A Good Beginning
When recently, Compt Babatunde Olomu, PhD was made the Customs Area Controller,(CAC), stakeholders knew it won’t be business as usual.
By Ovie Edomi
True to what stakeholders said, upon assumption of office, Compt. Olomu warned that it won’t be business as usual as there will be zero tolerance for the smuggling of prohibited imports, concealment and false declaration of imported goods. He equally stated that he will implement all the provisions of the Nigeria Customs Act 2023, the Common External Tariff, import and export prohibitions guidelines and other books of instructions as directed by the Federal Government
He then promised to promote a robust Customs Community relations system where there will be regular interface with all government and sector stakeholders and upscale enforcement with intelligence to ensure that only legitimate trade is allowed in Apapa port as well as all the terminals within his Command.
True to his promise, the Customs Area Controller, (CAC), paid a courtesy call on the Commissioner of Police, Ports Command (Western), Lagos, CP, Olarewaju Ishola to discuss how to keep the port safe for the economic development of Nigeria as part of working in synergy with other sister Agencies at the nation’s premier port.
At the meeting, Compt. Olomu noted that the Nigeria Customs Service has always received support from the Nigeria Police Force, as there must be security, tranquility, and stability for the Nigeria Customs Service to generate revenue for the Federal government. He applauded the Ports Authority Police (Western) Command for always providing maximum security for the Nigeria Customs Service to achieve its mandate of trade facilitation and revenue generation while reiterating his commitment to ensure the existing inter-agency collaboration between the Nigeria Police Force and the Nigeria Customs Service is strengthened and sustained.
Furthermore, the CAC noted that both agencies must leverage on good relationships with relevant stakeholders to foster a secured and enabling environment for businesses to thrive, as the Apapa Area Command of the Nigeria Customs Service under his watch will leverage on Intelligence gathering to improve on its mandate.
The Commissioner of Police, in his response, congratulated the new CAC, Apapa area Command and welcomed him and his entourage to the Command headquarters. The CP noted that the Apapa area command is strategic to the nation’s economy as the port premises serve as a critical national infrastructure, hence the need for proactive policing to ensure maximum protection of port facilities and maintain public safety.
It would be recalled that upon resumption, Compt. Olomu noted that Nigeria holds a strategic position for trade in West and Central Africa and that Apapa port is very critical to Nigeria’s participation in the African Continental Free Trade Area( ACFTA) and that he wants to revive Nigeria’s readiness for improved trade with fellow African countries and the world at large.
Hence he urged officers of the Command to brace up for the challenges that will feature as well as fallout of Customs modernization, otherwise called e,-Customs and many other groundbreaking World Customs Organizations innovations like the recently introduced advanced ruling policy. This recent collaboration, may just be the beginning of great things ahead.