As the festive season draws closer, there is increased trading in illicit textiles in anticipation of festive sales. In light of this trend, the URA Namayingo office has waged an operation to arrest this vice. And luckily, the operation is already yielding results.
Following intelligence reports, it was revealed that a shipment of fabrics was unnoticeably being loaded onto a truck on the Kenyan side of the border and end in Kampala for quick sales.
According to Marvin Tayebwa, one of the Customs officers on duty, the team quickly deployed in the night.
“However, to our surprise, on the initial night of surveillance, the truck did not cross into Uganda as expected. Our teams still persisted through the next night and by about 2:00am, the truck was finally intercepted along the Jinja Highway in Muwayo,” Tayebwa narrated.
The impounded truck was subsequently transported to the Namayingo station. During verification, a significant quantity of smuggled textiles was uncovered concealed in a refrigerated truck. This included;60 Packages of assorted fabrics, including Kitenge and Polyester Lining.
The operation did not end in Muwayo. The team continued to Musita township where they impounded a truck with smuggled fabrics that had been cleverly concealed within a shipment of barley.
The smugglers believed that having legitimate customs documents for barley would provide sufficient cover for their illicit activities. Through verification, the team recovered 5118 square meters of Polyester Fabrics.
Uganda Revenue Authority therefore wishes to retaliate its commitment to fighting smuggling of all sorts and liberating Uganda from economic saboteurs engaging in illicit Trade.
Additional Reporting by Immaculate Wanyenze
