The anti-petrol smuggling drive of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has gone tough on petrol smugglers as its operation yielded seizures of a total of 94,550 litres of petrol from across the country in four weeks.
The petrol, parked mostly in Jerry cans and drums, was intercepted by people suspected to be diverting the product from where they were intended in domestic petrol stations to mostly neighbouring countries.
Men and officials of Operation Whirlwind, an anti-smuggling arm of the NCS established specifically to curb illegal petrol export, effected the seizures within the last couple of months.
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The Comptroller General of Customs (CGC), Bashir Adeniyi who announced the latest development in Yola on Wednesday, said the seizures resulted from further anti-smuggling operations after he first addressed the media on the activities of Operation Whirlwind in June this year.
Our correspondent reports that the CGC had called a press briefing in Yola on June 10, 2024, and announced that the Operational Whirlwind had seized 150,950 litres of PMS valued at N105,965,391 from across the country.
At the press briefing of Wednesday, October 9, the CGC who was represented by a Customs deputy controller general, Olaniyi Olajugun, said Operation Whirlwind has continued to make strides in curbing the illegal exportation of petroleum products.
He added that the ongoing operations had recorded substantial seizures in various locations which include the North West borders in the Sokoto-Kebbi axis, the South West borders around Seme-Badagiri and Idiroko axis, as well as the Southern borders in Cross River and Always Ibom states.
Speaking earlier during the press briefing which was held at the Adamawa/Taraba Customs Area Command headquarters in Yola, the National Coordinator of Operation Whirlwind, Controller Hussein Keinde, said the seizures marked another milestone in the fight against economic saboteurs.