Customs, NAFDAC Burn Unregistered Products In Sokoto

Large amounts of counterfeit, unregistered goods that were certified unfit for human consumption were burnt in Sokoto on Wednesday by the Nigerian Customs Service in collaboration with the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC).

The Sokoto/Zamfara Controller of Customs, Musa Omale, said the development aligned with the agency’s responsibility to discourage smuggling.

Naija News reports that the items that were confiscated and passed as unfit for human consumption by NAFDAC were destroyed by the Sokoto/Zamfara Area Command.

Leaders of many security services, including the Nigerian Army, NSCDC, Nigerian Police, and government officials, observed the destruction at the Kwanawa dumping site in Sokoto State.

In his welcome address, the Controller of Customs, Omale,  said, “The NCS Act 2023’s Section 245 empowers the Service to seize goods that violate customs and excise laws and be disposed of in such a manner the Service directs.”

“Disposal of items by destruction as we witness today is carried out as a last resort. These are unregistered smuggled items that the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control certified to be unfit for human consumption.”

The controller also issued a warning to smugglers, telling them that their actions are detrimental to Nigerians’ health as well as the nation’s economy and prosperity.

He went on to reassure everyone that the service, which guards the country’s borders, will not give up in its efforts to prevent the sale of products that are harmful to the economy and unfit for human consumption.

Among the things that were destroyed were unregistered tomato paste, condensed milk, maggi, ginger tea, and alfakher shisha.

On his part, the NAFDAC coordinator for Sokoto State, Garba Adamu,  praised customs officers for cooperating in the organization’s campaign against drugs and unregistered food items.

He said, “Any food items or drugs that did not pass through NAFDAC scrutiny, registration and approval are deemed to be unfit for human consumption as their quality and safety are not guaranteed.”