By Suleiman Umaru
For years officers and men of the Federal Operations Unit, FOU, Zone A, Ikeja, Lagos state, had been complaining of the activities of the soldiers and other security agencies personnel in Ogun an dOyo states states sabotaging their antismuggling efforts but nobody took them serious.
But that had not stopped the FOU Zone A, anti-smuggling officers in different parts of the south west states of Ogun, Lagos, Oyo, Osun, Ekiti and Ondo, fom doing their work to bring the smugglers in the six south west states on their knees.
The anti-smuggling war in the region appears to have become more pronounced in the three years with the establishment of the Comptroller General Of Customs, CGC, Strike Force and the Border Drills to compliment the efforts of the FOUs across the country.
the FOU, Zone A, anati-smuggling officers in the south west region, are actually doing their works as expected but the activities of the security agencies personnel including the moles in Customs who had turned themselves into smugglers and informant have not helped matters.
This may have informed why despite the millions of naira worth of goods that had been lost by these unrepentant smugglers to the government through Customs Patrol Teams operations in the the region, are waxing strong in the business on a daily basis.
Maritime watchers averred that in this six south west states, thousands of ‘’50’’Kg bags Foreign par boiled rice, Hundreds of 50 litres each of Jerry Cans of Vegetable oil and Premium Motor Spirit, popular, Patrol, bundles of Textile materials , bales of second hand clothing, second hand bags and tyres including exotic vehicles were said to have been impounded and transfered to the Government Warehouse, Ikeja.
The Contraband were said to have have been smuggled into the south west region from Benin Republic through porous routes that are scattered all over the border states of Ogun and Oyo.
Signs that Customs patrol Teams Operations, in Ogun and Oyo states , are being sabotaged are evident particular, as closely –guided secret movement of anti-smuggling Teams and those of the adhoc Teams in the state, and their plans to tackle the unrepentant smugglers, had alsways filtered out to the Camp to the smugglers in these state. The fallout was that the smugglers who were known to have entered the net of anti-smuggling Teams have suddenly escaped.
Recall that President Muhammadu Buhari, had banned the importation of foreign rice and vehicles into the country through the Land border on January I, 2017. This was quickly followed up on August 2018, with the closure of the land borders across the country with the neighbouring West African countries of Benin Republic, Niger and the Central African country of Cameroon.
The closure of the country’s borders wih thse neighbouring may have forced both the smugglers and the FOU, Zone anti-smugglers and thoses at the approved Checkpoints in Ogun , Lagos and Oyo states to go back to the drawing to perfect their strategies.
The directive given by Hameed Ali, a retired Army Colonel and Comptroller General, Nigerian Customs Service, NCS, at the instance of the Katsina state state born Nigerian President , that all filling stations 20 Km, to the border Communities across the country should be closed down may have given license to the neighbouring to make nonsense of the Economic Community of West African state Trade protocol . The countries were said to have provided a base for the smugglers to operate and sabotage Nigeria’s economy. this is because hundreds of the ship load of Foreign parboiledshipped into two Benin Republic ports end into the Nigerian market while some fell into the waiting hands of FOU Zone A, CGC, Strike Force, and Border Drills , sector 1, Ikeja, patrol officers.
John Okam, who is into fireworks disclosed that they work in Collaboration with both Customs and other security agencies personnel to facilitate the easy passage of their smuggled ‘’50’’ bags of Foreign par-boiled rice and Vehicles procured from Benin Republic into the Nigerian market.
He disclosed that no smuggler could summon the courage to put an importer’s or Cross-border trader’s Consignment or vehicle on the road for far of losing to FOU, Zone A, pesonnel. without the consent of their security agencies personnel Collaborators ad cleared the road fo them.
He further disclosed that before a Civilian smuggler could have the courage to put an importer’s goods or vehicle which are Contraband going by the government Fiscal policy measures on the road, he must have have booked it at the relevant checkpoints.
this was what the foreign rice , Vehicle and Patrol smugglers were enjoying in Ogun and Oyo states, particular, prior to the Border closure. But some three years ago, the FOU , Zone A, personnel, at the Iebu-Ode Check point, Ogun state, had intercepted some exotic vehicles including bullet proof heading to the south east under heavily guarded armed Soldiers escort. The soldiers were said to have bulldozed their way at the check without being stopped for the routine checkss of the vehicle documents.
the information was said to have filtered out to the Officer in-charge of the Checkpoint who was said to be very busy in their makeshift office attending to some urgent mattaters which rquires the Comptroller’s attention. He was said to mobilised some operational vehicles on ground and selected armed officers and pursued the soldier smugglers.
The Ijebude Ode Checkpoint checkpoint officers were said to have caught up with the soldiers around Ondo axis but the soldiers refused to hand over the keys of the vehicles to the Team. The Customs personnel were said to have overpowered the soldiers and dispossessed them of the smuggled vehicles which were transferred to the Command premises.
