The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Adewale Adeniyi, on Tuesday, announced the seizure of drones, fake, expired and unregistered pharmaceuticals at the Apapa Port in Lagos.
The contraband valued at over N921 billion also includes expired food items and other controlled security equipment such as drones and walkie-talkies, among others.
Details of the seizures include 89 cartons of unregistered pharmaceutical products in container CAAU6514500, 242 cartons in container TCNU6880130, and 1,001 cartons of hydra-sildenafil citrate tablets in container MRSU3041714.
Another 40-footer container was found to contain 1,400 packages of various unregistered drugs, while a fifth had 805 packages falsely declared as cosmetic powder.
The service also intercepted two 20-foot containers containing expired margarine products.
Additionally, 60 units of warrior drones without valid end-user certificates were recovered from container MSKU9329923, valued at N15.9 million.
Also, 53 helicopter drones were evacuated from a container marked CFAX3, carrying an estimated duty-paid value of N2.1 million.
Also, 10 professional FM transceiver walkie-talkies were also confiscated from ENL, while a 20-footer container (SUDU1408819) was found to contain 500 packages of active medicine tablets without NAFDAC certification.
Adeniyi revealed at the press conference that the seizures were made between January and April 2025, stating that the controlled security equipment lacked end-user-certificates from the Office of National Security Adviser (ONSA).
The CG also provided updates on the rollout of the Customs Unified Management Information System, known as B’Odogwu, describing the pilot phase at PTML and Tin Can Island Port as crucial but not without challenges.
He explained that his earlier visits to PTML and Tin Can were to gain firsthand insight into the difficulties stakeholders were encountering with the new digital platform.
The Customs helmsman admitted that while the B’Odogwu rollout was ambitious and necessary, the service was fully aware that initial implementation would come with its fair share of setbacks.
“We are not pretending that when we rolled out a very serious project of that magnitude there will be no itches,” he said.
He stressed that Customs was approaching the situation with flexibility and innovation, holding stakeholder and bank engagements to address the hiccups in the system’s deployment.
On enforcement, Adeniyi announced that the service, in line with the national strategic economic development plan and executive orders on port operations, had scaled up surveillance across seaports, airports, and land borders in response to evolving tactics by transnational criminal networks attempting to breach the country’s import protocols.
He further raised alarm over rising influx of unregistered pharmaceutical products, particularly sexual enhancement drugs, warning that such items posed grave threat to public health and safety.
He warned that the indiscriminate use of these drugs without medical supervision could lead to serious health complications, including cardiovascular risks.
Adeniyi also noted the growing pattern of wrong declaration where importers label pharmaceuticals as general merchandise or cosmetics in an attempt to evade detection.
He noted a third trend in the diversification of contraband shipments, with importers mixing pharmaceuticals, expired food, and restricted technology items in a single container.
This, he said, suggested the involvement of sophisticated criminal networks rather than isolated smugglers.
He also identified the trend of strategic selection of countries with weaker pharmaceutical export controls, indicating a deliberate attempt to exploit regulatory loopholes by importers.
“Finally, there was the increasing importation of non-pharmaceutical security threats, including drones and communication gadgets, which raised significant concerns for national security,” he noted.
Adeniyi warned that the service would not relent in its commitment to securing Nigeria’s borders and protecting the lives of its citizens.
