By Stephen Ubanna
Ahead of the 2023, general elections and the electioneering Campaigns which are in top gear in Katsina, President Muhammadu Buhari, home state, Politicians who are determined to impress their people through any means, in the state, appears to be Collaborating with smugglers to blackmail officers.
Compt. Cheldi Wada, anti-smuggling drive in the state was said to have forced many smugglers underground. Most of the smugglers, particular, the low flying smugglers, operating between Nigeria and the neighbouring Niger Republic may have taken advantage of the ongoing electioneering Campaigns in the state to do what they best: smuggling.
Unknown to them, the agile anti-smuggling officers of the Katsina Command are still watching them and will not allow any prohibited item by the Federal government to enter into the country through any of the numerous illegal routes in the state. Note that, only the Jibia border, has been reopened, leaving out Kaita- Dankama, and other major borders in the state.
Some illegitimate traders in the state may not have found this funny as they were said to have resorted to blackmail officers, accusing them of of extortion to draw the attention of Hameed Ali, a retired Army Colonel and Comptroller General of the Nigerian Customs Service, NCS, to what is happening at the Katsina to encourage him to beam his searchlight in the state or possibly redeploy Compt. Wada, who has become a thorn in their flesh.
Take for instance the recent allegations levelled against the anti-smuggling officers by the illegitimate Groundnuts and Beans, sellers, along the Kaita-Dankama road ,in the state , who, according to informed sources are no longer finding it easy to smuggle the Agricultural produce from Niger, into the Kagadama markets to sell.
They may have collaborated with the politicians, believed to be there sponsors to release an alleged of extortion by officer video which was said to have gone viral as a way to weaken to weaken the officers along the Dankama and other borders in the state including the Patrol Team officers who regularly mount road blocks on the road. From the onset as the Area Controller of the Katsina Command, Compt. Wada, was said to have sounded a note of warning to the officers to avoid compromising on their job to avoid playing into the hands of the smugglers. He was said to have insisted on the right thing being done, urging the varous Patrol Team Leaders and their officers to go out and make Contraband seizures.
Indeed, Compt. Wada, who was said to have taken the anti-smuggling war, in Katsina state to the smugglers hideout was said to have made it clear to those that cares to listen that ‘’there are Customs Laws on import and export procedures, noting that ‘‘it is their responsibility as officers, saddled with the responsibility of checkmating smuggling activities in all nooks and crannies of the state to block the illegal routes of imports and exports used by the smugglers, and Illegitimate traders.
The Customs Compt. dad said that it is wrong for any person to accuse officers of extorting money from illegitimate traders along the Kaita-Dankama road, when it has not been reopened.
He was said to have expected all the genuine traders in the state to import and export their cargoes through the Jibia border, which was reopened last April, and not to go through any of the closed borders in the state as his men are there ‘’to stop them’’. He was emphatic that ‘’all goods coming from across Nigeria, such as Beans, Tiger nuts and Groundnuts, could only be exported through the Jibia border, describing ‘’the use of any unapproved land border in the state as illegal and will not be allowed’’.
Given an insider information of the relationship, between the importers, exporters and the Customs Command in the state, Compt. Wada, had said that they deal with stakeholders and not end users. He was said to have cited some of the traders Associations like that of Beans , Sesame, Tiger nuts and Ground nuts at the border markets in the state which the Command deals with and ‘’not Groundnut Retailers Union or loaders’’.
The Leadership of the various Associations, were said to have agreed with the Command findings that over 7.5 % of their food products are coming from Niger Republic, giving Compt. Wada, room to advised members of the various traders Association to endeavour to pass rough the Jibia border that had been reopened to take delivery of their imports as well as export their cargoes pay the appropriate duties that would properly documented, for record purposes.
Members of the Beans, Sesame, Groundnut and Tiger nut Association the genuine traders may have taken the Katsina Command Area Controller Advice serious that they have patronized the Jibia border to do all their transactions between April, 2022 and now. This is evident with the huge amount that was said to haven relised by the Command the Jibia Land border Community was reopened.
Compt. Wda, had said that the Command collected over N500 million duties on imports as well as handled over N5 billion worth of exported items through the border Community between Nigeria and the neighbouring Niger Republic. He had said that all the duties collected from the importers with their agents and on thexportable goods goes into the Federal government Accounts c, TSA.
Appealing to the mischievous people whose stock in trade is to blackmail to forestall from carrying out their legitimate duties ‘‘to stop misleading the Public’’, or be prepared ‘‘to face the full weight of the Law’’. No form of blackmail of Patrol Team officers will intimidate them, stressing that they are determined to crush the smugglers.
Hear him: We have intensified our strategy on arresting any smuggler in the state’’ irrespective of the social status of the person, including the VIPs, noting that as ‘’Professionals, the officers will not relent in discharging their mandate’’.
He had revealed that the Command anti-smuggling officers are everywhere in the state but lamented that ‘’even if all the Customs officers in state are to hold their hands altogether , to prevent smugglers from operating in the state, ‘‘they may not be able to cover the entire Circumference of Jibia borer Community , let alone Dankama, Local government , confirming what the Katsina state born Nigerian President had said that ‘’ only God can man the numerous border routes between Nigeria and the neighbouring Niger .
Notwithstanding the many unapproved routes used by smugglers that are scattered all over Katsina state, Compt. Wada, may have gladdened the heart of Nigerians when disclosed that that they use intelligence and Synergy with other security agencies and verified information from informants to deal decisively with the smugglers’’.
iGiven the intensified anti-smuggling operations of the Compt.Wada led Katsina Command over the last one year, and going by the Customs Comptroller General no nonsense attitude as he does not tolerate indiscipline may have informed why smuggling activities in the state had been on the decline in the recent time.
In the month of October, 2022, the Command had intercepted only eight vehicles, including a Honda Accord, with a Duty Paid Value, DPV, of N9.450 million compared to what situation was in the past, where over 20-30 vehicles could be seized in a month.
. The total DPV, of the eight vehicles that was said to have been intercepted by the Command, within the period under review, was put at about N60 million. The Command was said to have also intercepted 302 bags of foreign par boiled rice of 50Kg each, worth about N9 million, 122, Jerry cans of Premium Spirit, PMS, popular, Petrol, of 30 litres each 37 bags of foreign flour and 40 cartons of foreign Macaroni, which may have been imported through the Autonomous port of import as transit cargo or Niger but developed wings on the road between Benin epublic and Katsina state.
The Command was said to have also intercepted 41 cooking gas of 50Kg each, 11 cooking gas of 25 Kg each and 10.40 Jerry cans of Automotive Gas Oil, AGO, popular, diesel. The DPV, of all the seized merchandise goods was put at about N80million, thus bringing the total value of the seized vehicles and merchandise goods by the Command to about N140 million, compared to the sum of N75,600,991.00. Generated in the month of September, 2022, showing a difference of about N65 million.
In achieving the spectacular feat, Compt. Wada, had expressed his Appreciation to Col. Ali, rtd, the Customs Comptroller General for all his support by providing the Command with the operational vehicles that could enter the rugged areas in the state to dis possess smugglers of their smuggled goods.
Many believe that the Command will make more Contraband seizures in the two remaining months of 2022, with the deployment of more senior officers, believed to be tested hands in anti-smuggling operations and who had served in various Interventionist Units in the past in different parts of the country.
One of such officers is Mohammed Abdullahi, an Assistant Comptroller and former Head of the Federal Operations Unit, Zone A, Ikeja, Operations and Lagos Roving, who was known for making spectacular Contraband seizures but has been deployed to t Katsina Command.