Although, FOU, Zone A. and the two other Complimentary ad-hoc Teams, had tighten up security on the major roads and push paths leading to the Border Communities in Ogun and Oyo states, in the recent time, the smugglers are still finding their way out of Benin Republic with their smuggled goods into the south west states of Ogun and Oyo through the bush path for distribution into the Nigerian markets.
Kayode Olusemire, Comptroller, FOU C, may have been waiting for such smugglers that may escape the eagle- eye of the FOU, Zone A anti-smuggling personnel, as he had vowed to get them, stressing that his Patrol Team officers are everywhere and on the major roads between Edo and Ondo, a south west border state with the south east.
An eyewitness account of a recent operations of the FOU, Zone, A, Special Operations Team at Oyo state, speaks volume. The source gave an insight into the activities of the security agencies personnel turned smugglers and informant to smugglers.
Usman Yahaya, a Deputy Comptroller and the acting Comptroller, of the FOU, Zone A, was said to have detailed Jack Okpabi , who is now an Assistant Comptroller, to Head to Oyo with his Team on a Special assignment to flush out the Foreign rice smugglers and block all illegal routes used by the smugglers to carry out their nefarious activities.
The Team may not have made any Contraband seizure despite laying ambush for the smugglers at various strategic locations in the state. A resident of Ogbomosho town in the state disclosed that Security agencies personnel had Ssabotaged the Special FOU Zone A, Team y giving out information about their operation in the state.
It was, therefore, not very surprising that the Foreign rice smugglers operating in the two south west states of Ogun and Oyo and their security agencies personnel Collaborators were very happy when it was Confirmed thatJack, the FOU, Special operations Team, Leader, in the state had been withdrawn to the office to Head the Command Operations and Lagos Roving Team.
Patrol smugglers and their security Operatives Collaborators at the ancient town of Badagry and Owode, a border town between Nigeria and Benin Republic in Lagos state were also said to be very happy that the Customs Assistant Comptroller had been moved to the Command office from the Gbaji Checkpoint. jack and his boys were said to have give n the patrol smugglers in Badagry and Owode sleepless night.
In one of the operations that was said to have been led by him to an Area described as ‘’ a point of no return in Badagry’’, by the people, they were said to have taken delivery of 3,000 Jerry Cans of 50 litres each of Patrol intercepted by Nigerian Civil Defense Commission which were transferred to the Command premises at Ikeja.
Aware that smuggling of petrol and Foreign are the major business of the Youths of Badagry and Owode and their sponsors, Jack and his boys were said to have turned their attention to the filling stations and the Creeks in these Areas to ensure that the Patrol dealers do the right thing.
Despite deploying all the operational vehicles to the Badagrys and Owode axis, where scores of Jerry Cans of 50 litres of petroleach were made on a daily basis, it had not deterred the Patrol smugglers from doing their business with their Beninnois Customers.
penultimate Tuesday, the Magazine cited 80 Jerry Cans of petrol of 50 litres each in a gutter opposite the FOU Zone A, Gbaji checkpoint makeshift ofifce.
FearS appear to have gripped vehicle importers with their clearing agents at the Lagos ports of Tin-can Island, and Port- Multi-services Terminal Limited, PTML, including Containerised cargo importers that Jack is back to head the Command Operatons and Lagos Roving Team.
Jack who was said to have headed the Team under Muhammed Uba Garba, a former Comptroller of the Command and now Zonal Coordinator, Border Drills, sector 3, overseeing the north central Border states of Kwara, benue , Kogi and Niger, home state of former Military President Ibrahim Babangida, a retired Army General and Abdulsalam Abubakar, also a retired Army General and former Head of statehad inflicted heavy pains on tthe importers that they had cried out.
There were instances when he had transferred scores of exotic vehicles from car shops to the Customs Training College where it was detained. Ali, the Customs Comptroller General was said to have taken advantage of the detention of some of the exotic vehicles to visit the Training school , on the invitation of the then Area Comptroller Muhammed to see things himself.
The speed at which the Customs Comptroller General had jumped the gutter to enter the Customs Training Collage field was an indication of his appreciation to Team and the Management. Jack and his boys were said to have harassed the fraudulent car dealers that they were said to plotted against him but that was how far they could go.
Maritime analysts believe that for Jack and his Team members to do their work without failing, Yahaya, the Command acting Comptroller may have to collapse the Command Special Weapons anti-Tactical Team, SWATT, to the Operations and Lagos Roving Team to avoid creating unhealthy atmosphere of Competition and room for Compromise. The Team was said to have been carved out by the Area Comptroller to weaken the powers of Riks, a CSC, and former Head of the Team who was said to have been redeployed to Gbaji checkpoint.
The analysts also expect the Comptroller to return some of functions of the Team which he was said to have allegedly transferred to his office back to the Team to speed up jobs.
Many believe that going by the good working relationship that had existed between the duo over the years, the Customs Comptroller would not not hesitate to to support his long time close ally to sustain the anti-smuggling operations in the Command.
