Comptroller Ahmadu Bello Shuaibu, Area Controller of Federal Operations Unit (FOU) Zone B, Kaduna, of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has through his strategy and leadership style blew a giant hole in the activities of Economic Saboteurs who are plying the Northern region to perpetuate their illegal enterprises by crippling their existence to enhance trade facilitation, generates more revenue, curb smuggling activities, and also enhance efficiency in the Unit.
Four months of assuming duty as Area Controller of Federal Operations Unit (FOU) Zone B, Kaduna, of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), he has taken bold steps in curbing the menace of smuggling and evasion of duties through Northern borders when it was at its peak and has wreaked.
Comptroller Bello Shuaibu deployed competent officers across the nooks and crannies of the Unit and simultaneously; hence, complemented CGC Adewale Adeniyi’s mission statement of consolidation, collaboration and innovation.
Also, Known for his functional strategies, has deployed proactive tactics to tame the unscrupulous elements plying the Northern region; hence, he has become Smugglers Nightmare in the region as he has continued to hit the smugglers hard, by making significant seizures worth millions of naira that would have been sabotaged by the mischievous smugglers.
This move yielded tremendous success as seizures of contrabands are being recorded on a weekly basis.
In the last four months, vehicles, rice, consignments of pangolin scale, worth over three billion, second hand clothes, among others had been intercepted by customs officers under his watch.
A breakdown of the value of the seizures made within the period under review include- 750 sacks of Donkey bones and Donkey meat as well as other prohibited items valued at N3.1 billion; 58,740 sachets of tramadol and 48,000 ampules of Analgin injection worth N167.5Million; 12 vehicles (means of conveyance) 174 Bags of Foreign Rice (50 kg each), 234 Jerry cans of PMS (25 litres each) 109 bales of second hand clothing 367 cartons of Spaghetti 50 cartons of Macaroni 47 Jerry cans of foreign vegetable oil; 6 sacks of used shoes; 100 sacks of snuff 30 bags of foreign sugar (25kg each) 2,255 cartons of herbicide chemical; 10 cartons of foreign couscous 235 Bags of Foreign flour (25kg each) and Over 100 cartons of general goods among others.
His intimidating track records has made the miscreants to be on the run.
Comptroller Shu’aibu has always informed that Compliance is not only a legal obligation but a strategic choice that ensures the smooth and efficient flow of goods across Nigerian borders. Smugglers are thus encouraged to embrace legal activities and desist from unpatriotism.
His words, “Smuggling has really affected the economy of Nigeria in several ways. It hinders the local industry, discourages legal imports and reduces the volume of revenues collected from duties and levies by the states. This Unit will continue to enforce the Federal Government’s policies in line with international best practices, no matter the campaign of calumny against the Service”.
