The Nigeria Customs Service, Seme Border Command has intercepted 3,300 cartridges of explosive materials being illegally conveyed through the border corridor.
The Customs Area Controller, Comptroller Abdullahi Shuaibu Kaila, disclosed this during a press briefing in Lagos.
“Explosives of this nature have devastating consequences when they fall into the hands of criminal elements. They have the potential to facilitate terrorism, banditry, kidnapping and other violent crimes capable of threatening
national peace and security.”
He added that the seizure demonstrates the vigilance, professionalism and intelligence-driven operations of officers working with sister security agencies.
The Command also intercepted a truck deceptively declared to be carrying food items, but found to contain *1,306 sacks of expired and waste noodles. Each sack weighed 50kg, totaling 65.3 tons of unwholesome products.
In other enforcement operations, officers seized 1,268 bags of foreign parboiled rice and hard drugs smuggled through illegal routes.
He spoke on revenue, saying the command generated N19.84 billion between January and July 2026.
“Beyond denying government legitimate revenue, such illicit importation undermines the Federal Government’s agricultural policies, discourages local rice production and threatens the livelihoods of Nigerian farmers,” he added.
Speaking on the revenue generation and trade facilitation, Comptroller Kaila emphasised that while enforcement remains highly visible, it represents only one dimension of the command’s statutory responsibilities, highlighting that the second is facilitating legitimate trade while generating revenue for national development.
“In 2025, the Seme area command generated a total revenue of N15,941,258,676.01. That achievement reflected improved compliance, enhanced stakeholder engagement, and strengthened operational efficiency. Yet our revenue performance in 2026 has been even more remarkable.”
He said that between January and July 2026, the Command generated N19,840,280,788.50.
This, according to him, means that within only seven months, the Command had surpassed its entire twelve-month revenue collection for 2025 by N3,899,022,112.49, representing a 24.45 per cent increase.
This achievement demonstrated that effective enforcement and efficient trade facilitation are complementary responsibilities. “While we continue to deny smugglers opportunities to undermine the economy, we remain equally committed to creating an enabling environment for compliant traders to conduct legitimate business with ease and predictability.”
