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The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Federal Operations Unit (FOU) Zone A, has intensified collaboration with the Nigerian Navy following a strategic aerial surveillance of critical waterways and suspected smuggling hotspots in Lagos and the South-West region.
The exercise, conducted with the Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) Western Naval Command, Rear Admiral Abubakar Mustapha, is part of efforts to strengthen intelligence-sharing and coordinated operations against smuggling, illegal drugs, prohibited goods and other maritime crimes.
Speaking after the surveillance, Comptroller of FOU Zone A, Gambo Aliyu, described inter-agency cooperation as essential but stressed the need to elevate it into a more strategic partnership capable of delivering sustained operational results.
“Inter-agency cooperation is sacrosanct. However, we have to take this a notch higher into strategic partnership. It’s not only desirable, but essential,” Aliyu said.
He explained that the aerial assessment enabled both agencies to obtain first-hand intelligence on the terrain and identify areas requiring closer surveillance and intervention.
According to him, the exercise was not merely a courtesy engagement but a strategic assessment designed to strengthen the agencies’ understanding of vulnerabilities along the maritime corridors.
He remarked that in an era where organised crime has seen criminals collaborating to carryout their nefarious acts, security agencies must move into a higher level of alliance that he called “strategic partnerships.”
“We needed to see for ourselves what’s going on along the corridor,” he said, noting that the team observed several boats, including one that had just discharged its cargo.
Aliyu disclosed that the observations would feed into an ongoing threat and vulnerability assessment, with heightened surveillance and coordinated operations expected in the coming weeks.
“We are going to be putting our eyes there, and in the coming weeks, they’re going to be hearing from us and we’re going to be doing the coordinated operation,” he said.
The Comptroller linked the initiative to the policy direction of the Comptroller-General of Customs, Dr. Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, MFR, who has consistently promoted inter-agency collaboration as a cornerstone of effective national security and institutional performance.
He assured that FOU Zone A would sustain and deepen its partnership with the Nigerian Navy, particularly given the Navy’s strategic role on the maritime front lines.
“We have this collaboration ongoing, and we’re ready to sustain it and to take it to a higher level,” Aliyu said.
On his part, the FOC Western Naval Command, Rear Admiral Mustapha, said the collaboration was critical to curbing illicit drug trafficking and other criminal activities, warning that the impact of drug abuse could undermine the quality of manpower needed to drive Nigeria’s economy.
He disclosed that both agencies had identified key operational requirements and would leverage technology to complement human intelligence and strengthen surveillance capabilities. According to him, enhanced technological capacity would support personnel conducting operations on the ground.
Mustapha described the engagement as “a good step in the right direction”, stressing that the Nigerian Navy and Customs must operate as strategic partners in advancing both national security and economic development.
He added that effective inter-agency synergy was indispensable, noting that criminal operations often succeed when security agencies fail to share intelligence and coordinate their activities.
