The Apapa Port Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has reported a record-breaking revenue of N1,227,431,323,016.24 for the period from January to July 2024. For July alone, the command collected N201,853,406,964.61, marking the highest monthly revenue in the history of NCS.
Comptroller Babatunde Olomu, the Customs Area Controller of the Apapa Command, highlighted this achievement during a press briefing on Wednesday. He emphasized his commitment to surpassing existing revenue records, stating, “I am optimistic about the possibility of beating this record as we look forward to surpassing it in months to come.”
According to Comptroller Olomu, the seven-month revenue for 2024 already exceeds the total revenue for the entire year of 2023, which was N1,172,414,793,960.32. He attributed this success to the implementation of the Comptroller General of Customs’ thrust of time release study, aimed at facilitating trade without delay. “Our 2024 seven months collection is above last year’s twelve months total collection,” he noted.
Comptroller Olomu also acknowledged the significant contributions from the Tariff and Trade Department and other units within the command, such as the compliance desk, dispute resolution team, Valuation, PCA, and CIU. “We are committed to doing more in line with the directives and motivating examples of the Comptroller General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi,” he added.
In a meeting with port stakeholders, Comptroller Olomu reassured them of customs’ availability for work during the recent nationwide protests, a move that has bolstered port users’ confidence. He urged Apapa port users to engage only in legitimate trade and reiterated the command’s vigilance in detecting and preventing revenue leakage.