By Stpehen Ubanna
Compt. Shuaibu Ahmadou Bello, may have taken the first two weeks of assumption of duties as the Area Controller of Federal Operations Unit, FOU, Zone B, Kaduna, which superintends the anti-smuggling operations in the north western states of Kaduna, Katsina, Soko, Zamfara , kebbi , Jigawa, Kano and the north central states of Benue, Plateu, Kwara, Niger, Kogi and Nsarawa, to study the environment before finally settling down to strategize on how to clip the wings of the smugglers.
He may have kown that he has a big task at hand because of the activities of the smugglers from the neighbouring north eastern states of Borno and Bauchi, who penetrate Zamfara, described as a home state of the trigger hungry bandits, turned smugglers and spread to other flashpoint states in north western Nigeria.
Informed sources told The Value News that over the years, some of the smugglers who operates between Nigeria, Niger, Chad, Mali and the Central African country of Cameroon, and their sponsors have been smuggling sacks of donkey bones and meat into the country without playing into Customs personnel on the road.
Vice President Kashim Shettima, who incidentally was a former governor of Borno state may have given a clue to officers and men of the FU, Zone B, Kauna, and other Interventionist Customs Command in the north on how to track the smugglers in the north western states of Zamfara, Sokoto, Kastina and Kebbi, particular, when he cited the Illela, a border Community between Nigeria and Niger Republic, there are over 30 illegal smuggling routes used by the smugglers to carry out their nefarious activities.
Compt. Shuaibu, may have had at the back of his mind that with the reopening of the land border areas with neighbouring Niger, last March, by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the economic saboteurs, may want to increase their smuggling activities using every tactics to prove a point that they are still very much ground and difficult to cage.
They may have sent a message to Compt. Shuaibu , that if he thinks that he can repeat what he did in in the south western state of Ogun Border Communities in Ipokia, Yewa north and Imeko Afon, Local government Areas of the state in the north western states of Sokoto, Zamfara, Katsina, and Kebbi, border Communities , he will fail.
They were said to have resorted to blackmail and intimidation including killing an officer of the Kastina Customs Command at a checkpoint to scare Compt. Shuaibu and his officers from taking any step thatmay drive them out of the illicit business because of the backlash effect.
Indeed, past Area Controllers of the FOU, Zone B, may have considered the trade on consignments of Donkey bones, dried meat, a threat to the economy that the officers may not have paid much attention to it, let alone seize a sack of it to send a warning signal to the smugglers.
The Patrol Team officers were said to have had concentrated their efforts in tackling the Asian Countries of Thailand par boiled rice and India par boiled Agricultural rice, fairly used vehicles, fairly used clothing, foreign processed vegetable oil, pneumatic tyres, poultry products, and other items like Macaroni and Spagheti, that contravenes the country’s Fiscal Policy, including Premium Motor Spirit, popular, petrol, leaving the coast clear for the donkey bone and dried meat smugglers
The Donkey bone and dried meat smugglers who may have been smiling to the bank over the years to lodge huge deposits from the illicit donkey bone and dried meat business may have known that they have played into the hands of the no nonsense Compt. Shuaibu, described as an anti-smuggling Czar, who was to have used his expertise and friendly posture to penetrate the ranks of the people, who were ready to volunteer information to him to facilitate the Command anti-smuggling operations without any exchange of bullet to dispossess the smugglers of their illicit goods.
Compt. Shuaibu, may have proved wrong those who thinks that he could not repeat what he did in Ogun I, Command , Idiroko, at FOU, Zone B, which is an Interventionist Unit, as the Customs anti-smuggling Czar, has proved that he could deliver on his mandate anywhere, across the country.
He was said to have shown the stuff he was made of, within the first two weeks in office. He was said to have made the monumental Contraband seizures that became the talk of the day wherever two or three officers in other Interventionist Commands in the north western axis gather for discussion over their operations.
Even some senior officers at the Customs Headquarters in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, and the Zonal headquarters, were said to have marveled how he was able to get the smugglers, dispossess them of their much valued smuggled consignments which may have been procured with millions of naira from neighbouring Republic of Niger without any exchange of bullets or loss of life.
At a recent press conference, to showcase the Contraband seizures within the first one month of anti-smuggling operations, in 13 northern states and Abuja, the FCT, an elated Compt. Shuaibu, who could not hide his feelings had declared that the seizures were products of the Command’s anti-smuggling operations between April 17, 2024 and May 17, 2024.
Hear him: Of great importance is the interception of illegal products of donkey from some unscrupulous elements who had no regard for the lives and preservation of the country’s endangered species like donkey. He had confirmed, that the Command Patrol teams in two separate operations, had impounded consignments donkey bones and donkey meat which Valuation experts put the Duty Paid Value, DPV, at about N3 billion.
Many had expected that with the seizure of the N3 billion Consignment of donkey bone and dried meat, it will force the smugglers to abandon the illegal business and embrace genuine trade. The Donkey bone and donkey meat smugglers may have opted to dare the Customs Comptroller and his officers on the road thinking it will still be business as usual. They got it wrong.
On April 25, 2024, another Patrol team of the FOU, Zone B, Kaduna, acting on information, were said to have intercepted a truck, with Registration Number,GGE 526 XL, along Sokoto and Gusau Road, in Zamfara state conveying the illicit goods which were aid to have been brought to the Command premises in Kaduna for thorough physical examination in the presence of other security agencies including Department of State Service, DSS, operatives.
