Business
Experts Predict 60% Rise In Vehicle Smuggling From Border Reopening

Following the order to reopen Nigeria’s land borders after three years shut down due to the incessant smuggling of arms and different contraband goods, experts say it would lead to an increase in smuggling of vehicles by 60 percent.
A member of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders, Segun Musa, who admitted that smuggling had been happening even when the borders were closed, noted that the re-opening of the land borders would only give room for officers of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to be compromised.
“There will be a huge increase in smuggling, talking about over 60 per cent increase in smuggling of vehicles. Normally, smuggled vehicles do not pass through those borders, they pass through unguarded borders.
“Talking about the increase in the smuggling of vehicles, I will say that the newly introduced 15 per cent National Automotive Council (NAC) levy is the best way to encourage smuggling and then the re-opening of the borders does not help it.
“Smuggling is just a regular occurrence. As we speak, smuggling has not stopped; it is a regular, daily activity. Re-opening the borders will only allow the officers of the NCS to compromise, though that is not smuggling but compromise. The one we call smuggling are transited through unguarded entry points where we don’t have people manning,” he said.
Also speaking, the Lagos Chapter Chairman of the Association of Motor Dealers of Nigeria, Metche Nnadiwekwe said, “the issue of National Automotive Council will increase vehicle smuggling to, say, 40 per cent. People must always look for shortcuts,” he said.
On his part, a member of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents, Mr Charles Nwarienne, said the re-opening of the border would help people bring in vehicles and other goods.
“They have re-opened the borders and we cannot see much coming in from them. Ordinarily, you know that before they closed the border, there were jobs coming in from the borders. So, we believe that the purpose of re-opening the borders is to give them clearance to bring vehicles and other goods through the borders. This is my own opinion.”
However, the National Public Relations Officer of the NCS, Timi Bomodi, was quoted to have said that the importation of vehicles and foreign parboiled rice through the land borders was not allowed.
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