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Financial Supervisory General Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Adewale Adeniyi, on Wednesday, announced the confiscation of drones, fake pharmaceutical products, expired and not registered at the port of whatever in Lagos.
The large amount of more than N921 billion also includes expired food and other controlled security equipment such as drones and walkie-talkie, among others.
Details of seizures include 89 cartons of pharmaceutical products that are not registered in the CAAU6514500 container, 242 cartons in the TCNU6880130 container, and 1,001 Cartons of the Hydra-Sildenafil Tablet Sitrat in the MRSU3041714 container.
Another 40-footer container was found containing 1,400 packages from various unregistered drugs, while the fifth had 805 packages wrongly declared as cosmetic powder.
This service also intercepted two 20 feet containers containing expired margarine products.
In addition, 60 units of soldiers without a valid end user certificate were restored from the MSKU9329923 container, worth N15.9 million.
Also, 53 helicopter drones were evacuated from the marked CFAX3 container, carrying the estimated value of import duties of N2.1 million.
Also, 10 Walkie-Talkies Walkie Transceiver Professional was also confiscated from ENL, while the 20-Footer container (SUDU1408819) was found containing 500 packages of active drug tablets without NAFDAC certification.
Adeniyi revealed at a press conference that seizures were made between January and April 2025, which stated that controlled security equipment did not have a final user certificate from the National Security Advisory Office (ONSA).
CG also provides an update on the launch of the Customs Management Information System, known as B’Odogwu, illustrates the pilot phase at PTML and the Port of Tin Can Island as important but not without challenges.
He explained that his previous visit to PTML and Tin Can was to get direct insights about the difficulties encountered by stakeholders with new digital platforms.
Also read: Customs Customs Set 7 Million CFA (N17 Million) to EFCC
Helmsman Customs and Excise acknowledged that while the launch of B’odogwu was ambitious and necessary, the service was fully aware that the initial implementation would come with a just setback.
“We did not pretend that when we launched a very serious project with the size it would not be itchy,” he said.
He stressed that Customs and Excise approached the situation with flexibility and innovation, holding stakeholders and bank involvement to overcome hiccups in the spread of the system.
In law enforcement, Adeniyi announced that the service, in line with the national strategic economic development plan and executive orders on port operations, had increased supervision in all ports, airports, and land borders in response to tactics that developed with transnational criminal networks that seek to violate the State Import Protocol.
He further increases the alarm about the increasing pharmaceutical products that are not registered, especially sexual improvement drugs, warns that these items pose a big threat to the health and safety of the community.
He warned that the use of these drugs without medical supervision can cause serious health complications, including cardiovascular risk.
Adeniyi also noted the wrong declaration pattern in which importers label medicines as merchandise or common cosmetics in an effort to avoid detection.
He noted the third trend in the diversification of the shipping of smuggled goods, with importers mixing drugs, expired foods, and technological goods limited in one container.
This, he said, suggested the involvement of sophisticated criminal networks rather than isolated smuggling.
He also identified the country’s strategic selection trends with weaker pharmaceutical export controls, showing deliberate efforts to exploit the gaps of regulations by importers.
“Finally, there is an increase in the import of non-farmatic security threats, including drones and communication gadgets, which raises significant concerns about national security,” he said.
Adeniyi warned that the service would not succumb in his commitment to secure the Nigerian border and protect the lives of its citizens.
By: Babajide Okeowo
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