The Comptroller General’s Strike Force may have impounded 4,200 50kg bags of smuggled rice in a Mopa village, near Kabba in Kogi.
The Deputy Comptroller and Strike Force National Coordinator, Mr Abdullahi Kirawa stated this in Abuja on Monday, adding that the seizures were as a result of synergy between the Nigeria Police, Army, Department of States Security Service and the Customs Intelligent Unit.
“The Strike Force team intercepted seven trucks loaded with 50kg bags of smuggled rice, each truck carrying 600 bags.
“These bags of rice were seized on Saturday, August 4, in Mopa near Kabba in Kogi State.
“Also, eight days ago the team seized 1,246 bags of smuggled rice through the creeks in Ogun State,”Kirawa highlighted, crediting the feat to tip off received from its dependable sources.
“We reliably learned that the consignments were brought into the country through the land borders and the creeks,” he said, explaining that the policy of the government on importation is clear, and that it is expected that those engaged in the importation business are familiar with the laws of the land.
He also stressed that if refined sugar is brought into the country through unapproved routes, it would be considered as smuggled, even as he warned those dealing in refined sugar to ensure they steer clear of same fate as the seized rice, emphasizing that the Strike Force team has been charged with the responsibility of ensuring that smuggling is brought to its knees.
