The Nigeria Customs Service, Port Harcourt Area 2 Command, Onne in Rivers State, collected a total of N859bn as revenue between May 2024 and July 2025, The PUNCH reports.
This is even as the command intercepted different contrabands worth N200bn within the period under review.
The command’s Public Relations Officer, Theophilus Duniya, disclosed this in a document on Thursday, analysing the tenure of Muhammad Babandede as the Customs Area Controller of the command.
Earlier in the week, The PUNCH reported that the Nigeria Customs Service Board at its 63rd regular meeting approved the appointment of Muhammed Babadende and 11 others as Assistant Comptroller Generals.
Until his appointment, Babatunde was the CAC in charge of the NCS, Area 2 Command, Onne in Rivers State.
According to the document, the command in the last 15 months under the leadership of Babadende intercepted various contrabands, including assorted rifles, ammunition, expired pharmaceuticals, fake drugs, and even banned substances such as codeine, tramadol, and others.
“Since he took over in May 2024, the command generated over N860bn from import and intercepted contraband worth over N200bn.
The command in May 2024 generated N47.421bn, N62.342bn in June, N62.847bn in July, N47.725bn in August, N49.502bn in September, N64.683bn in October, N51.795 bn in November, and N50.820bn was generated in December 2024.
“In 2025, the command generated N61.489bn in January; N62.371bn in February, N66.709bn in March, N54.312bn in April; N64.034 bn in May, N56.349bn in June, and N57.518 bn in July, making a whopping N859 bn in 15 months as CAC of the command,” Duniya said.
Giving details of the interceptions recorded within the period under review, Duniya mentioned that the seizures included 544 assorted rifles; 112,500 rounds of ammunition; over 75 million tablets of tramadol; over 14 million bottles of cough syrup with codeine; over 50 million tablets of other dangerous expired medicines, “all with a duty paid value of over N200bn.”
Speaking on the seizures, the Comptroller General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, commended Babandede for his exploits in disrupting illegal trade through massive seizures.
The CGC thanked Babandede and his team, stating that the seizures were a customs success and a national security concern affecting every Nigerian.
Adeniyi applauded Babandede and his team for exhibiting professionalism and due diligence in their duties.
“The Onne Customs, under the leadership of Mohammed Babandede, beat smugglers and importers of contraband at their game.
want to express my deep appreciation to the officers of the Port Harcourt Area 2 Command for their relentless efforts in safeguarding our nation.
“Your dedication to duty and your commitment to the fight against smuggling are commendable, and I want to assure you that your efforts do not go unnoticed.
“The seizures were made in strict compliance with customs laws, particularly concerning concealment, false declaration, and the importation of prohibited items,” he said.
