Pinnacle Time News

Although the Controller,   Nigeria Customs Service, Federal Operations Unit, Zone ‘C’ Owerri, Comptroller Kayode Olusemire penultimate week declined to confirm worries that increased importation of armoured vehicles into the country has any link with the approaching general elections in February 2019, he nonetheless said their importations portend various kinds of national security risks. This is even as he said Customs duty is to curtail the security risks associated with importations of controlled items without End-Users Certificate, and explained that the End-User Certificate legally and officially enables government security agencies to be able to track such importations and their uses, in order to forestall their ending up in the wrong hands. Items listed therein includes dangerous items such as explosives, chemicals, arms, armoured vehicles or what is commonly known as bullet proof vehicles, etc; and for which the importer or his agent is expected to seek and secure...

Facts emerging indicate that lack of requisite scanners have for a long time already taken a toll on the clearance of cargo by the Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, at the various international airports, nationwide. Investigations show that this is owing to the moribund state of available cargo scanners believed to have been acquired more than 30 years ago, and plagued with successive declining maintenance over the years until the machines packed up. This is even as investigations further revealed that the Customs has relied on the smaller packages scanning machines owned by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN, for its operational checks, said to have caused unnecessary delays for owners of large imported consignments, across airports. Feelers indicate that at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos, the Customs also rely on NARCHO’s private scanners to check air cargo; a situation observers say is capable of breeding official compromise. Usually dependable s...

The Ogun Command of the Nigeria Customs Service weekend, lost one officer to smugglers attack at Asero Community, Ogun State. Identified as Customs Assistant 1 Hamisu Sani  met his untimely and gruesome death during a raid on smuggled rice hideout at Asero, along with other officers; while and Inspector of Customs Tijani John Michael escaped death but not without serious injuries. A statement made available to Vanguard Maritime Report and signed by the Command Public Relations Officer, Abdullahi Maiwada, said the late Sani has been buried according to Islamic rites. The Command has however said two suspects has been arrested in connection with the incident and have vowed to use all lawful means at its disposal to fish out the perpetrators. Despite the attack, operative of the command arrested a total of eight articulated vehicles loaded with the offensive rice, which according to the statement have been evacuated to the Customs office in Abeokuta. The statement reads in pa...

Zone C FOU rakes in N591m from seizures The Nigeria Customs Service, Federal Operations Unit Zone C, Owerri has generated a total of N591million as Duty Paid Value on 22 seized vehicles, including eight bullet proof exotic autos and 1901 x50kg bags of contraband rice. Controller of the Unit, Compt. Kayode Olusemire while briefing newsmen at the Benin Government Warehouse Friday, put the Duty Paid Value of the seized items at N591million. He explained that six suspects were arrested in connection with the seizures, and are currently undergoing trial at the court. While appealing to Nigerians to strive to discontinue acts of smuggling the customs unit boss described as economic sabotage, he urged genuine importers to acquaint themselves with import customs advice and be adequately informed of what constitutes import prohibitions, noting that ‘Ignorance has no place in law’. Olumisere explained that management of customs is solely interested in trade facilitation, but equa...

ANLCA Post Election Crisis How Western Zone Sacked Nwabunike Annulled illegal Abuja meeting, actions BY KESIENA SHEPHERDS After months of anxieties, the Western Zone arm of the Association of Nigeria Customs Licensed Agents, ANLCA, has sent the National President, Hon. Tony Iju Nwabunike led National Executive Council Members, NECOM packing, riding on Nwabunike’s alleged anti-association activities believed to have manifested in the creation of factions within the group. The Western Zone authority said the creation of factions in addition to alleged divisive tendencies by the embattled president’s has robbed off negatively on the professional enormous goodwill ANLCA has enjoyed over the years; and is obliged to respond to this threats meaningfully, by withdrawing total and official support to Nwabunike, and investing leadership authority on Mr. Emenike Nwakeoji, the man who contested and lost to the former, in April 2018. Recall that despite the Board of Trustees, B...