In a crackdown on smuggling, a joint task force led by the Tree Crop Development Authority (TCDA) has seized three diesel cargo trucks containing smuggled cooking oil at the Tetteh Quarshie roundabout in Accra.
The task force, comprising members from TCDA, Oil Palm Development Association of Ghana (OPDAG), Ghana Revenue Authority-Customs Division, and National Security, intercepted the trucks and escorted them to the airport branch for further examination.
According to Dr. Paul Amaning, leader of the task force, National Security operatives received intelligence about the smuggled vegetable oil from Togo, which was brought in through unapproved routes to evade taxes and import duties.
This illegal activity is believed to have caused significant revenue loss to the country.
The task force’s mission is to ensure that locally manufactured cooking oils are sold in the market, boosting the economy and creating jobs within the value chain.
Dr. Amaning warned the public, particularly market women, to refrain from smuggling vegetable oil through land borders into the country, as this undermines the local economy.
The owners of the seized cooking oil have been asked to provide necessary documentation for a thorough review by the Ghana Revenue Authority-Customs Division.
