Apapa Customs rakes in N119b revenue, retains top rank
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Nigeria Customs Service (NIS) Apapa Area Command retained its top rank with N119 billion revenue in June, the highest monthly collection by the command.
Area Command Public Relations Officer Abubakar Usman made the disclosure in a statement which cited Area Comptroller Mohammed Auwal as saying in his farewell session with senior officers the command collected a total N540 billion revenue between January and July.
Auwal was one of the Customs officers decorated on July 31 with the rank of Assistant Comptroller General by acting NIS Comptroller General Adewale Adeniyi.
Compliance is the bedrock of port efficiency, Auwal stressed at the farewell session, explaining the command’s revenue collection improved due to leakage prevention, zero compromise for duty evasion, and due diligence amid reduced volume of trade.
He thanked the officers and stakeholders for their support, and described the various interventions such as demand notices to recover shortfalls in revenue as helpful.
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Importance of inter-agency synergy
“Before now, N95 billion collected between January and August 2022 was the highest monthly collection,” the statement added, according to The PUNCH.
“The job of preventing prohibited items such as arms, ammunition, illicit drugs, and others under the import and export prohibition lists from entering or exiting the country through Apapa Port was treated as a collective duty under his watch.”
According to Auwal, inter-agency synergy and intelligence sharing are the first bold steps in defeating criminals who seek to use the ports for unlawful activities.
“Compliance is one word that appeals to both government and private sector stakeholders because we are all governed by rules to which we owe a duty to obey.
“Apapa Port holds the potential to handle the highest volume of trade in West and Central Africa with the possibility of being a trade hub for seamless cargo movement if importers, agents, and freight forwarders comply by making sincere declarations and avoiding smuggling.”