The CAC of Oyo/Osun Command, Comptroller Odibu Christopher, disclosed this, said that there is a place called ‘Kwara’, which is a bush path where smugglers hide and carry out nefarious activities in the area.
The new CAC and his men discovered that smugglers use this particular axis as a hideout where they enter Oyo area with smuggled items, the moment they realise that no one sees them. The Command also uncovered a new trend of smuggling through the bush path and forest located within the region.
The CAC revealed, “We have also discovered a community called Sarki, as a place notorious for smuggling. Sarki axis is where most smugglers operate. To thwart the efforts of these economic saboteurs, we met with the Oba of the community and officially wrote, seeking to get a land within the area to build Customs facility, in order to ensure visible Customs presence at the area. Doing this, will curtail illicit trade, and will enhance trade facilitation for more revenue generation”.
Comptroller Odibu emphasized, “There is no visible Customs presence at Sarki area now, aside from our flag. So, we need this land to build our facility there, to check smuggling activities within the area and to use the place as an avenue for legitimate trade, in order to generate revenue for our economy.
We have toured round the whole of that area and other out stations within Oyo, so, I am thinking that government should have a plan of opening a road from Sarki, where we have a common boundary with Benin Republic to enhance legitimate trade facilitation.”
The Oba who responded enthusiastically to the request of Oyo Command, said it is a welcome initiative, and the first time in the history of Oyo Customs Command, that the CAC would come up with such laudable idea of getting a land to build Customs facility at Sarki. “This is a unique initiative that has never happened before in the history of the Command”, the Oba said.
Sunday Vanguard gathered that Oyo/Osun Command has a large territory with numerous out-stations, which covers Sarki, Igbeti, Osogbo, Odo, Orita, Iseyin, Eruwa, Ayegun and many others. To cover this domain, the Command is building on effective inter-agency collaboration with other sister agencies to increase effectiveness of their operations.
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