Customs appoints Acting DCGs, ACGs, others

THE Comptroller-General of Customs, Col. Hameed Ali (rtd), has approved the appointment of six acting Deputy Comptrollers-General of Customs as part of the on-going re-organisation in the service.

In a statement by Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) Public Relations Officer Mr. Wale Adeniyi yesterday, the six officers, who are of the rank of assistant comptroller-generals, will occupy the positions of deputy comptrollers-general in acting capacity.

Those appointed are ACGs Idris Suleiman (Finance Administration and Technical Service), Iya Umar (Tariff and Trade), Dan Ugo (Enforcement Investigation and Inspection), Grace Adeyemo (Excise, FTZ & Industrial Incentive), Austin Warikoru (Human Resource Development) and Paul Ukaigwe (Strategic Research and Policy).

The statement added that eight comptrollers were also announced to occupy the positions of assistant comptrollers-general created in the exercise.

They are also to occupy the new offices in acting capacity.

They include Comptrollers Umar Sanusi mni (ACG Headquarters), Funsho Adegoke (ACG ICT), Mohammed Abbas mni (ACG Board), Olatunji Aremu mni (Command & Staff College), Charles Edike (Zonal Coordinator Zone ‘A’), Abubakar Dangaladima (Zonal Coordinator Zone ‘B’), Azarema Abdulkadir (Zonal Coordinator Zone ‘C’) and Chidi Augustine .(Zonal Coordinator Zone ‘D’).

Seven Officers are equally redeployed in the new exercise.

They are: ACGs Adesina Odunmbaku (Finance and Technical Service), Robert Alu (Tariff and Trade), Ade Dosumu (Enforcement and Drugs), Monday Abueh mni (Excise & Industrial Incentive), Ahmed Mohammed mni (Human Resource Management), Patience Iferi (Strategic Research and Policy) and Comptroller Aminu Abba (Technical Services)

The changes, said the NCS, take immediate effect.

Ali urged the newly- appointed officers to redouble their efforts to justify their new responsibilities.

Ali attributes sack of DCGs to restructuring

‘400 officers not penciled for sack’

THE retirement of five deputy comptroller-generals (DCGs) was part of the ongoing restructuring of the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS), its comptroller-general, Col. Hameed Ali (rtd), said yesterday.

Ali, who made this known while responding to questions from reporters in Abuja, noted that the retirement of the DCGs and 29 other senior officers last week was also part of the mandate that President Muhammadu Buhari gave to him to reform the service.

The comptroller-general, however, denied that another 400 officers have been penciled for sack.

His words: “We are doing restructuring. When I took over the leadership of the service, I said it very clear that the mandate given to me by the President is to reform, restructure and raise revenue. In the course of restructuring, of course certain things have to happen and this is one of them.”

On whether the development would lead to a manpower gap in the agency, he said: “We have a hierarchical process in the Customs. So, the absence of one does not mean the work won’t go on. The work won’t cease to exist. So, if one is not there, somebody who is equally good will carry.”

Ali, who visited Central Bank Governor Godwin Emefiele, Director General of the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) Emeka Eze, Director General of the National Automotive Council (NAC) Aminu Jalal and Managing Director of Nigeria Exporting Processing Zone Authority (NEPZA) Gbenga Kuye yesterday emphasised the need for Nigeria to refocus on export.

He said: “We must begin to lay more emphasis on export than import. There is little that is being exported and we cannot grow as a nation if we keep importing. What we must do in refining our policies is to look at how we can export to get money because anytime we import, we are growing somebody else’s industry at the expense of our own.”

Receiving Ali’s delegation, the CBN governor urged the Customs to combat activities of smugglers, particularly in the textile industry, which he said has killed local textile industries.

He asked the Customs to ensure the recovery of money owed the Federal Government by rice duty evaders.