Pius Ujubonu (ANLCA Chieftain)
The Nigeria Customs Service has performed reasonably from the official point of view. The baseline performance indicators for Nigeria Customs Service by the Federal ministry of finance. Customs’ major mandate appears to be the convoluted tubule. The jobs of customs include quality, quantity, origin, security, and commercial intelligence. The galloping,hyper and cyclical inflation has a reasonable relationship with the single minded revenue drive from the customs. Nigeria Customs service appears to be struggling with functions and relevance crisis.
Indicatively, the Customs hurried launch of B’ODOGWU with little due diligence, the hardships inflicted on traders. A new and revolutionary product like that needed to have been approached with proper planning, employment of ‘change management initiatives. Customs need to do a proper reappraisal of her modus operandi / vivendi to bring discipline and efficient service delivery. By and large Nigeria Customs under BA Adeniyi’s Watch has done well.
Simeon Nwonu (Deputy National President, NAGAFF)
Well, it depends on the angle one is looking at it from. From the angle of freight forwarders, I think that the performance cannot be described as being so good because at the end of the day, freight forwarders bear the brunt of whatever they promise to deliver to the federal government. So, in other words, the significance of customs is not helping freight forwarders to complete their jobs. A lot of people have been out of work. They have been put out of the system because they could not cope. In the situation where importers are complaining, duties are being increased as well. Nigeria should emulate the right things to do. They have to understand that in modern-day customs, modern-day customs do not emphasize revenue collection. They emphasize trade facilitation. In Nigeria, the reverse is the case. Instead of talking about trade facilitation, how to make international trade, especially in Nigeria, they are only concerned with how to generate revenue and it is not good for the society at large. So, I expect that customs will have a rethink and begin to do like other customs formations all over the world.
Frank Obiekezie (National Secretary, AREFFN)
From my perspective, customs is giving the impression that they are reforming. But those insiders will tell you that not much has changed, other than every command talking of revenue. How much they are made and how much they intend to make, how they will triple their target and so on and so forth. So it’s like the new Customs Act 2023 is, you know, all about making more and more money for the government. But the customs has not said anything or done anything about the clearing exchange rate. When you talk about trade facilitation, it’s about doing business, creating an environment conducive for business. The major thing that controls or gives direction in the port is the duty payment. So, the importers and the freight forwarders are being pushed to the extreme, while customs is so focused on the revenue they are raising.
Babatunde Mukaila (Former National Secretary, ANLCA)
Nigeria Customs Service management team has performed creditably well in the area of modernization and introduction of global trades tools to enhance cargo clearance. Nevertheless, more need to be done on Non Trade Barriers (NTB). In this instance, on goods valuation determination.
Taiwo Fatomilola (National PRO AREFFN)
The Nigeria Customs have performed woefully in the area of server. This is because it is the oil that fuels the engine of duty payments and every other service rendered by Customs. The revenue declared was collected through poor service rendered. We expect that they do better going forward.
Prince Segun Adefioye (ANLCA Chieftain, Lilypond- Ijora Chapter)
With what they are seeing and hearing, at least I would say the Nigeria Customs is trying under the leadership of Adewale Adeniyi . But at the same time, there are some things they need to put in order, so that things can go on well. We have Customs officers from Lily pond command in all the commands with the Lilypond Command as the headquarters for export, but we are not seeing the effect of that. Sometimes other agencies such as NAFDAC or NDLEA still intervene subjecting a cleared container for export into another round of examination which is not supposed to be so. This has been cleared and has been satisfied by their command.
Innocent Elum (BoT Secretary, AREFFN)
I will say the Nigeria Customs Service has done its best in the last one year. If you look at the angle of a career officer coming to be the topmost helm of affairs is commendable and in the right direction. The new Sheriff in Town, CGC Adeniyi has also brought back the CGC conference which was also held last year. The idea of giving targets to the Customs is not in line with common sense and international best practice. I had expected that the new CG is going to tackle that headlong. The issue is what pushes Customs mostly to take action that it should not do such as going to the highways and markets to look for contraband, all in the name of generating revenue. This is not good and it should be addressed.
