Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has expressed willing to outsource the management of its security patrol boats and ships to the Nigerian Navy Dockyard Limited.
The Comptroller-General of NCS, Adewale Adeniyi MFR, disclosed this during his recent visit to the Naval Dockyard at Victoria Island, Lagos.
Recall that News Diet earlier reported that the Nigerian Navy, as part of inter-agency collaboration offered to construct a standard jetty/ mini-dockyard for the marine division of Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) at Western Marine Customs Command.
Navy To Construct Standard Jetty For Western Marine Customs
To explore this offer and other strategic collaborative efforts, Customs CG has taken a step further to deepen collaboration between the Service and the Nigerian Navy to maintain its presence in Nigeria’s territorial waters against smugglers.
“We don’t need to establish a vessel maintenance unit; it’s capital intensive, but we have an agency of government that has the knowledge, that has the capacity and there’s the willingness for them to assist us.”
“I have seen and marveled by the capacity that exists here in the Naval Dockyard and we believe that we could tap into that capacity and enter into some agreement with you so that you could manage the maintenance of our fleets,” the Customs boss said.
While the move Navy-Customs partnership is seen as a massive win for local content on ship building, repair and maintenance; industry observers have also commended the security agencies collaboration in tackling threats on the waterways.
The Customs CG also stressed that fortifying the NCS’ presence in Nigeria’s coastal waters will reduce smuggling activities to the barest minimum.
“If we block the land borders effectively and do not maintain a very strong presence on our territorial waters, smugglers will take advantage, so we also need to fortify and enhance our presence to checkmate those who may want to try smuggling through our waters,” the CGC stated.
In his response, Admiral Superintendent, Naval Dockyard Limited, Lagos, Rear Admiral Abolaji Orederu, maintained that the Naval dockyard can play a significant role in vessel maintenance, repairs and even shipbuilding.
“Naval dockyard is well poised to take advantage of situations like this, and we see the Nigeria Customs Service as a powerful ally of the Nigerian Navy.”
“The capacity is here and the excess capacity can be used to support other agencies, the larger maritime community and the shipping world as a whole,” the Naval boss posited.
