Colonel Hamid Ali

Col. Hamid Ali, the Comptroller-General of Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), on Monday said corrupt practices would no longer be tolerated, be it by officers or clearing agents.

Ali  made the assertion while addressing stakeholders at his maiden working visit to the Apapa Area Command in Lagos. He was also presented with the problems plaguing the clearing of goods at the ports.

“The days of corruption are gone. Anybody caught shall not be left to go scot-free.

“I am a stickler for the enforcement of the law. There is need for law and order, and it is important to follow the rules as they are so that we all do not have problems,’’ he said.

He said that his mandate as the Comptroller-General was to reform, structure the service and importantly, collect revenue for government.

He noted that it was possible for customs to clear goods from the port within 48 hours if there were no falsification of declaration of goods.

The customs boss said that in carrying out his assignment, he would ensure that all acts of cutting corners by some importers and agents were stopped.

Ali said in that regard, anybody culpable would risk being jailed because the greatest challenge had been that of non-compliance with the rules of operation.

He, however, assured the stakeholders of his readiness to deal with any officer found wanting by demanding money from them.

Ali also urged the agents to ensure that they got properly trained by way of capacity building, to help them function adequately as demanded by new technologies.

He said that had not come to make things difficult for operators, rather, he was there to ensure orderliness and comformity to the law to promote trade.

Stakeholders raised issues on challenges they were facing in carrying out their operations.

Dr Kayode Farinto, the Public Relations Officer of the Association of Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) raised the issue of obsolete and faulty scanners at the ports,  the  incessant alerts coming from multiple sources, and  the challenge of opening Form “M’’ due to the FOREX restrictions by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Mrs Julie Ogboru, the Apapa Chairperson of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, complained of delays by terminal operators in positioning containers.

She also complained of the undue delays by the shipping companies and the customs in releasing containers.

Ogboru said it was wrong for the customs to issue and still be the ones to query the PAAR, which often led to delays.