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By Chimaobi Nwaiwu
Thursday, July 08, 2004
NNEWI—MEMBERS of the Organised Private Sectors (OPS) and a cross section of importers in Onitsha have decried the recent harassment and seizure of their goods by men of Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) on the Lagos-Benin-Asaba-Onitsha high way. They are therefore appealing to President Olusegun Obasanjo and Senate President, Chief Adolphus Nwabara to prevail on the Comptroller General of Customs, Mr. Jacob Buba Gyang to order his men to stop without further delay the "selective enforcement"of the recent ban of some categories of items by the Federal Government.
President of the Onitsha Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (ONCCIMA), Mr. Rob Emeka Eze told Vanguard that he was in support of the ban on some items and the effort of the Customs to ensure implementation of the ban,“but a situation where the implementation is selective is detrimental and counter productive to the desired economic development" An importer and a member of Anambra State Market Amalgamated Traders Association (ASMATA), Chief IK Bosman Okpala described as unfortunate the way laws made in this country are first enforced effectively in the South East, adding that “NCS in such states as Oyo, Ondo, Ogun, Edo, Delta and Anambra positioned themselves along the express ways, all targeting South East and Onitsha bound buses that carry importers and traders goods”.
He regretted that from Enugu-Makurdi road leading to other towns in the northern states, “there is no presence of Customs officers on the roads, similarly from Lagos-Ibadan to other northern states there is no presence of Custom officers, but from Lagos to Onitsha, Warri, Benin and Port Harcourt you see Custom officers seizing traders goods” Another importer, Mr. Okechukwu Akabueze lamented the dwindling business activities in the South East especially Onitsha, saying that “it is caused by the concentration of Custom officers on the South East roads where goods come into the cities.
According to him “ the Customs officers are disturbing us from bringing goods that were bought form open markets in Lagos to Onitsha, they should have gone to seize the goods in those markets, they should beam their search light at the borders, wharf and airports, instead of the South East roads”.
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