The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has disclosed that increasing petrol smuggling is affecting the availability of the country’s foreign exchange (FX).
This statement was made by Husseini Ejibunnu, Coordinator of the Operation Whirlwind Taskforce, during a presentation of seized petrol in Lagos.
Ejibunnu explained that smugglers are actively seeking dollars to facilitate their operations, which negatively impacts Nigeria’s exchange rate.
“It causes economic and security challenges, economic in the essence that when you have an excess of this outside, it tells on our exchange rate. Because right now, there are so many smugglers out there looking for dollars to go out there, which will affect our naira,” he said.
He said the high level of smuggling is not only disrupting the FX market but also reducing the availability of petrol for local use.
This shortage has economic consequences and poses security risks, as smuggled petrol can end up in the hands of non-state actors, including terrorists and kidnappers, who use it to support their activities.
“Another economic disadvantage is that we in the country won’t see the product to use.
“The security implications are grievous in the sense that when these products fall into the hands of non-state actors, terrorists, and kidnappers, they would use these things to oil their machines to come in and attack us,” he said.
Ejibunnu urged the public to provide the Customs Service with information about smugglers. He stressed that by cutting off the supply of smuggled petrol, it would significantly reduce the operational capabilities of these groups.
The ongoing Operation Whirlwind, initially set for three months, has been extended for an additional four months to continue addressing the issue.