By Stephen Ubanna
Barely one week after taking over as the Area Controller of Ogun I, Command, Idiroko, from Compt. Godwin Otunla, predecessor, who had been redeployed to the Murtala Mohammed Airport, MMAA, Command, Ikeja, Lagos, the nation’s Commercial nerve Centre, officers appear to have braced up for the challenges head.
The Ogun I, Command Ctg. Area Controller, may have taken the advice of his predecessor seriously to work closely with other security agencies personnel at the border Community between Nigeria and Republic of Republic of Benin, to succeed, in the Command anti-smuggling operations that he had moved into action sending a singnal to the officers to tighten their belt to achieve the core mandate of the serve: trade facilitation, revenue generation and anti-smuggling operations .
DC.Afeni, was said to have used the second week of December, 2025, to familarise himself with the Nigerian Police Force, NPF, Nigerian Immigration Service, NIS and the Nigerian Drug Law, Enforcement Agency NDLEA, and other security agencies at the land border Community personnel.
Following the footsteps of former Compt. Otunla, the immediate past Area Controller of the Ogun I, Command, DC. Afeni, who had been well groomed for the job ‘’to effectively address the persistent challenges impeding trade, such as border inefficiencies, regulatory bottlenecks and security issue’’s, was said to have solicited the support of the sister security agencies Chiefs to succeed in his new national assignment.
A senior Customs officer who spoke to the Value News on condition of anonymity had said that DC. Afeni, had started preparing himself for the Customs Command top job as a career officer when he worked under Riks Luura, a Chief Superintendent of Customs and a- one-time Head of the Operations Unit of the Federal Operations Unit, FOU, Ikeja, described in Customs circles as a thorough bred anti-smuggling officer.
CSC. Lura, rtd, who was said to have had a way of making officers placed under his care to take full responsibility for their actions was said to have repeatedly sent Afeni, and several other officers on the same rank on Surveillance and patrol in the south western states of Lagos, Ogun Oyo, Osun, Ekiti and Ondo, but Afeni, has never complained but would always come out with results. This may have informed why CSC Lura, rtd, had much confidence in him because he could deliver on any given assignment
The Customs job may have taken to Port Harcourt II, Command, Onne, where the then DC. Ibrahim Mahmud, and Head of the Command exit gate, who had spotted him and the qualities in him as a disciplined officer and one that could be trained and allowed to do the work with little or no supervision at the exit gate.
The then DC. Ibrahim, who had retired from the Service on the Comptroller’s rank and Area Controller of Port Multi-services Limited, PTML, Command, Tin-can Island port, may have continued from where CSC.Lura, rtd, to prepare DC. Afeni, for the challenges ahead as a senior officer.
A Nigerian Ports Authority NPA, security official, who had served at the Onne port exit gate during the tenure of the then DC. Ibrahim, had confirmed that it was during his tenure and his team of dedicated officers, that the Command battled agents and their Customs collaborators involved in flying Containers.
The hardline position adopted by the then DC, Ibrahim and his officers including Afeni at the exit gate to thoroughly examine the Containers that had been released and due for exit that the leadership of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents, ANLCA, National Agency for Government Approved Freight Forwarders, NAGAFF and National Council of Managing Directors of Licensed Customs Agents, NCMDLCA and their aggrieved members, did not find it funny.
The aggrieved agents were said to have petitioned, hAmeed Ali, an Army Colonel rtd, and the immediate past Comptroller General of the Nigerian Customs Service, NCS, to remove the then DC. Ibrahim, from the Onne exit for not giving them a breather to do their job.
DC. Afeni, as a younger officer, who had seen it all may have come to the conclusion that the only way to succeed on the Customs job when holding a sensitive position is not’’ to Compromise but ensure that the right is done’’.
The Customs Deputy Comptroller, who was a growing officer training may have been perfected when he worked under the then DC. Bello Ahmadu Shaibu, National Coordinator, of the defunct Comptroller General of Customs Task Force, Lagos Zonal office, and now an Assistant Comptroller General, Enforcement, Inspection and Investigation, E.I&I, at Customs Headquarters Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory, FCT.
The Customs ACG. may have identified the skills and seen the determination of Afeni, who had risen to the enviable rank of DC. by passing all promotion examination to excel on the job that he had taken him along to Ogun II, Abeokuta, when he was deployed to the Command, as the area Controller with the responsibility of enforcing and regulating all Excise, Free Trade Zone and Parcel post related activities in the state around 2022.
DC. Afeni’s humility and level headedness may have informed why the Customs ACG, had retained him in his inner circles in all other Commands he had superintended including Ogun I, and FOU, Zone B, Kaduna, north western Nigeria.
He may have allowed him to carve niche for himself in the Service when he relocated to the Customs Headquarters, Abuja, as a Management Staff but DC. Afeni’s Leadership qualities could not be hidden for too long as Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, MFR, Customs Comptroller General, located and consider him fit to oversee a Command. The opportunity came with the large number of senior officers including Customs Comptrollers and serving Area Controllers who had been penciled down for retirement and the promotion of one or two serving Area Controller to the Management position between now and early 2027, may have created the opportunities for the CGC, to fill the vacant positions.
It was surprising why the CGC, with inputs from the E.I.&I, Department, may have found DC. Afeni, a possible successor to Compt. Godwin Otunla, the former Ogun I, Command Idiroko, Area Controller, who had been moved to MMA Command, following the retirement of Compt. Michael Awe, his predecessor, whose one- year extension had elapsed.
The Customs Deputy Controller, who knows that he has a big a task at hand ‘’to beat and surpass the monthly revenue records’’ of Compt. Otunla and his cumulative collection of N326. 761 bln, between January, 2025 and December, 2025, until, his redeployment, to MMA, appears to have settled down for the job and regularly meeting with Management team to restrategise.
Going by what he may have learnt from ACG. Shaibu, particular, over the last couple of years, they have been together in the fight against smugglers in south western Nigeria and the seven north western states and six nor central states including the FCT and the south western region may have given the audacity to beam his searchlight at Imeko Afon, Ipokia, Yewa north , Yewa south and Ogun waterside to forestall the activities of the activities of the smugglers , in a state which the NIS, had captured in its Map, had over 90, illegal routes , both land and sea.
Most of the he smugglers who were said to have used the illegal routes in the former President Olusegun Obasanjo home state, to carry out their smuggling activities between Nigeria and the neighbouring Republic of Benin may have deserted the routes with the change in the Leadership in the Ogun I, Command,.
the Ogun I, actg.Area Controller, according to an insider who is not ready to take any excuse for an answer from any outstation , surveillance or patrol team, for non performance may have informed why the various teams are battling to win the Area Controller’s ears by making spectacular seizures just as the smugglers have deserted Sango-Idiroko axis to avoid losing their cargoes and money to the government as the new area Controller’s eyes appears red and out to seize any Contraband cargo like foreign parboiled rice, foreign Vegetable oil and poultry products or fairly used vehicle smuggled into the country.
