By Stpehen Ubanna
Compt. Ben Nkem Oramalugo, appears to have succeeded in turning Oyo/Osun Command into one of the Nigerian Customs service, NCS, major anti-smuggling and revenue generating Commands despite not having a seaport to superintend and now competing with the known anti-smuggling interventionist Units like the Federal Operations Unit,FOU, Zone A, Ikeja, Lagos and Zone B, Kduna, by giving smugglers a battle of their life.
Many believe that the Customs comptroller has taken advantage of his academic laurels and the different Professional courses attended both within and outside the country, including the one at the North American country of the United States, US, prestigious Harvard University to give a decisive blow to the smugglers and intensify the Command revenue drive.
He may have also known that he cannot afford to fail Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, MFR, and the Customs Comptroller General, who had redeployed him from Kebbi Command in the north western state of Kebbi, where he had become a thorn in the flesh of smugglers to come and replicate same in the Oyo/Osun Command.
He may have had the initial set back in in dealing with the smugglers operating in the two south western states as the then Area Controller of FOU, Zone A, Compt. Hussein Kehinde Ejibuno, now overseeing the Customs Operation Whirlwind, mandated to contain the activities of Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, popular, petrol, smugglers across the nation’s porous borders, who was said to have stationed his Patrol team officers at strategic locations INOyo and Osun states, thus making things difficult for Command officers to do their own job.
It was a matter of time for the Customs Area Controller who may have gotten his axe right by working closely with Compt. Kola Oladeji, the incumbent FOU, and Zone Area Controller to do the needful. Given the close working relationship with his FOU, Zonne A, Counterpart, may have informed why he has blocked areas of revenue Leakage in the two south western states under its control and to read the riot act to the smugglers that I is no longer going to business as usual.
His message to the smugglers, particular, was very clear: turn a new leaf or be crushed. He was said to have kept to his words. This is evident going by the spectacular monthly Contraband seizures and improved revenue generation of the Command that it has become the talks of the day wherever two or three people involved in Customs related operations gather together in Oyo and Osun states.
The Command’s anti-smuggling operations, according to informed sources is very revealing. An elated Compt. Oramalogu, who appears to be acting out a script of the Customs General and who i not ready to fail in his new assignment in Oyo and Osun states, may have mobilized his anti-smuggling and Patrol team officers to intensify border patrols between the two south western states, and the neighbouring Benin republic to ensure that nothing enters or leaves Nigeria.
Giving an insider information by the Oyo/Osun Command Area Controller, that’’ the Command patrol team officers has significantly disrupted smuggling activities in the areas within its control, that much was said to have been corroborated by residents of Ibadan, the Oyo state Capital. Recall that the Customs Comptroller had said that that the Command under his Leadership had made 31 Contraband seizure ‘’through intelligence driven operations and effective Collaborations with residents of local border Communities in in the two south western states between August 30, 2024 and October 29, 2024.
Perhaps, what may have encouraged the Oyo/Osun Command to make that much Contraband seizures despite the presence of other interventionist Units like the FOU, Zone A, and Border Drill, Lagos, Zonal office, personnel, was said to be due to’’ the several Community sensitization programs’’ which many had attributed’’ to the respective Patrol and Outstations to educate members of the public about the dangers of smuggling and the benefits of supporting legal trade’’.
Analysts had confirmed that the approach has not only reduced smuggling incidents in Oyo/Osun states but fostered greater Cooperation between residents of the border Communities and Oyo/Osun Command’s patrol team officers. Indeed, the Seizure of the N755,896.7000.00, worth of goods between August 30, 2024 and October, 29, 2024, bear eloquent testimony to the Command anti-smuggling efforts .
The Oyo/Osun Command Area Controller, was said to have told those that cares to listen that within the period under review, they had intercepted 433 bags of Asian countries of Thailand parboiled rice and India Agricultural parboiled rice of 50 Kg each, 61 Bales of secondhand clothing and 10 sacks of used tyres including 49 sacks of Cannabis Sativa, popular India hemp, produced from the West African country of Ghana. The Command was said to have also intercepted 25 kegs loaded with PMS, of 25 litres each, totaling ,8,550 litres in different illegal border routes in the two states , thus filling the vacuum that may have been left behind by the Operation Whirlwind personnel.
More interesting was the seizure of 49 cartons Analgin injection .68 sacks of Amoxicillin capsule, 500mg, three cartons of Buscomac tablet, 10mg, six sacks of Juscopan tablets, five sacks of Chloramphenicol, 11 sacks of Ampiclox Capsules 500mg,, 10 sacks of AArthromether tablets, and two acks of Fulcin tablets of 500mg.
This is in addition to 13 packets of Penntazocine injection .With the seizure of the Pharmaceutical products, Compt.Oramalogu, has sent a message to the importers of the unregistered N, National Agency for Food and Drug Administration,AFDAC, pharmaceutical products and manufacturers that the game is up.
The good news was that the Customs Comptroller has vowed to sustain the Oyo/Osun Command anti-smuggling operations to make the two south western states a place to do only legal businesses. Although, he had admitted that smuggling activities cannot be completely wiped out in the states but the Command is doing everything within its powers ‘’to confront threats and maximize its operational efficiency as well as continue the sensitization Campaigns to minimize considerably smuggling activities in Oyo/Osun states, as obtained in other parts of the world including the US.
We turn to the Command’s revenue generation drive. The Command was said to have generated N56,656,828,685.00, within the month under review, showing an increase of7.85%, as the Customs Comptroller had insisted that the right thing must be done by the importers, exporters and the excise factories to avoid being closed down.
Note that the Command had streamlined its operations to collect the appropriate revenue in line with the Federal Government’s Fiscal Policy by introducing the use of modern technology which was said to have increased its processes of revenue collection despite the financial strains affecting businesses and citizens .This may have led to the improved compliance by the importers with their agents, excise Factories and other stakeholders in the two south western states of Oyo and Osun.
Compt Oramalugo, who could not his feelings had said that much of the revenue generated by the Command in the month of October 2024, clearly ‘’ reflects the resilience and dedication of the Command officers in ensuring strict compliance with Customs Laws and Regulations while facilitating Legitimate trade’’.
He had alluded to the fact that the bulk of the Command’s revenue had come from Legitimate production activities by the excise Factories as the officers were said to have ensured ‘’ proper documentation’’ and calculation of the amount paid by the Factories per kilogram of products manufactured on a daily basis to avoid any revenue Leakages. Vintage Oramalugo.
