Terorism: Nigeria Military Tightens Up Security As Customs Interventionist Units Tackle Smugglers Headlong

By Stephen Ubanna

Barely few days to the end of the 2024, Fiscal year, Operation Hadin Kadi, Lake Sanity and other Nigerian Army Teams, operating in different parts of the country appears to have tighten up security in their various areas of Jurisdiction.

This is evident in what is currently happening in the north eastern state of Borno, where Operation Hadin Kai, and Lake Sanity, was said to have successfully curtailed the insurgency activities of the Islamic Fundamentalist Group, BokoHaram and the Islamic State of the West African Province, ISWAP, at the Lake Chad Basin and Aguata region of the state.

Given that members of  the Terrorist Organizations could no longer stand the superior fire power of the Troops , who were said to have destroyed  most of the  Camps, particular, in the Aguata region in north eastern Borno state may have paved the way  for Patrol Teams of the Federal Operations Unit, FOU, Zone D, Bauchi,  and other Customs Interventionist Units  in the north eastern part of the Federation to dust their AK 47 rifles  to mount roadblocks at the cleared border routes between Nigeria and the neighbouring West African countries of Niger Republic, Chad and the Central African country of Cameroun.

Between 2009 and now, BokoHaram and ISWAP insurgents, had conducted several attacks in border Communities  between Nigeria and the neighbouring countries  forcing the Customs Interventionist Patrol Teams to avoid putting their banded vehicles on the road to contain the activities of the smugglers  who are believed to the BokoHaram and ISWAP fighters  who were said to be collaborating with the Malian Insurgents, which had the backing of the Libyan terrorists.

The situation in Borno and Yobe state where the Operation Hadin Kai and Sector, Lake Sanity are doing a good job is not different fromm Adamawa and Taraba, home state of Gen. Theophilus Danjuma, a former Chief of Chief Staff, CoAS, during President Olusegun Obasanjo’s Administration where Operation Whirl Stroke have continued to deal decively with the Bandits Group fighters.

Operation Whirl Strokes Troops, who were said to be acting out the script of Olufemi Oluyede, a Lt. General and CoAS, who had the backing of Gen. Christopher Musa, the Chief of Defence Staff, CDS, described in security circles as a square peg in a round hole appears to be making things difficult  for the Taraba based Bandits  who could no longer operate freely in the state , let alone  engage in cross -border smuggling of Tramadol, Analgen  and other   dangerous drugs  including  Premium Spirit, PMS,   popular, petrol, in or outside the country.

Troops destroy Bandits Gang Camp in Yarro LGA,of Taraba state

 The Bandits Group fighters and kidnappers terrorizing Manzala and other Communities  in Yarro Local Government Area of the state may have known that the game is up  going by what has been happening to them between December 10, 2024, and now  as they have  continued to lose ground and weapons to the Operation Stroke Team. The Adamawa/Taraba Command and Operation Whirlwind, under the close watch of Compt. Hussain Kehinde Ejibunu,  mandated to contain the activities  of petrol smugglers across the nations porous borders   to have taken advantage of the intensified ant-terrorism Operation in Taraba state and the tight security in the neighbouring Adamawa to make Asian country of Thailand parboiled rice  and Indian Agricultural par boiled rice and hundreds of Jerry cans of petrol of the range of 25, 40 and 60 litres each, in the recent time.

Adeniyi: CG, Customs

Compt. Garba  Bature Bashir, the Command Area Controller,  described as a lucky senior officer to be deployed to the Command by  Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, MFR, the Customs Comptroller General,  may have shocked Nigerians when he revealed that within two weeks of assumption of office   , the Command had  made huge Contraband  seizures , which Valuation experts had put at N10,871, 496.25, which had never been achieved in the Command over the years because of the activities of the Bandits turned smugglers who operate freely in the two state without restraint.

Given the tight security that the soldiers had provided in the north eastern states may have given the  Customs Comptroller,  the audacity   to warn against smuggling  activities and  illicit trade  on drugs  across its areas of Jurisdiction as they will not hesitate to impound such  goods and arrest those caught in the act  to face the full weight of the Law of the  Land as a deterrence to others who may want to engage in such nefarious activities in the future.

He was said to have sent a message to the smugglers, including the VIP, petrol smugglers, who are feeling the  heat of the Operation whirlwind Operatives that  that the Command Patrol Teams have all that it takes to respond  along the borderlines  ‘’to fasten  their exit  of this illegal business’’.

