Traders nationwide have been urged to maintain strict compliance to the protocols laid by the Federal Government especially on prohibited items at the reopened borders.
Giving the charge, President of the Market Traders Association of Nigeria (MATAN), Alhaji Jamilu Abbas, at a briefing in Abuja, warned the traders to be vigilante especially during the yuletide as smugglers could use the period to smuggle firearms and other prohibited items into Nigeria.
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“I enjoin all the traders to acquaint themselves with the items on the ban list so that they will not import such products into the country.”
The association’s president re-echoed the punitive measures awaiting defaulters. “MATAN will sanction anyone that goes against government’s protocols and policies on this border reopening.
“Any erring member who violates government’s protocols will face the wrath of the law and the association will not intervene in any way while such a person is being prosecuted by security agencies,” he warned.
President Muhammadu Buhari had through the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Hajiya Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed announced the reopening of the four borders, after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting last Wednesday.
She said the borders are Seme in the South-West, Ilela and Maigatari borders in the North-West, and Mfun in the South-South.
The minister also noted that the remaining officially recognised borders would be reopened on or before December 31, 2020 while certain items remain banned.
