By Stephen Ubanna
In spite of the advanced technology that had been put in place for use by the Customs Interventionist units, across the country, to checkmate the activities of smugglers across the country by Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, MFR, the Customs Comptroller General, the bandits, Lakurawa and the Islamic Fundamentalists Groups, BokoHaram and the Islamic State OF West African Staes, ISWAP, turned smugglers appears to be making things difficult for the Commands.
In the north western states of Sokoto, Kebbi Zamfara, Kaduna, Katsina, and the north central states of Adamawa, Taraba, and Niger , bordering the neighbouring West African countries of Niger and Benin Republics where the Bandits Group and Lakurawa group currently operates , which activities had spread to Kwara state, the smuggling situation appears worrisome, thus giving the Oyo/Osun Command, which has Compt. Ben Nkem Oramalugo, as the Area Controller and his Patrol team officers much job to do: tighten up security in their areas of Jurisdiction to ensure that nothing enters or leaves Nigeria .
The high level of insecurity in the north western geopolitical region believed to have been perpetuated by terrorists from Mali and Burkina Faso, which had resulted in the high level of smuggling activities may have informed why the National Assembly had said the situation in Sokoto, Kebbi, Zamfara, Kaduna, Katsina and Niger states appears pathetic , prompting calls for enhanced security to stop the rot.
The Federal Operations Unit, FOU, Zone B, Kaduna, under the close watch of the action packed Compt. Bello Ahmadou Shuaibu which oversees the anti-smuggling operations in the entire north western states of Sokoto, Zamfara, Kebbi, Katsina, Kaduna, Jigawa, Kano, and the north central states of Kwara, Niger, Benue, Plateau, Kogi and Nasarawa, including the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, which appears to be making efforts to contain the activities of the smugglers may not have fully succeeded in doing so in Sokoto and Kebbi as the bandits group and the newly emerged Lakurawa group fighters are dictating the affairs of the border Communities, meaning there is no presence security operatives including Customs personnel in these areas.
It was not surprising for the continued smuggling of small and light arms into the country to sustain the terrorism activities including the Asian countries of Thailand parboiled rice and Indian Agricultural Par boiled rice.
The Lakurawa fighters who were said to have infiltrated Sokoto and Kebbi states from Niger Republic and the Bandits Group fighters, according to informed sources were said to have made Customs anti-smuggling operations these states ineffective as reflected in what is happening in Isa, Sabon Birni, Illela, Tangaza, Goronyo in Sokoto state, Danko,Wasagu,Fakai, Sakaba and Zuru in Kebbi state.
The situation appears to be worse in Dole Faransi and Dole Kaina, two border Communities in Dandi Local Government Areas of Atiku Bagudu, minister of Budget and National Planning under the current President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Administration, home state.
At the just concluded, Comptroller General of Customs, Conference, at the FCT, Nuhu Ribadu, an Assistant Inspector General of Police, AIG, retired and former Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, and now National Security Adviser, NSA, who was said to have represented President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, at the event , may have given the Customs Authorities the assurance that there was no cause for alarm as the Tinubu’s Administration will flush out the new terrorist group, Lakurawa, from the country.
The NSA, could beat his chest that the Tinubu’s Administration will chase out the Lakurawa group from Soko and Kebii states , just as it chased BokoHaram which had been ravaging the north eastern states of Borno and Yobe but are now on the run. He had said that that the BokoHaram members are now relocating to other neighbouring West African countries because Nigeria is no longer conducive for their operations.
Compt. Shuaibu, who had established a track record in the defunct Comptroller General of Customs Task Force, Lagos Zone A, covering the entire south western states including Ogun, former President Olusegun Obasanjo, home state which the Nigerian Immigration Service , NIS, Map shows has 94 illegal border routes with Benin Republic as he was able to control the activities of the smugglers in the state, paving the way to be redeployed to FOU, Zone B to replicate the same in the north western and north central geopolitical regions and the FCT.
He may have made an initial impact within the first few months in office to show that he can bark and bite but his patrol team officers may have relaxed, giving room to the Bello Turji and Lakaurawa, fighters turned smugglers to carry out their smuggling activities with little or no check on them from the officers.
Only recently, a North African country of Algerian arms trafficker was said to have been arrested at the Illela border checkpoint by the police and recovered four AK 47 rifles from him. The question on the lips of most people was how he did outsmart the FOU, Zone B,Kaduna and the Sokoto/Zamfara Patrol team officers on the road to play into the hands of the policemen at border .
The Algerian National, who was said to have been paraded before newsmen in Gusau, the Zamfara state Capital by Mohammed Dlijan, the state Commissioner of Police, was said to have confessed that he has been in the business of supplying arms and ammunitions to the Bandits in the north western states of Sokoto, Zamfara and Kebbi, for the past eight years. The Zamfara police Command was said to have recovered N2.5 million cash from the suspect as well. Acting on intelligence, the Zamfara police Command were said to have traced, tracked and arrested a regional arms trafficker in Nigeria from Algeria, currently in detention with other suspected Bandits g and Lakarawa loyalists.
