Kehinde Emmanuel, Ilorin
The Controller General of Customs, Bashir Adeniyi, would appear at the National Assembly to clear the air on the extension of years of service of customs officers who are expected to have gone on retirement but are still in service.
Answering questions from journalists during an official visit to the Kwara State Customs Command headquarters in Ilorin, on Monday, the CGC, said “we will be at the National Assembly tomorrow, we already have our facts.
“We don’t manufacture papers, anything that we do, we have approvals for it, we are an agency that is guided by the rule of law and once we know that we are operating on the right side of the law, we have nothing to fear.”
Adeniji confirmed that the approval for extension of service for the affected officers was given by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu after proper process.
“The Controller of Customs, Kwara State command, Faith Ojeifo, who has performed creditably well during his tenure on duty is among the officers who got the approval to stay on in service with an extension that was properly processed and approved by the president.
“We will not allow anybody to operate outside the provision of the law, we will be there to explain everything to them,” he added.
Adeniji, who spoke extensively on the fight against petroleum smuggling in the country, lamented that except the authorities engage all members of society, “we may be the losers of we allow smuggling to thrive in the country.”
He asserted that the menace constitutes a great danger to the country and all measures will be put in place to check the menace and bring culprits to book according to the law.
The CGC, however, noted that significant results have been achieved in the efforts to curb petroleum smuggling through the use of advanced technology by the agency.
He said with about 17 land borders in the country, the fight against petroleum smuggling, among others, would require more advanced technology and the involvement of the critical stakeholders.
In his remark, the state controller of customs, Faith Ojeifo, said the fight against persistent petroleum smuggling must be a collective exercise.
