News Rendezvous

YOLA, Nigeria, October 15, 2025:

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Adamawa/Taraba Command, has scale-up its anti-smuggling operations, recording 29 seizures worth ₦112.59 million in Duty Paid Value (DPV) within a span of just six weeks.

The Customs Area Comptroller of the command, Gambo Bature Bashir, disclosed this during a press conference at the Customs House, Yola, while presenting the latest achievements of the Command’s rigorous enforcement drives across major border flashpoints.

According to Bashir, the seizures were made through intelligence-driven and coordinated operations along notorious smuggling corridors such as Mubi–Sahuda, Girei–Wuro Bokki, Jamtari–Farang/Belel, Wuro Alhaji, Damare bank, Gurin–Fufore axis, and Yerima road in Gembu.

“The Command has gone through intensive and rigorous patrol across its frontiers,” Bashir stated.

“We are pleased to present the evidence of our struggle and success in curbing illegal cross-border trade and protecting the national economy.”

According to Bashir, key seizures during the operations includes items such as:20,600 litres of petrol (PMS) packed in 824 jerrycans,91 cartons of expired Tramadol 50mg capsules,54 cartons of foreign soaps, and64 pieces of complete donkey skins intended for illegal export.Bashir said the expired drugs were seized on August 30, 2025, in Mubi, following a coordinated intelligence operation. He warned that the circulation of such counterfeit and expired drugs poses grave risks to public health, potentially leading to “high morbidity, mortality, human capital deterioration, and social unrest.”

He cited a World Health Organization (WHO) report estimating that over one million people die annually worldwide from substandard or falsified medical products, with Africa bearing the heaviest burden.

“These expired Tramadol capsules, if not intercepted, could have wreaked havoc on our youth and communities,” Bashir warned, adding that the substances would be officially handed over to NAFDAC for further action and eventual destruction.

The Customs boss also disclosed that the Command intercepted 64 raw donkey skins along Damare River bank on September 30, concealed in sacks and awaiting night transport across waterways into Cameroon.He said the attempted export violated the Export Prohibition List (Schedule 6 of the Common External Tariff) and Section 150 of the NCS Act, 2023.“

The 64 skins translate to the killing of 64 donkeys. If left unchecked, such acts will push the species toward extinction,” he lamented.Similarly, 54 cartons of foreign soaps were seized on October 3, 2025, along the Damare River bank.

Their importation contravened Schedule 3 (Serial No. 16) of the Common External Tariff, 2022–2026, as well as Section 233 of the NCS Act, 2023.Meanwhile, the intercepted petrol will be auctioned to the public following due procedure, with proceeds remitted into the Federation Account.Comptroller Bashir noted that the Command’s success was not limited to enforcement but also involved sustained community engagement and inter-agency collaboration.

“We have built strong partnerships with border communities and other security agencies through intelligence sharing and dialogue,” he said.

“This collaborative approach has yielded significant results in disrupting smuggling networks and safeguarding the economy.”

He emphasized that the Command remains resolute in dismantling smuggling syndicates operating within Adamawa and Taraba States, vowing that operations would continue “until illicit trans-border trade is eradicated within the confines of the law.

”The Area Controller expressed gratitude to the Comptroller General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi and his management team for providing the enabling environment to fulfill their statutory mandate.

He also acknowledged the support of other Customs units such as FOU ‘D’, CIU, SIS, and CPU, as well as other security agencies.

“We thank members of the media for their positive journalism and call for continued support in sensitizing the public on the dangers of smuggling to our national economy and security,” Bashir said.

The Command’s renewed offensive against smuggling underscores the Service’s determination to safeguard Nigeria’s borders, protect citizens’ health, and preserve endangered species from illegal trade.