The Nigeria Customs Service’s Ports Terminal Multiservices Limited (PTML) Command recorded a staggering N117,568,218,513.00 in revenue generation for the federal government between January and June 2022.
The amount collected is N104,649,202,251.00 or 12.3 percent more than what was collected at the conclusion of the first half of 2021.
The amount reflects the volume of trade passing through the port, trade facilitation strategies, and the prevention of revenue leakages implemented by the Customs Area Controller (CAC), Comptroller Festus Oyedele Okun, according to a press release made available by the Command Spokesperson, SC Yakubu Muhammad.
In Comparative, the command maintained a sustained trend of increase in monthly collections in 2022 above 2021 except in the month of April 2022 when it collected N16,357,509,497 which came 8 percent lower than N17,938,794,417.
A month by month breakdown of the cumulative collection in January, February March, May and June this year manifested increases ranging from 3 percent to 28 percent.
In January 2022, the command collected N15,713,776,798 which is 3.3 percent higher than N15,205,823,545 collected in January 2021. For February of both years, N14,075,386,963 was collected in 2022 and N11,706,947,150 was collected in 2021 showing a 20 percent increase above previous year’s figure.
In March 2022, the command collected N21,840,828,908 which translates into 9.5 percent increase above the N19,937,869,175 collected in the third month of last year.
Comparative figures of May 2022 with that of 2021 shows the highest monthly increase of 28 percent. This year N22,550,759,092 was collected above N17,606,073,741 collected same month of last year.
For the month of June 2022, N27,029,957,255 was collected showing 21.5 percent increase above N22,253,694,223 that was collected in June 2021.
According to the release, the Area Controller of the command, Comptroller Okun advised importers and agents operating in PTML to maximize the advantages in the command like the four hour clearance time for honest and accurate port users
In addition to calling for stakeholder assistance to make the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) value system more effective, Comptroller Okun defined it as a policy meant to advance national economic and security goals.
He advised them to stay up to date on ICT advancements designed to streamline customs procedures, such as the Non Intrusive Inspection (NII), which aims to achieve effective and expedient cargo clearance without requiring human involvement.
The CAC however admonished officers and men of the area to keep up the work ethic of shunning corruption, avoiding any form of compromise and continually ensuring maximum collection of duties due to government without compromising national security.
He contends that the practice of sending out demand notices (DN) to recover identified shortfalls in duty payments should not be seen as punitive but rather as in keeping with the service’s guiding principles of honesty and service.
He emphasized the need of abiding by the rules set forth in the Customs and Excise Management Act (CEMA), also known as CAP 45 LFN, as well as in other manuals of instructions, such as those issued by the Comptroller General of Customs, Col. Hameed Ibrahim Ali, (Rtd).