[dropcap]C[/dropcap]omptroller Mohammed Uba has been redeployed as the new Area Controller of the Nigeria Customs Service, Seme Command, the Grassroots Publishers reports.
Grassroots Publisher reports that Mohammed Uba , who has assumed duty at Seme today, was prior to now the Controller of the Federal Operations Unit , Zone ‘A’Ikeja , Lagos.He told the officers and men of the command that his intention was to consolidate on the achievements of his predecessor.The controller said that he would intensify his efforts toward more revenue generation.
In a brief ceremony conducted at the Seme Customs conference room,the outgoing Comptroller Mohammed Aliyu formally handed over the Command with the signing of the Handing/Taking over notes by both comptrollers.
In his remarks, the outgoing Controller thanked the Comptroller General of Customs (Col. Hameed Ibrahim Ali rtd) for the opportunity given to him to serve and contribute his quota in the development of the nation. He promised to continue putting in more efforts at his new place of assignment and equally prayed for the success of his successor.
Comptroller Mohammed Aliyu disclosed that his tenure witnessed an unprecedented increase in revenue and seizures despite the numerous challenges. He gave a breakdown of his achievements as follows: between the months of March 2017 and August 2018, he collected a total revenue of overEight billion Naira (N8,433,739,742.27) and also made 1060 seizures with Duty Paid Value (DPV) of over One billion Naira (N1,040,911,899.32)in the period under review. He also seized over 39950x50kg bags of rice which is equivalent to 66 trailer trucks.Furthermore,over 28,000 bags of rice were sent to IDP’s as per existing Federal Government policy.Inaddition to that, thirty seven (37) exotic vehicles were also confiscated. Also seized are various medicaments and other perishable items which were duly condemned and destroyed.
He also took some proactive steps to give the Seme border area an international outlook; critical amidst them is the reclaiming of the Seme border customs land that has over the years been encroached on illegally by unscrupulous individuals without due process and approval; by sanitizing the gate way corridor, he also reduced the miscreants and touts called “Kelegbes” who infiltrated the border and hinders trade facilitation. He also blocked an illegal passage by building a wall to the joint border post to ensure border security.
The new Customs Area Controller, Comptroller Mohammed Uba Garba expressed his gratitude and wishes him God’s guidance in his new place of work. He also reminded the Customs officers on the importance of discipline in the discharge of their duties. According to him, team work, commitment and dedication to duty is essential in achieving success towards moving the command to greater heights.
“All hands must be on deck in dealing with the challenges of manning a peculiar international border like Seme, which is characterised by heavy vehicular movement and human traffic.“All officers must follow the policy thrust of the Comptroller-General of Customs while discharging their statutory responsibilities.
“We must also perform well in terms of revenue generation, anti-smuggling drive, legitimate trade facilitation and the security of the nation through the effective manning of the border.”
Comptroller Mohammed Uba Garba urged all officers to imbibe the culture of transparency and professionalism while discharging their responsibilities.He warned that any act of negative conduct among officers would not be tolerated by him.