A freight forwarder, Alhaji Tajudeen Adetayo, on Thursday urged the Federal Government to reverse the policy banning rice importation through the border posts. He made the plea in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) In Lagos.
According to NAN the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) in October 2015 lifted the ban on rice importation through the borders but the service went back to the ban in March 2016, due to heavy smuggling of the commodity. Adetayo, who is Chairman, Freight Forwarders Association Badagry (FFAB), pleaded that government should allow duty payment on rice through the border posts to generate more revenue.
According to him, a committee should be inaugurated by the Federal Government to look into issue of rice importation in the country. He noted that the Ogun Command of the Customs Service generated over N1 billion within the short period the ban on rice through the border posts was lifted.
Adetayo said that some people would continue to smuggle as long as government imposed a restriction on rice importation through the border posts. “Banning rice imports is not a good omen. When Nigeria has sufficient foods, then importation of rice can be banned,’’ he told NAN.
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