The Customs Comptroller, who may have read the handwriting on the wall that the members of the Command Parol Teams in the various locations in the north eastern states may have been compromising on their job that  he was said to have issued   serious warnings to the officers  , particular, those stationed at the strategic location  of the Command frontier of  Mubi borders between Nigeria and Cameroun.

The warnings may have struck the right as the Patrol team officers who do not want to play into the hands of the Area and be sanctioned were said to have made five spectacular  seizures of scores of Jerrycans of  petrol  on its way  to the neighbouring Cameroun, which was never the case in the past until the establishment of the Operation Whirlwind last May, by the Customs Comptroller General , which was said to have reduced the activities of the VIP , petrol smugglers to the barest minimum.

An elted Customs Comptroller, had confirmed that the Command under his Leadership, within two weeks in office had intercepted 12,435 litres of petrol, loaded in 491 Jerrycans of 25 litres each and eight other Jerrycans of 20 litres each. The Command Patrol Team, along the Mubi border axisis   was said to have also summoned the courage to intercept a Mitsubishi truck, which an eyewitness account had described as   the means of Conveyance of the Jerrycans of petroleum products that was said to have been transferred to the Command premises in Yola for proper documentation.

The Command, according to insider information, may follow the footsteps of the Operation Whirlwind Coordinator, Compt. Ejibunu, who may be working on the instructions of the Comptroller General   to auction the product immediately to the public because of its inflammable nature and proceeds paid into the Federation Account.

Given that the Adamawa/Taraba Command, Patrol Team, Leaders and their Team members are all out to effectively carry out their anti-smuggling operations to ensure that nothing enters or leaves the country, particular, petrol, may have thrown a big challenge to Compt. Ejibunu, led Operation Whirlwind, which had  dominated the seizure of Petrol  between May 2024 and now in the two states  in the north eastern region.

While the Adamawa /Taraba , Command, Area Controller and his officers were said to have taken advantage of the activities of the Operation Strokes to restore normalcy in the border routes in the two states with Cameroun, to  ensure that no Contraband enters or leaves the country, the FOU, Zone B, Kaduna, and other Interventionist Units in the north western geopolitical region appears to be making appreciable impact in making Contraband and thousands of Jerrycans of  Petrol seizures that was said to have been auctioned to the general  public at subsized prices.

Gen Musa, the CDS, may have provided a conducive working environment for the Customs Interventionist Units personnel to do their job in the north western states of Zamfara, described as home of the Bandits Group, Sokoto, Kaduna, Katsina, Kebbi, Kano and Jigawa by giving all the necessary support to Lt. Gen. Oluyede, the CoAS and his soldiers to effectively confront the Criminal elements squarely.    

Compt. Suaibu: and other Customs Interventionists Area Controllers take advantage of the military Operations in different parts of the country to tackle smugglers headlong, make spectacular Contraband and drug seizures

The FOU, Zone B, Kaduna, under the Ledership of Compt. Bello Ahmadou Shuaibu, may have found it easy to effectively deploy the Command over 30 Patrol Teams, operating in different locations in the seven north norther states of Zamfara, Sokoto, Kebbi, Kaduna, Katsina, Kano, Jigawa and the north central states of Benue, Plateau, Kwara, Niger, Kogi and Nasarawa including Abuja, the FCT, because of the military ground and air operations in the two regions.

The Leadership of the Coalition of Civil Society, for Promotion of Human Rights, CCPHR, may have alluded to the military operations in the north western states and other flash point states across the country including Borno and Yobe states, in where the troops were said  to have successfully  acted out   President Tinuby’s  counter-terrorism scrip to eliminate the nation’s security threats   , which security  experts had said had translated   into a curtailment  of the Bandits Group operating  in the north western region  and other threat Organisations including the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOD and Eastern Security Network, ESN, operating in the South eastern region.

The CCPHR, had confirmed that the good works Gen. Musa, and the service Chiefs, who took out 8,034, terrorists Bandits in different parts of the country, arrested 11,623 of them as well as rescued 6,376 kidnapped victims between January 2024 and now, may have sent a message to the criminal elements who  want to undermine  Nigeria unity  that the game is up.

This may have forced the Bandits gags operating in the borderlines of Zamfara, Sokoto, Kaduna, Katsina, Kebbi and the north central states of Niger and Kwara to back down on their operations, paving the way for Compt. Shuaibu and his men at FOU, Zone B, to execute their core mandate of anti-smuggling operations to enhance trade facilitation in their area of Jurisdictions. The continued seizure of bags of foreign rice of 50Kg each , fairly used vehicles and other Contrabands including bales of second hand clothing , tramadol , Analgen and other dangerous drugs  speaks volume.  

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