This may have informed why some residents of Sokoto, Zamfara, ,Kebbi and Katsina, states, would want Adeniyi, the Comptroller General, Nigeria Customs Service to declare a state of Emergency in the north western geopolitical region as he did at the Onne port, to give the Customs Interventionist Units with established offices in the region who are on ground to be more thorough in checkmating the movement of goods and services in and out of the country from the border Communities without Compromise.
Many believes that past Comptroller Generals of the service including Hameed Ali, a retired Army Colonel , the immediate Customs helmsman should be blamed for the slowing down of anti- smuggling activities in the north western states Sokoto, amfara, Kebbi, and Katsina, including Niger and Kwara states in the north central region as well as and the north eastern states of Adamawa, Taraba, Borno and Yobe, and the south western state of Ogun.
The FOU, Zone B, Kaduna and other Interventionists Units, in Sokoto/ Zamfara, Kbebbi, Katsina, particular may not, have been unable to deliver on their mandate of cutting the wings of the smugglers because of alleged logistics constraints.
There is no gain saying the fact that poor logistics have remained the major problem of the Customs Interventionist Commands across the country. From Kaduna, Zamfara, Sokoto, Katsina, Kebbi, Kwara, Adamawa, Taraba, Borno/ Yobe, Ogun Cross- river state and Akwa Ibom, the story is the same.
Recall that Compt. Oramalugo, who was in-charge of the anti-smuggling operations in Kebbi Command, in north western geopolitical region, at a time the activities of the Lakurawa Group have not become pronounced as it is now, may have identified this problem that he the had resorted to plan B, to ensure that the Command operational vehicles are always in good working Conditions to be able to contain the activities of the smugglers operating between Nigeria and Niger Republic through the border Communities in the state.
It was not surprising why the Customs Comptroller, who knows his onions has replicated what he did in Kebbi Command at the Oyo/Osun Command, as had continued to maintain the few logistics vehicles he had inherited from his Predecessor, Compt. Babajide Jaiyeoba, despite the paucity of funds, thus making it possible for the Command to have the upper hand against the smugglers operating around the notorious Shaki and Iseyin axis and other border Communities in Oyo state.
Investigations by the Value News shows that on several occasions Patrol Team vehicles in some of the Interventionist Commands had broken- down on the road while pursuing the smugglers but the Commands’ limited funds had made it impossible for the Area Controllers to meet the demand of the patrol Leaders whenever approached for release funds to repair such vehicles to sustain the tempo of their anti-smuggling operations in their area of operations.
Some years back, one Dahiru Managa, an alleged bigtime smuggler in Katsina state had penetrated the ranks of Customs Authorities both at the Command and Headquarters level because he has the resources to do so, as he was said to be footing bills of the most of the Patrol teams of the Commands in the north western region.
One Deinde , another big time smuggler in the Ilaro Area of Ogun state, appears to be doing the same thing and the Ogun I, Command, and Anti-smuggling officers, not even the FOU, Zone A, officers, who are scattered all over the state can contain him, meaning that Compromise cannot be ruled out as the officers cannot use their monthly salary to repair their patrol vehicles put under their care.
. This is where CG. Adeniyi, may have to make the difference from the past Comptroller Generals by adequately funding the interventionist Commands, to be able be to effectively fund their patrol teams to maintain their logistics vehicles.
Although the Federal Operations Units, FOU, Zone A, under the close watch of Compt. Kola Oladeji, ought not to be experiencing the same problems faced by FOU, Zone B, Katsina, Ogun I, a Idiroko, , and other Interventionist Commands giving past and present Comptroller General’s attention but some of the Command’s operational vehicles which had broken down over the years and begging for repairs appears to have turned to scrabs and abandoned.
In a related development, given the impressive Customs revenue collection of about N5.0795 trn, between January and Nov.12, 2024, which was said to have been paid into the Federation Account, believed to bemuch higher than the N5. 1 trn revenue target set for service by the FG, in the 2024, Fiscal year may have informed why the it has been given a revenue target of N6.025 trn, target in the 2025 year, , out of the proposed N47.8 trn target budgetary expectation expected to be passed by the National Assembly .
Compt. James Ojo, Area Controller, Ogun I, Idiroko, who had been battling smugglers in the former President Obasanjo home state with too many illegal routes between Nigeria and Benin Republic used by smugglers to carry out their nefarious activities may have known that that the Command which monthly revenue generation had dropped significantly in the recent time because of the low economic activities as all cargoes coming into the Nigerian market from Benin Republic are passing through Seme border may have reached out to his Beniniois Counterpart to change the narrative.
He may have succeeded in resolving the problem with the Beninois Customs Administration as trucks ladened with cargoes were said to have been given the approval to pass through the Idiroko Land border station to meet the raw materials and Chemical demands of the too many Industries in the state. There are hundreds of Industries in Ogun state, for manufacturing of their products pushed into the Nigerian market. This is good news for the Customs Comptroller that may take over from the Ogun I, Area Controller, when he begins pre-retirement Leave, Dec.7, 2024.
The low patronage of the Idiroko Land border station, according to insider sources was said to have been there since former President Muhammadu Buhari’s Administration that was aid to have been cashedin by past and present Area Controllers of the Seme Command, to ensure that importers with their agents continue to patronize Seme border to take delivery of their Consignments, turning the south western state as a home of smugglers.
