ABUJA: The recently launched Operation Hawk Descend aimed at combating smuggling of frozen poultry has yielded positive results with the seizure of 3221 cartons of chicken by officials of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Western Marine Command (WMC) on August 4, 2015.
The Customs Area Controller of the command, Umar Yusuf, who made the disclosure in Lagos yesterday during the destruction of the contraband items, said the duty paid value (DPV) of the seized frozen poultry stands at N19.326 million.
According to him, the launch of Operation Hawk Descend has spurred officers and men of the command to redouble their efforts in fighting smuggling on the nation’s waterways, as the land borders are manned by another set of Customs operatives.
“The latest seizure was done in the early hours of August 4 when a joint patrol team intercepted a boat loaded with 3221 cartons of poultry products along Badagry-Ere waterways. Since the launch of Operation Hawk Descend, we have recorded a total seizure of 5,083 cartons of frozen poultry with a DPV of N31,008,000.
He said in July, the command recorded seizures of food items worth N6,220,834, adding that the bulk of the seized items were poultry products and rice within the riverine creeks of Yemeke, Badagry and other locations between Nigeria and Benin Republic.
On a national scale, the NCS said it has made seizures worth N28,660,717 in the third week of its fight against smuggling of frozen poultry products.
The Deputy Public Relations Officer of the NCS, Joseph Attah, said the seizures consist of 5,915 cartons of frozen poultry products, mostly conveyed in commercial vehicles and were impounded by Customs officers around the South Western area of the country, which consists of Badagry Creeks, Seme axis and Idiroko axis of Ogun State.
The breakdown of the seizures showed that Ogun State Command of Customs seized 2,800 cartons; the Federal Operation Unit, 2,561 cartons; the Western Marine Command, 455 cartons and the Seme Command, 99 cartons.
