…says inter-agencies’ collaboration key to anti-drug war

By James Ogunnaike, Abeokuta

The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, has disclosed that the NCS has intercepted and destroyed over 200 containers of illicit substances across the country

He said, the feat was achieved through a collaborative framework that involved the Customs Service, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC)

Adeniyi, who disclosed this on Wednesday during a visit to the Ogun II Area Command of the Nigeria Customs Service in Abeokuta, Ogun State capital, emphasized the importance of strategic partnerships, particularly on the ongoing clampdown on illicit drug trafficking, emphasizing that
the inter-agency collaboration has already yielded significant results.

He reaffirmed the service’s commitment to inter-agency collaboration, intelligence-driven operations and support for industrial development .

He said, “the three major agencies that are involved in law against drugs are the CUSTOMS, NDLEA, NAFDAC and I discovered that the more we work together closely, the more we get result, so when Customs declare a state of emergency against importation of illicit drugs in the country, what I did was to rally the support of NAFDAC and NDLEA.

“We have conducted joint operations and this has led to the seizure of over 200 containers , we also came together under the coordination of the office of the National Security Adviser to ensure the destruction of those drugs to ensure that they do not get into the wrong hands.”

The Customs boss extended the same collaborative model to Nigeria’s border communities, particularly around Ogun State.

He highlighted that Customs officers are embedded within these communities and benefit from local intelligence in tackling smuggling and other border-related challenges.

“This is the same template that we are using in our borders communities ,all our customs command around the boarders are encouraged to have structures with which they relate with members of the communities, and because we operate there, we live with them, we also acknowledged the fact that they know the terrain and we have superior intelligence about what is happening in those places and we leverage this intelligence that they provide for us in our operations.

“I assure you that we have a structure for collaboration and we are leveraging on those structures to ensure that we work together.

Recognizing Ogun State’s strategic importance as Nigeria’s industrial gateway and border state, Adeniyi commended Governor Dapo Abiodun for leveraging the state’s location to attract investments and infrastructure development.

“Ogun State is a very strategic place in Nigeria,In terms of the strategic location, we all refers to Ogun state as the gateway state into Nigeria and Ogun state is living up to this appellation.

“Ogun State has a very important and strategic boarder area , boarder point ,the major points in Idiroko boarders that we shared with the Republic of Benin.

“As a very big industrial hub in the country, we now have a State Governor, Dapo Abiodun leveraging this important asset to strategic location in Ogun State .

“I’m here today to assure the governor and the good people of the states, that Nigeria Customs Service would continue to remain a very strong partner of our nation towards economic prosperity, using this initiatives as a pillar”he added.

Speaking on the suspension of excise duty on carbonated drinks, by a court ruling, the CG said, “we’re not seeing the loss as absolute. Our total excise revenue stood at N6 trillion in 2024, and we aimed to grow revenue from tobacco and alcohol to 5%.

“The carbonated drinks suspension cost us about 3% of this, but we want businesses to survive and retain jobs”.

He stated that Customs has challenged the ruling in an appellate court and waits legal clarity before taking further steps.

“There’s a global movement to control the consumption of sugary drinks. Nigeria is part of that framework. Until the appeal is determined, we will continue to suspend collection on carbonated drinks,” he said.