The Nigeria Customs Service, Federal Operations Unit Zone ‘C’ Owerri, Imo State, has arrested two suspected smugglers in connection with the exportation of three trucks of unprocessed woods to outside countries.
In a statement made available to newsmen in Owerri, on Monday, by the Zone ‘C’ Public Relations Officer, Mr Jerry Attah, said that the unit also intercepted the 6x20ft containers of logs of woods which contravened schedule 6 of the extant Common External Tariff (CET) along Industrial road, Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
Attah said that the Zonal Coordinator for Zone ‘C’, Ag. ACG Olusemire Kayode, while displaying the intercepted items at the zonal headquarters, Port Harcourt, noted that deforestation comes with negative effects such as desert encroachment and environmental degradation.
He also said that when tree felling is not checkmated, the ecosystem and its biodiversity are left to suffer.
The Zonal Coordinator decried the economic loss brought upon Nigeria with the exportation of unprocessed logs, adding that employment creation which resulted from local processing of the logs was vital for Nigeria’s teeming youth.
He commended the controller of the FOUC, Mr Yusuf Lawal, and officers of the unit for their resilience, doggedness and steadfastness in tackling smuggling.
The Ag. ACG cautioned against senseless attacks on the service’s operatives while carrying out their legitimate duties
He said: “Our surveillance teams of FOU Zone ‘C’, acting on credible intelligence, trailed and intercepted three trucks conveying 6×20ft containers of logs of rough timber along the industrial road, Port- Harcourt. We also arrested two suspected smugglers who were attempting to export the unprocessed logs but they have been released on administrative bail”
Also speaking, the FOU ‘C’ controller, Mr Yusuf Lawal said that the logs were about to be smuggled out of the country without clearance from the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC).
He gave the marks and numbers of the containers to include MSCU-3470637, MSDU-1497355, MEDU-9739916, MEDU-5627573, MSDU-6248794 and MEDU-6792783.
He said: “NEPC is an agency of government which takes note of products that are meant for exportation so that the proceeds can be repatriated accordingly.”
Mr Lawal said that unfortunately NEPC is not aware of these logs and have not issued any Nigeria Export Proceeds form, which further confirmed that the logs were about to be smuggled out.
He, however, urged Nigerians to assist the service with relevant information to aid its activities for the general good of the country.
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