- Comptroller-General of Nigeria Customs Service tasks officers to effectively police the border with Niger Republic, emphasizing the ECOWAS sanctions remain in place
- He warns against smuggling of rice, hard drugs, and arms, urging officers to maintain zero tolerance and secure Nigeria’s food security
Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), has tasked officers and men from the Federal Operations Unit (FOU) Zone ‘B’ with effectively policing the country’s border with Niger Republic.
He warned that nothing should be crossed on either side because the ECOWAS sanction on the Niger Republic junta remained in place.
Adeniyi, who gave the charge during an interactive session with officers and men of FOU Zone B while on a working visit to Kaduna, reiterated that the ECOWAS authority’s position on border closure with the Niger Republic has not changed, adding that officers must effectively police the border and ensure nothing crosses either inward or outward.
The customs chief revealed that he receives periodic reports on implementation and those few officers who collude with other government agencies to circumvent it, emphasizing that appropriate action will be taken.
You are being watched, and no one will be spared if you are caught. Work to close borders in your areas of responsibility, he charged.
Speaking further, he stated that information at his disposal indicates an increase in rice, hard drugs, and arms smuggling, and that such activity should be curtailed accordingly.
There seems to be an upsurge in smuggling of rice and narcotics. Some unscrupulous elements also try to smuggle arms. We have to make sure there is zero tolerance for smuggling of rice. We must not allow them to sabotage our country. We must not let them affect our local currency. When we let them import, they put pressure on our currency. We must ensure food security by allowing rice to be produced in Nigeria locally, he said.
Adeniyi charged officers and men of FOU Zone B with ensuring the support of communities in border areas in order to prevent smuggling into the country, adding that he was on a working visit to zones, commands, and units across the country.
We thought it would be prudent to pay you a visit in your workplace to see how you are doing. Infrastructural provision of warehouses, armoury, and parade grounds would be futuristic for our operations.
And other critical facilities to ensure success. “We reviewed our operational strategies about two months ago and concluded that infrastructure is critical to successful operations, he said.
He praised the comptroller of FOU Zone B, officers, and men for the seizures made by the command so far under his supervision.
Concerning personnel welfare, he stated;
We are ensuring that those officers promoted receive all arrears due.” Officers who are eligible for various benefits will be paid when they are due. We are moving forward to ensure that infrastructure at FOU Zone B is expanded for the comfort of our officers and men. He warned officers and men to be professional in carrying out their duties.
He advised those taking the service’s upcoming promotion exams not to rely on godfatherism, but to work hard because only those who excel will be promoted.
We are approaching exam season, so eligibility is getting tight. The higher you go, the tighter it becomes. There are fewer vacancies for one star than two stars, so not all will get promoted. It is your performance in exams that will determine your promotion.
Competition will be fierce but it will be a healthy competition. Don’t call anybody to help with promotion exams, it will be very transparent. It will be a level playing ground for everybody, he assured.
Comptroller Musa Jallo of the FOU Zone ‘B’, in his welcome speech, told the CG that upon assumption of office in the unit, contrabands worth over N2 billion had been seized.