By Steve Oni, Ilorin

It was a big haul on the part of officers and men of the Joint Border Operations Drill (JBOD) Sector 3 covering the North Central States of Kwara, Niger, Kogi and Benue as it, in the last three months, raked into the coffers of the federal government a total sum of N802m from various contraband goods it impounded from unscrupulous Nigerians.

Briefing journalists in Ilorin, the Kwara state capital, on the activities of the Sector over the weekend, the Coordinator, JBOD, Comptroller Mohammed Uba Garba, attributed the successful and outstanding operations to the efforts of officers and men of the Sector, adding that they have resolved to tirelessly work towards reducing the incidence of smuggling in their area of operations. In keeping to this promise, he said new anti smuggling strategies have been initiated which he claimed have led to remarkable feats.

He said: “Within the last three weeks of March, 2020, the Sector has intercepted several contraband goods worth millions of Naira. They include 25 units of vehicles of various types, 1,437 bags of foreign rice of 50kg of which 430 bags were found concealed in bags of Onions, Maize, Millet and Beans with Duty Paid Value of N24.4m.

“Others are 494 tin tomatoes
18 bales of second hand clothing,
15 sacks of second hand shoes. The above seizures were made around Jebba-Mokwa, Okuta, Alapa and Kotangora axis of the Sector with Duty Paid Value of N98.3m.

“Since my assumption of duty here we have recorded 151 seizures consisting of 134 used vehicles, 14,576 bags of rice equivalent to 15 trailers, 303,609 litres of petroleum products, over 6,617 litres of AGO, 362 bales of textile materials,
11 illicit weapons, 129 motorcycles used to convey smuggled goods. The total Duty Paid Value (DPV) of the Itemized seized goods is N802.5m.”

The Coordinator further disclosed that, during the period under review, the Sector arrested 23 suspects in connection to smuggling, while 160 illegal migrants were repatriated, adding that stakeholders were also engaged through press briefings and meetings with IPMAN, PTD, traders, market women, textile and shoes dealers association on the danger and illegality of smuggling with its attendant repercussions when caught.

Garba warned that the fight against smuggling activities in the North Central axis would continue to receive sustained momentum that would lead to more seizures and enforcement of the federal government’s directives geared towards curtailing smuggling activities.

He said: “I therefore stress the need for all illicit traders to desist from all illegal trades and try to engage in legitimate businesses. We want to reiterate to all economic saboteurs and their accomplices that the Joint Border Operations Drill Sector 3 will continue to emplace efforts that will ensure that any items found to be prohibited are seized and offenders will be sanctioned accordingly.

“Officers and men involved in this national assignment have been mandated and tasked to work tirelessly and confront whatever challenges that may militate against our successes; we will continue to build on the achievements made so far in the course of carrying out our mandate.

“It is noteworthy that the federal government has made significant strides to encourage local production. Therefore, all members of the populace are encouraged to take advantage of the federal government’s visible efforts to transform the agricultural sector, especially in the area of rice production and its efforts towards industrialization of the economy.

“Sector 3 has also made significant efforts to enlighten and inform the general public of the negative consequences of consuming imported rice with its hazardous health implications. I also want to appeal to the general public to embrace legitimate means of livelihood and avoid smuggling of prohibited items that are inimical to attaining the vision of having a healthy and economically viable society. The Sector implores Nigerians to cooperate with its operatives to allow for the socioeconomic growth of the country in order to provide the needed employment for our teeming youths.
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“Finally, in order to prevent the spread of Coronavirus (COVID-19), the federal government has just announced total closure of all land borders, and so we at the Sector 3 are committed to enforcing this to the letter.”