ABUJA: The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has impounded 5,056 cartons of imported fake drugs. They were intercepted at Idiroko border, Sango-Otta axis and Lagos/Ibadan Expressway by operatives of Federal Operation Unit (FOU), Zone ‘A’ Ikeja, Lagos. Addressing reporters at the Federal Government Warehouse in Lagos yesterday, Customs Comptroller-General Col. Hameed Ali (rtd) said the items did not have National Agency for Food Drug Administration Control (NAFDAC) number. The fake drugs, he said, had a Duty Paid Value (DPV) of N252.6 million. The DPV excluded the drugs market value that runs into several millions of naira. Majority of the items, Ali said, were brought in from China and India by some unscrupulous importers who are now at large. Some of the items included REALLY EXTRA “with effective relieve from pain and fever” inscribed on its cartons; Tramadol Hydrochloride Tablet (Royal) of 225mg and Tramadol Caps of 120mg each.
The Customs boss said the drugs were impounded because they fall under the import prohibition list. “These are dangerous drugs which mostly our youths take as a way of relieving their stress. They are not drugs meant for consumption. They are completely under prohibition yet these things still find their way into the country. The drugs reduce youths to nothing and anybody who keeps taking these drugs will not be useful to himself and the society,” he said. Ali added: “We are profiling those involved in the importation of these drugs and the law will take its course. I can’t imagine that a Nigerian for the sake of money decided to bring this type of drugs into the country.
“When people say Customs is disturbing us on the road, we cannot but do what we are doing. We need to have the three layers of defence in order to accost this type of thing. Otherwise, if we limit it to only the port or the borders, a lot of these things will find their way into the country. We are not deliberately harassing people but we are trying to secure and protect the society which is part of our mandate to make sure that everyone is protected. I also agree that our officers are compromising otherwise these things will not find their way here. We have to put these layers of defence because of the compromise of our officers. If you compromise the first layer, you will not be able to compromise the second layer or third layer. This is what we will continue to do until Nigerians begin to realise that things like this are inimical to our own progress and health and dangerous to our economy.” Some people, he said, have been arrested over the matter, while efforts are on to get the fleeing importers and the officers who helped them. One of the trucks used in conveying the drugs is marked AW 265 XJ. Also yesterday, Ali appealed to the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) to shelve its proposed strike.
During a visit to the association’s national secretariat in Lagos, Ali said the agent’s challenges were not unknown to the government, stating that the Buhari administration is working to address the problems. “I want to appeal to you as the Customs CG to please exercise some patience on your strike notice, I can assure you that with this new synergy, the challenges will be tackled; we will do something” he said. He urged the agents to be his “eyes and ears” in the industry, stressing that the Customs and the agents are partners in progress. ANLCA National President Prince Olayiwola Shittu said the challenges of quick cargo clearance at the ports included multiplicity of alerts, FOU interception of cargoes, and non-uniformity in vehicles’ values. He deplored the multiplicity of check points along border stations and clearance desks at the ports, which, according to him, frustrate “genuine importers.” Shittu urged Customs to embrace paperless transactions (single window platform) to facilitate trade and reduce corruption.
