The Operation Whirlwind of the Nigeria Customs Service has announced fresh seizure of 94,550 litres of petrol.
The seized containers of petrol, intercepted mostly at international borderlines across the country, were believed to be meant to be smuggled out of the country.
The Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adeniyi who announced this in Yola, Adamawa State on Wednesday, said the seizures resulted from further anti-smuggling operations made after he first addressed the media on the activities of the Operation Whirlwind in June this year.
The CGC had called a press briefing in Yola on June 10,2024 and announced that the special operational arm of the customs service which was launched lees than a month earlier had seized 150,950 litres of PMS valued at N105,965,391 from across the country.
The CGC who was represented during the press briefing of Wednesday by a deputy controller general, Olaniyi Olajugun, said the latest seizures were indications of the resolve of the customs service to stop the activities of people smuggling petrol from across Nigeria to other countries.
“Today, we are here to re-present the achievements of the Operation Whirlwind against smugglers who
are weakening our goal for growth in industrial output,” the CGC said.
Speaking earlier during the press briefing which was held at the Customs Area Command headquarters in Yola, the National Coordinator of Operation Whirlwind, Controller Hussein Keinde, said the briefing was to mark another milestone in the fight against economic saboteurs.
“Smuggling kills the economy and we need intelligence information as we are determined to eliminate the smuggling cartels,” he said
The Adamawa State Coordinator of Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, NMDPRA, Bashir Kafur who also spoke, told errant petrol dealers: “We need Adamawa products for Adamawa people and we don’t want them taken away from the state and out of the country.”
He added, “Marketers, once we catch you in attempt to divert products we will seal off your business. Be aware that we are monitoring you. We warn you to abdicate whatever plan you may have for diversion.”
Some of the containers of petrol allegedly intended for smuggling out of the country but seized by Customs.
The Adamawa/Taraba Area headquarters of the Nigeria Customs Service