Customs Unveils N5.5bn Contraband
The Port Harcourt II Command Onne of the Nigeria Customs Service in Rivers State unveils 56 containers of seized prohibited goods worth over N5.5 billion and vows the state remains unsafe for economic saboteurs as service intensifies intelligence driven enforcement
By Jude Nzennaya, Port Harcourt
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has reiterated its commitment to protecting Nigerian farmers, manufacturers, and businesses from the importation of prohibited items, false declarations and other practices capable of undermining domestic production and jobs creation.
The Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi stated this on Tuesday, September 15, 2026, while disclosing the interception of 56 containers laden with prohibited goods with a total Duty Paid Value of N5.53 billion at the Port Harcourt II Area Command, Onne, Rivers State.
Adeniyi disclosed that the intervention formed part of intelligence-driven and risk-based operations aimed at preventing prohibited, restricted and improperly declared consignments from entering the Nigerian market, thereby crippling the overall productivity of our local businesses.
According to him, unchecked importation of products that could be produced or processed locally places additional pressure on Nigerian farmers, manufacturers and other domestic producers by exposing them to unfair competition, weakening demand for local products and discouraging investment across domestic value chains.
“The economic impact is especially significant in the agricultural and manufacturing sectors. Large-scale importation of products that Nigeria can produce or process may undermine the Federal Government’s efforts to promote local industries, strengthen food security, create jobs, and diversify the economy,”he said.
The CGC stressed that Customs enforcement was not designed to frustrate legitimate businesses, but to ensure that Nigerians and compliant businesses operate within a fair, secure and predictable trading environment, adding that, while trade facilitation remains a fundamental responsibility of modern Customs administration, enforcement operations are conducted through risk-based interventions designed to distinguish compliant traders from non-compliant ones.
Maintaining that the approach enables the Service to facilitate legitimate cargo while directing enhanced scrutiny towards high-risk consignments, he said,“The Service’s risk-based approach enables it to facilitate legitimate cargo while directing enhanced scrutiny towards consignments considered high-risk.”
He also commended the Customs Area Controller, Comptroller Aliyu M. Alkali and officers of the Port Harcourt II Area Command for the feat, while advising importers and other stakeholders to confirm the admissibility of their intended imports before commencing transactions and to make accurate declarations concerning the description, quantity, value, origin and classification of goods.
According to the CGC, the consignments comprised 45 x 20-foot containers of foreign vegetable oil, nine 40-foot containers of used clothing and two 20-foot containers of Channy tomato paste. He reiterated that the seizures align with the Federal Government’s broader economic objectives, particularly policies promoting made-in-Nigeria products.
The Nigeria Customs Service remains committed to strengthening border security, protecting the Nigerian economy and supporting legitimate trade in line with the broader economic objectives of the Federal Government.
While trade facilitation remains a fundamental responsibility of modern Customs administration, enforcement operations are conducted through risk-based interventions designed to distinguish compliant traders from non-compliant ones. This approach enables the Service to facilitate legitimate cargo while directing enhanced scrutiny towards high-risk consignments.
