The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has concluded plans to move two previously abandoned ocean-going security vessels to the Nigerian Navy Dockyard for maintenance and repairs ahead of their deployment for operations.
News Diet recalls that the vessels: ‘Customs Pride’ and ‘Group of Nine’, had been engulfed in contractual issues between Customs and the vessels’ consultant, Portplus Limited, leading to the jettisoning of the marine assets at Lagos Marina for over eight years.
However, the Comptroller General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi MFR, revealed plans to move the marine security assets to the Naval Dockyard when he paid a courtesy visit to the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla, on Tuesday.
While stating that the essence of the visit was to strengthen collaboration between the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and the Nigerian Navy, the Customs boss reassured his commitment to enhancing the relationship between the two agencies for effective anti-smuggling strategies across Nigerian waterways.
The CGC further highlighted the NCS’s possession of ocean-going and creek-going vessels in its fleets while stating the plan underway to transport the two ocean-going vessels to the Nigerian Navy Dockyard for maintenance.
His words: “It is important for us to participate in joint operations to combat smuggling activities. We also need to tap on the experience of the Nigerian Navy to enhance the capacity of personnel serving within the Customs Marine Units. It is necessary for us to prioritize intelligence-driven operations. This could be achieved through intelligence sharing between the two agencies.”
Meanwhile, the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla, expressed gratitude for the visit and underscored the Nigerian Navy’s commitment to assisting in enforcing Customs laws.
Ogalla stressed the importance of reciprocal collaboration and assured that Nigerian Navy training facilities would be made available to the NCS at no cost.
Vice Admiral Ogalla also harped on the need for deeper collaboration with an outfit of the Nigerian Navy meant for clearing items imported by the agency to mitigate all incumbrances.
He also shared a five-year-old Harmonized Standard Operating Procedure (HSOP) for monitoring maritime crimes and advocated for review considering the prevailing situation.
The meeting signifies a significant step towards enhancing maritime security and curbing smuggling activities along Nigeria’s coastal waters.
