The Murtala Muhammed Area Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has generated N80,351,299,068 as duty in the first six months of 2024.

The figure represents a 107.5 per cent increase in comparison with the revenue collected in the same period in 2023 which was N38,707,054,216.

The Comptroller of the Command, Michael Toyin Awe while briefing newsmen at the cargo terminal of the command's office inside the cargo terminal of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos said, "This clearly shows a progressive difference of 41,644,246,851.56."

In the area of anti-smuggling, he disclosed that officers and Men of the Command "are not resting on their oars in enforcing the government's fiscal policies and other trade regulations" with the seizures amounting to N6,064,987,480.27.

The items seized included five Packages of 250mgs of Tramadol; 12 Packages of 225mg of Tramadol; One Package of Fifty Round 9mm Live Ammunition, 46 Packages of Dried Sea Cucumbers; Three Packages of Dried Donkey Male Genitals and 55 Pieces of Jojef Tomahawk Semi-Automatic Rifles.

The Comptroller said the command also recorded export of goods with Export Value worth N266,655,113.66K from the country from January to June, 2024 with an FOB (free on board) value of $204,597.07.

The Controller reiterated the Command's commitment to sustain and improve upon revenue generation in the second half of 2024.

Awe sought the continuous cooperation of all stakeholders and assured them of the Command's commitment to promoting ease of doing business and trade facilitation.

He added that the command has maintained its open door policy and resolved a lot of issues of common interest with stakeholders.