Customs and Challenges of Reform
Although the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has recorded some improvement in the past 100 days in office, many believe that the activities of the new management are plagued by internal wrangling, reports Francis Ugwoke
On assuming office in March this year, the new customs management was saddled with the task of reforming the Service from the age long tradition of corruption. During a press chat with newsmen, the Comptroller-General of the Customs Service, Mr. Jacob Gyang Buba promised to tackle head on this problem.
First, he blamed the Nigerian society for encouraging corruption. He particularly pointed accusing fingers on importers and agents who according to him lure customsmen into corruption by violating rules and regulations guiding imports and exports and resorting to bribery when confronted by the personnel of the Service. But blaming the importers and agents cannot be a strong argument as it is the responsibility of the Service to check such abuse. For it is assumed that those who design rules and regulations first envisage violation and introduce punishment for offenders. It is therefore the duty of the Service to check those who violate import procedures.
Before Buba took over customs leadership, President Olusegun Obasanjo and his two Finance Ministers, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and his Minister of State counterpart, Mrs. Nenadi Usman had written Customs off. To them, the name Customs could well be substituted with corruption.
The new management of the Service was therefore asked to change the situation at the ports.
After100 days in office, indications are that the new mangement is on a good track. Even critics confirm that the team has recorded some improvement. And this is only if they will keep the flag flying. For it is often said that what most new administrators do is to simply put their best in the first few months or year, and derail afterwards. One hopes that the new management will not derail.
For anybody who wants to find out how the Service has performed, all he needs to do is to approach importers and customs agents. And this is for obvious reasons. The wrought in the ports was exposed by a group of customs agents. But the group had grievances against the former customs management. Some of them lost their licences as a result of alleged fraudulent practices, and the best they thought of was to expose the ills at the ports. Among the allegations were that:
100 percent physical examination of import and exports were not being enforced satisfactorily;
diversion of uncustomed containers meant for bonded private terminals;
clearance of non-CRI containers and general cargo;
existence of a cabal involved in collaboration with some of the officers in the handling of non-CRI goods thereby denying the nation of the much needed revene as well as impoverishing other agents;
Using of fake receipts to clear cargo out of the ports;
Use of recycled CRIs.
The agents had in a letter to the former Comptroller-Genral, Alhaji Aliyu Mustapha and copied to President Obasanjo and the Ministry of Finance levelled the aforementioned allegations. When government set up the Presidential Implementation Committee on Customs Reforms (PICF) headed by the Minister of State, Mrs Usman, it was gathered that part of the reasons was to check this problem. In announcing retirements and appointments in the Service, government wanted the new management to address these fraudulent practices.
To many, the new managemetn has fared well. The result is that importers and agents are now lamenting. It is certainly no longer business as usual.
The era of fake CRIs or recycling of CRIs to clear goods, or use of fake bank receipts is over. This is the same for the clearance of goods without CRIs.
Situation reports at the ports show several seizures recorded in the past few months of the new management. There have been over 200 seizures recorded by the Service in the past few months. Out of this number, major seizures include 300 containers of scrap metals and teakwood at Tin Can Island port by officers at the Customs Headquarters and two plane-load of textiles, including 395 packages, at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport Command. The seizures were made by the officers of the Command.
For the first time, the Service impounded an aircraft over contraband imports. This indeed helped in boosting the image of the Service as really out to fight fraudulent practices. It was an incident that brought the Minister of State for Finance, Mrs. Usman to Lagos to witness. An observer noted that in the past, some of such seizures could have been 'converted'.
In the area of welfare, there also appears to be improvement in terms of promotion of officers. However, what has become the handicap of the new management is that it lacks sufficient funds to execute its programmes. The various customs commands are said to be operating under severe hardship. In fact, investigations show that some commands still rely on the goodwill of some importers and agents to run their offices. And this should not be so if the new management wants to dare fraudulent importers. At the border stations, Buba had to confess recently that the Service find it difficult checking smuggling activities as his officers live in the houses owned by these smugglers. What he was in effect saying is that the Service needs to have enough residential houses for its officers. One expcts government to look into the idea of improving on the level of funding for the organisation.
However, what is contronting the Service is the problem of division among the management team. Sources have it that the team is divided into three camps.Those who are involved in this war know better. But the implication is that it portends a lot of danger to the life of the new administration in Customs. The former Customs boss, Alhaji Mustapa was said to have faced the same problem of in-fighting among his colleagues. He remained with the problem for the period of his tenure. But the result was that none of the actors succeeded him. If the management team hopes to sustain its successes so far, the two major camps must think of burying their grievances. Such will do the Service and the nation well.
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