By Godfrey Bivbere

THERE are indications that the N8.9 billion (€18,286,622.92) scanner provided at the Seme border by the European Union, EU, under the Regional Transport Facilitation Programme, has now broken down.

Investigation by Vanguard Maritime Report revealed that the scanner which was installed in 2018 was not being used by officials of the Seme border Command of the Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, even before the borders were shut down in August 2019.

The scanner was supposed to be used by Customs officials of both Nigeria and Benin Republic for speedy and transparent clearing of goods but has since been abandoned.

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Speaking at a stakeholders engagement on border closure organised by the Nigerian Shippers Council, NSC, the Customs Area Controller, CAC, Bello Jibo, said in 2019 that the Custom was not using the new scanner provided for them while the old one had issues that were being worked on then.

He said then: “One scanner was provided by the Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, to us but we have not started using it. We are making use of the old scanner that we have, though just recently, the old scanner had a downturn but we are currently working on it.”

However, responding to Vanguard Maritime Report’s queries on the condition of the scanners, the Public Relations Officer of the Command, Onawo Abdullahi Hussaini, said that it is not true that the scanners have broken down, but claimed that they only needed to be serviced as a result of the long period of non usage because of the border closure.

He stated: “As I told you earlier since they have not been used for a very long time now, there is what we called Safety Guard System, SGS, which needed to be serviced before being put use. If not, everything is okay, I mean with the two scanners.”

However, a source in Seme border told Vanguard Maritime Report that the two scanners were not being used even before the closure of the border.

The source alleged that the Seme Customs have deliberately abandoned the scanners, adding, “look at the scanners at the nation’s seaports of Apapa and Tin-can Island which have long been abandoned by the Service, what is stopping them from using those ones?”