By Stephene Ubanna
For years, Mallam Aminu Kano International airport and some other international airports across Nigeria including the Murtala Muhammed international airport, Lagos, the nation’s commercial nerve center had been used by foreign exchange smugglers to carry out their nefarious activities.
Although past Comptroller Generals of the Nigerian Customs Service, NCS, and the Leadership of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, were said to have made efforts to contain the activities of the forex smugglers but that was how far they could go.
Barshir Adewale Adeniyi, MFR, the incumbent Comptroller General of the NCS, and who had served as a one-time Area Controller of MMIA Command, and who knows much about the antics of the forex smugglers is not ready to tolerate the rot from them as he has tackled them headlong at the airports.
As a prelude to detecting the forex smugglers at the nation’s airports, the Customs Comptroller General, who is determined to succeed where his predecessors had failed and with the support of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had installed new equipment as dedicated declaration of foreign currencies and other valuables posts, secondary search rooms and enhanced surveillance capabilities are being implemented at international airports across the country.
In a bid to sustain the tempo of dealing decisively with the foreign currency smugglers around international airports across Nigeria, the Kano/Jigawa Command in collaboration with the EFCC and other relevant Federal Government regulatory agencies, were said to have held a sensitization campaign across Kano and Jigawa, targeting Bureau de Change operators, travel agent, international airline operators and Pilgrim Boards. Another sensitization exercise was said to have also been held for airline operators as well at the Nnamdi Azikiwe international airport Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, giving the seriousness of the issue.
The sensitization campaign, according t Abdullahi Maiwada, an Assistant Comptroller and the Customs spokesperson was basically aimed to raise the awareness on the importance of enforcing Nigerian Government currency declaration laws among inbound and outbound foreign travellers.
AC. Maiwada, had said that the Nnamdi Azikiwe sensitization exercise had addressed the role of airline personnel, both local and foreign, in ensuring compliance to Nigerian Government laws, particular, in reminding travellers about foreign exchange declaration requirements through in-flight announcements, distributing forms and cooperating during Customs checks.
Going by the Nigerian Government law, any foreign traveler carrying more than the regulatory threshold of, which is currently the North American sum of $10,000 or its equivalent in other currencies , is expected to make a declaration to the Authorities as failure to comply could result in seizure, investigation and prosecution under the country’s anti-money laundering laws.
Given the tough measures that had been put in place by CGC Adeniyi and his Management Team which included the mandatory submission of electronic manifests, before the aircraft arrival into the country as well as complete passenger details such as names, countries of origin and destination and flight numbers, may have put the Customs personnel at the country’s air ports on the alert to conduct targeted risk assessments. This appears to have paid off.
Only recently, Compt. Dalhatu Abubakar, led the Kano/Jigawa, Command, had intercepted over N650 million worth of undeclared foreign currencies at the Mallam Aminu Kano International airport, MAKIA, Kano.
Compt. Abubakar, who had described huge forex seizure as ‘’a milestone and commitment to national security in the ongoing crackdown on financial crimes linked to smuggling networks and money laundering’’ had said that the arrest of the suspect one Amed Slisu, followed credible intelligence and vigilance clearance operation by officers at the airport who had flagged the suspect, a holder of Ghanaian Passport, upon arrival from Saudi Arabia, onboard an Ethiopian airlines flight.
The suspect may have known that he has played into the NCS, personnel, upon arrival at the Mallam Aminu Kano, international airport, like other passengers was reminded of the legal obligation to declare their foreign currencies, which must not be more than the us $10,000 required by Law.
Unknown to the Ghanaian, his secrets have been made known to the Nigerian Customs Authorities, who had alerted the Kano/Jigawa Area Controller and who in turn had put his officers on the alert as well at the airport to ensure that there is no escape route for the suspect.
It was not surprising why the Kano/Jigawa vigilant officers who were o red alert had flagged the Ghanaian suspect down for further checks to uncover the hidden undeclared forex still with him. The additional check on the suspect was said to have led to the discovery of concealed US$420,900, £5,825, British pounds sterling, 3,946,500 West African CFA Francs and 224,000 Central African CFA Francs, collectively valued at about N654 million by Valuation officers.
An elated Compt. Abubakar, who could not hide his feelings had said that that the arrest of the foreign currency smuggler, Abubakar, in collaboration with the EFCC, clearly highlights the result of proactive enforcement, continuous stakeholder sensitization and renewed focus on border surveillance by the Service.
He was emphatic: Our goal is not only to detect but also deter. This may have informed why the Customs Comptroller who had repeatedly sent a message to the Criminal networks that the Kano/Jigawa Command officers are watching and determined to frustrate their efforts.
In the spirit of inter-agency collaboration, the three suspects who were arrested by the Kano/Jigawa Comand officers at the Mallam Aminu Kano, airport, MAKIA, were said to have been officially handed over to EFCC, under the Leadership of Ola Olukoyede, for further investigation and prosecution.
The Zonal Director of the EFCC, Kano Command, who had received both the seized forex and the arrested suspects linked with the smuggled foreign currencies, including the US dollar, had praised the Kano/Jigawa officers for their vigilance and cooperation, noting that the synergy between the NCS and the antigraft agency is actually yielding results.
He had reaffirmed the EFCC’s determination ‘’to pursue the prosecution of the three arrested suspects linked to the intercepted forex in accordance with the Law’’. He has his reason: Cash smuggling has been a funding lifeline of terrorism, banditry and transnational crimes.
The EFCC, Zonal Director in Kano Command, official, may have spoken the mind of the Chairman, when he urged stakeholders in Kano and Jigawa states, particular, those in the aviation sector, and financial sectors of the economy, to remain on the alert and continue sharing intelligence that could prevent future breaches of the country’s financial policy.
It would be recalled that last March, the Kano/Jigawa Command, had intercepted US $1,154,900 and SAUDI Riyals, SR135,900 undeclared forex at the same Mallam Aminu Kano, airport. It is instructive to note that the seized foreign exchange was made during a check on an inbound passenger, one Ibrahim Abdullahi, who had arrived on Saudi airline Flight No. SV401 from Saudi Arabia.
