President Bola Tinubu has directed the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to return all seized grains to their rightful owners for retailing in the local markets.
The Comptroller-General of Customs (CGC), Bashir Adewale Adeniyi disclosed this during a stakeholders’ meeting in Kwangwalam, a border town in the Maiadua Local Government Area of Katsina State on Saturday.
The CGC highlighted that President Tinubu’s directive was a magnanimous gesture to ensure that the people of the country have access to affordable food.
Adeniyi however added that the return of confiscated food items is conditional, with the stipulation that they must be sold exclusively in Nigerian markets.
The Customs boss explained the rationale behind the directive, stating, “The whole idea is to promote food security and ensure that Nigerians will not be living with hunger, and Mr. President considers this as one of the strategies that can help address the problem of food security.”
He further emphasized the impact of seized food items on the domestic market, revealing, “We have over 120 trucks of food items for export seized, which means a lot of food items were taken out of our markets, leading to the unavailability that created some pressure on the prices of these food items. So, we hope that by the time we restock our markets, it will have some positive effects on the prices.”
The CGC also visited former President Muhammadu Buhari in his country home, and the Emir of Daura, Dr. Umar Farouq Umar, in his palace.
CGC Adeniyi was honoured during the visit with the traditional title of Mabudin Hausa by the Emir, marking a recognition of his contributions to the nation.
