SOJI AJIBOLA, IBADAN
Officers of the Nigeria Customs Service have reportedly seized eight truck loads of banned imported rice at the popular Oja’ba foodstuffs market in Ibadan South-East Local Government Area.
Customs officials, who acted on a tip-off, stormed the market in the early hours of Saturday and impounded the trucks they were trying to offload the commodity into in a warehouse.
This is coming one month after customs invaded Bodija market and carted away some bags of rice.
The recent invasion of the popular market occured before the conclusion of investigation by the Senate committee on a similar incident.
Confirming the seizure, the Public Relations Officer of Oyo/Osun Customs Command, Kayode Wey, said the raid on the market was carried out by Federal Operations Unit (FOU) Zone A.
According to him, “It is the FOU. They are not our people. It is the FOU that went to the Bodija market the last time.
“It is the same FOU, we do not know anything about it. We do not have any information on it. I am hearing it the same way you are hearing it.”
Public Relations Officer of NCS, FOU Zone A, Mr. Theophilus Duniya, also confirmed the invasion.
Duniya in a telephone conversation with our correspondent on Saturday noted that the customs is empowered to carry out such operation.
He said, “Yes. Until we examine them. You are aware that the federal government imposed a ban on importation of foreign rice to encourage local production in the country.
“As it stands, foreign rice is a contraband and the law empowers us, the act that established the service empowers officers to carry out such operations.
“To break into any shop or warehouse upon reasonable suspicion that prohibited goods are stored, we evacuate them. That is what happened.
“This is Federal Operation Unit Zone A in charge of South West zone.”.