28 Senior, 8 Junior Officers Decorated
By Amina Ojelabi
The Western Marine Command (WMC) of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has recorded a major breakthrough in its fight against smuggling, intercepting stolen chemicals, cannabis, rice, and other contraband goods with a combined duty paid value of ₦582.2 million.
Announcing the seizures at a press briefing in Lagos on Thursday, the Customs Area Controller (CAC), Comptroller Patrick Ntadi, said the command intercepted 86 sacks of stolen Ammonium Sulphate and Polypropylene worth ₦4.5 million. He described the chemicals as “dangerous substances” often used in fertilizer plants and in the manufacture of explosives, which were stolen from a boat en route to a fertilizer plant.
Other seizures include 1,312 loaves of foreign Cannabis Sativa valued at ₦232.8 million, 1,827 bags of foreign parboiled rice worth ₦204.6 million, and 174 additional sacks of Ammonium Sulphate worth ₦15.6 million.
The Command also confiscated 42 kegs of Premium Motor Spirit (₦1.94 million), 14 boat engines (₦73.3 million), 11 fiber boats (₦46.2 million), and three wooden boats (₦3.15 million).
Comptroller Ntadi attributed the success to enhanced surveillance and intelligence gathering, stressing that the seizures were “a significant blow to smuggling activities on Nigeria’s waterways.”
Beyond enforcement, the Command has also made strides in infrastructure and welfare. Ntadi highlighted recent projects, including the evacuation of hoodlums around the Command, construction of a new security post, installation of a signboard for identity, greenfield landscaping, and the refurbishment of two patrol vehicles.
He added that modern staff facilities, such as new toilets and a canteen, had also been provided to boost morale.
In line with the Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi’s vision for service excellence, the Command decorated 28 newly promoted senior officers
and 8 junior officers, among them the Command’s Public Relations Officer, CSC Okopi. Ntadi charged the officers to uphold professionalism, integrity, and dedication in their new roles.
Meanwhile, the seized 1,312 loaves of Cannabis Sativa were formally handed over to the Commander of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Apapa Strategic Command, ACGN Obadiah Buba Wakawa. Commending the Customs team, Wakawa said, “Only God knows the level of destruction these drugs would have caused if they had entered the society.”
Leave a Reply