By the month of August 2021, he said the command had already exceeded the total revenue collection from January to November of 2020.
“For the first time in the history of the command it collected a record N4.3 billion in one month (July) 2021, more than 200 per cent increase in revenue compared to July 2020 when it generated N1.6 billion.
“Between the period under review, KLT command also made seizures of vegetable oil (3×40 feet), used tyres (1×40 feet), expired bottled water (1x40ft) and recently intercepted 24×40 feet containers of charcoal totaling 29 containers with Duty Paid Value of N218.7 million,” he added.
He added that these feats and several others were made possible in spite of logistics constraints of access and exist, worsened by the deplorable road network, that militates against the operations of the command.
