The politicking between the Senate and the Nigeria Customs Service has reached a new height as the Comptroller-General of Customs Compliance Task Force announced on Monday that it had seized 13 vehicles from a senator in the course of its special operations.
A total of 223 vehicles were impounded by the task force.
The task force Zonal Commander, Mr Bala Dole told newsmen that the force had also seized other items, including foodstuff worth N269.5m in Kano and Jigawa states within eight months.
Giving details of the task force seized the 13 vehicles from the senator, Dole explained that NCS got hint of 30 vehicles illegally imported but could only trace 13 of them, 12 of which were hidden in the senator’s compound.
“We sealed the house and retrieved the vehicles and they are now in our custody,” Dole said.
He gave details of the other items the task force confiscated during special operations as including 9,757 bags of rice, 2,916 cartons of foreign spaghetti, 2,770 cartons of imported vegetable oil and 999 cartons of macaroni.
He said others were 889 bales of second-hand clothes, 50 used school bags, 110 cartons of new imported shoes, 956 bags of mosquito coil and six fairly used cars.
“The total value of the seizure made by the task force since it was established in July 2016, excluding the senator’s 13 vehicles, is N269.5m.
“We are yet to determine the cost of the 13 vehicles belonging to the senator,” he told Punch.