Hussein Ejibunu, the acting Controller of the unit, stated during the handover at the Customs warehouse in Ikeja, Lagos, that expired, illegal, and other medications that did not adhere to the statutory importation standards were intercepted and confiscated at various places in the Southwest area.
He claimed that the drugs, which were brought in from Malaysia and India, were stored in three containers measuring 39 feet, 40 feet, and 20 feet.
He claimed that the medications, which have neither a production nor an expiration date, were made in India and that the importer is still at large.
Ejibunu claimed that the squad had detained five individuals in March after seizing further contraband worth N694.5 million.
They consist of 105 parcels (50kg) of cannabis sativa, two 40-foot containers containing 883 bales of secondhand clothing, 6,228 (50kg) bags of foreign parboiled rice (equivalent to 11 trailer loads), 35,325 liters of premium motor spirit (PMS), 279 cartons of foreign poultry products, and eight units of foreign used vehicles.
He claimed that the seizures are evidence of the unit’s dedication to duty and unwavering performance of its duties, which include safeguarding the country’s economy and blocking the introduction of dangerous goods into domestic markets.
In an endeavor to stop the loss of tax revenue due to duty underpayments that either resulted from the undervaluation of imported goods or incorrect Harmonized System (HS) code classification, Ejibunu further stated that the unit recovered N72.7 million.
Francis Ononiwu, the Head of Investigation and Enforcement Directorate at NAFDAC, stated that the products were received and that the medications were enormous and had an expiration date of November 2021.
The importer may have changed the expiration date to the current one, exposing the public to poisons that are harmful to their health, he said, adding that the agency is unsure if the products have already been distributed.
He claims that the agency will investigate to find the importers of such dangerous goods and detain them while also taking the medications to a lab to determine their strength.
