The Nigeria Customs Service has seized contraband worth ₦722 million. The Sokoto/Zamfara Area Command made the seizure. The items include 599 bales of second-hand clothes. They also include seven sacks of second-hand women’s bags and 43 cartons of cigarettes. Other items include unregistered pharmaceutical products, coffee and a used DAF truck.
Smuggling has long undermined Nigeria’s economy. Second-hand clothes, known locally as okrika, enter through porous borders. Unregistered drugs flood markets. They endanger public health. The Customs Service has struggled to secure the northwest borders. The region borders Niger and Benin. In 2023, the service seized billions in contraband across the zone. In 2024, similar operations continued. Insecurity complicates enforcement.
The Acting Area Comptroller, Halliru Isa-Abdullahi, disclosed the seizures. He said the effort followed the Comptroller-General’s directive on consolidation, collaboration and innovation. The suspects abandoned the vehicle when they discovered operatives were trailing them. Repairs were conducted on the truck before it was conveyed to Sokoto.
Isa-Abdullahi said the command’s efforts have yielded results despite insecurity. “Operatives ensured blocking and suppression of smuggling,” he said. He urged Nigerians to support the service with information. He said eradicating smuggling would stop people from consuming unregistered drugs. He also said it would boost the economy.
Winners: The Customs Service, which demonstrates enforcement. The public, if unsafe drugs are removed. Legitimate traders, who gain fair competition. Losers: Smugglers, who lose goods. Their collaborators, who face arrest. Consumers of unregistered drugs, who face health risks. The black market, which loses supply.
Bottom Line: Customs seized ₦722 million in contraband. The items included drugs and clothes. Smuggling persists. Enforcement is working. The service needs public support. Information is key.