About two months after his appointment, the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Col. Hameed Alli (Rtd) will be in Lagos from Monday on a familiarization visit to all customs commands and to hold discussions with critical port stakeholders.
Shipping Position Daily gathered authoritatively yesterday that the Customs CG had on Tuesday held a meeting with all the Customs Areas Controller in Abuja where he informed them about his planned visits.
About two months after his appointment, the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Col. Hameed Alli (Rtd) will be in Lagos from Monday on a familiarization visit to all customs commands and to hold discussions with critical port stakeholders.
Shipping Position Daily gathered authoritatively yesterday that the Customs CG had on Tuesday held a meeting with all the Customs Areas Controller in Abuja where he informed them about his planned visits.
The visit was confirmed exclusively to one of our correspondents yesterday by the National Public Relations Officer (PRO) of Customs, Mr Wale Adeniyi.
He said that essentially, the visit is to enable the CG of Customs to familiarise with critical stakeholders of the Service and also meet with Customs personnel at the various commands.
Adeniyi stated that the CGC will visit and discuss with stakeholders for a first hand feel of all issues.
Meanwhile, ahead of the visit, the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) has said that new Customs boss may not succeed in his campaign against corruption in the service if he fails to carry out a major shake-up.
Speaking with Shipping Position Daily via telephone in Lagos yesterday, Chairman of Apapa Chapter of NAGAFF; Mr. Fred Adjuzie said that there is need for Alli to dismantle officers controlling major commands like Tin Can and Apapa ports, who according to him, are still loyal to his predecessor; Dikko Inde Abdullahi.
Adjuzie took a swipe at the CGC for failing to call for a stakeholders meeting since he was appointed.
According to him, h,”he is supposed to first of all visit the port, since his appointment three months ago, he cannot even call for a stakeholders meeting, I don't think the way he is going about it is the way it should be, major stakeholders like us are the first point of call, we are the ones to brief him with details of what is happening if he really wants to work and settle down"
"Somebody that has been appointed for three months now and he still left all the commands the way they are without making changes, the people he left there are still answerable to the former CG because they are his boys", he alleged.
"If he wants to succeed and stem corruption, let him make changes, every part of customs must be changed, some people have spent eight years, seven years in some of the ports like Apapa seat, Tin Can seat, these people were appointed by the formers CG, the first thing he should do is to destabilize these people"
"I am an operational person, I am the chairman and I know what I am talking about" the NAGAFF Chairman told our correspondent.
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