The FOU, Zone B, Command, Area Controller, had said that upon careful examination of the ruck , it was found that the truck was loaded with 750 sacks of donkey bones, with a DPV, of about N2.36 billion. This time around, the donkey bones smugglers were not lucky as one of them was said to have been arrested, detained and currently being interrogated to uncover more information to facilitate their ongoing investigation on the matter.
The Operatives of the FOU, Zone B, were said to have also intercepted two other canter trucks on May 5, 2024, carrying dried Donkey Meat along Kontagora , Tegina road in north central state of Niger, which an insider revealed that after 100% physical examination , involving all the security agencies , the trucks were discovered to be carrying 860 sacks of dried donkey meat.
The FOU, Zone B, Area Controller, had confirmed that three suspects have been arrested in connection with the seizure of the 860 sacks of dried donkey meat, bringing to four suspects that had been arrested since the anti-smuggling war on the endangered species war in the state began and would be prosecuted as a lesson to others still involved in the donkey bone and dried meat illicit trade.
The government has made it clear that anyone trading on donkey consignments clearly Contravenes section 55(1) , paragrapgh c and i(1) of the Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, aCT, 2023, that had been signed into Law by former President Muhammadu Buhari. Going by the provisions of the Act, ‘’import and Exports of donkey bone and dried donkey meat which are subject to prohibitions and restrictions and would be prosecuted in a Court of Law and if found guilty will be jailed. It was emphatic that donkeys are part of rare animals that being driven to extinction by activities of unscrupulous elements
The Act who was said to have made provisions for ‘’the protection of the health and life of such animals, to control their import or exports in line with the relevant International Laws and Conventions on International Trade on endangered species of Wild Fauna and Flora, CITES may have empowered the Customs operatives to go after the bone and dried meat smugglers.
There is no gain saying the fact Nigeria is signatory to the International Convention for continued prevention of endangering donkeys and other species. This may have informed why the FOU, Zone B, Kaduna, Area Controller, had said that the Unit will not fold its hands and allow this illegal trade on donkey bone and dried met to continue to take place in areas under the Command’s jurisdictions in both the north western and north central geo-political regions.
Enough on donkey bone and dried meat seizures by the FOU, Zone, Command. We turn to other Contraband including dangerous that were aid to have seized by the Command during the period under review.
The Command, was said to have intercepted 58,740, sachets of Tramdol, and 48 ,000 ampules of Anelgin injection on May 2, 2024, along Saminaka/ Nimbiya/Kanfachan axis of Kaduna state, before it get into the waiting hands of the bandit group fighters. The illicit drugs were said to have been neatly concealed with motor spare parts to beat Customs operatives on the road to it but were unlucky, as it was stopped by the eagle eyed officers.The DPV of the impounded drugs was said to have been put at N167,000.00, only.
Being a basically, an Interventionist Command. It was said to have also intercepted 23 Jerry cans of petrol of 25 litres each, 109 bales of second hand clothing, 36 cartons of spaghetti, 50 cartons of Macaroni, 4 Jerrycan of foreign processed Vegetable Oil, six sacks of male shoes 100 sacks of snuff and 30 bags of sugar. This is in addition to 255 cartons of herbicide, chemical,10 cartons of foreign couscous, 235 bags of foreign flour, 25 Kg each and over 100 cartons of general goods including 174 bags of foreign rice of 50 Kg each and 12 vehicles , used as means of Conveyance of the seized items.
Given an inside information, Compt. Shuaibu, had said that the total DPV, of the sized items was N3,175,084,217.75, only. Warning the smugglers to desist from the illicit trade, the FOU, Zone B, Kaduna, Customs boss has made it clear that there is no hiding place for the unrepentant smugglers, as ‘’officers and men of the Unit, are focused, committed and prepared to carry out their assignment with utmost sense of courtesy and unwavering professionalism’’.
He may have sent a message to the smugglers that those who wish to try the Command resolve to stop smuggling activities in the two northern regions and the FCT, should have a rethink. He was said to have made it clear to those that cares to listen that the officers and men of he Command on anti-smuggling operations in the north wetern and north central geopolitical regions shall be unsparing in implementing the Laws and policy directives of the government as directed by Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, MFR, Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, and his Management team.
The Customs Comptroller, who had said that anti-smuggling operation is fast going beyond the traditional physical measures of open confrontation but had said that the service has sharpened its skill in intelligence gathering through improve Information Communication technology, ICT, kits.
He may have gladdened the heart of Nigerians when he disclosed that ‘’the era of exclusively mounting checkpoints at strategic locations to checkmate the activities of smugglers is long gone, noting that ‘’the Command enforcement officers are up to date in the deployment of ICT assisted intelligence gathering strategies to achieve its mandate’’.
The OU, Zone B, Kaduna , Command , Customs helmsman, may have taken advantage of the Media parley , to update the public about the suspected arrested for impersonation in in Sokoto state, stating that ‘’the Law has taken its course on him’’. He was very much appreciative to the Leadership of the Sokoto/Zamfara Command, for heir continued efforts in assisting the Unit to take the service’’ to greater height in it anti-smuggling operations’’. Vintage Shuaibu.
