Acting Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Mr Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, has described the service as a catalyst of economic growth, saying that the newly unveiled Nigeria Customs Act (NCSA 2023), would boost the revenue of Nigerian.
It explained that the NCSA law is the tools and Legal instruments through which government and its agencies derive the powers and authority to carry out their mandate.
Adeniyi, disclosed this in Abuja, during the opening ceremony of a sensitization workshop on the implementation of the Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023. Said that the service will continue to sensitize and educate the public on the provisions of the law.
Customs boss said: “The Nigeria Customs Service is one of the very important agencies of the Federal Government saddled with the enormous responsibility of administering, managing and enforcing the provision of the defunct Customs and Excise Management Act Cap C45 LFN 2004 (CEMA).
“This CEMA was enacted 63 years ago and had remained in operation since then without any significant amendment notwithstanding the expansion in government, growth in population and over dynamic progress and challenges in the economy.
“Consequent upon this, several attempts were made in the past to cause amendments or the repeal of CEMA to no avail. The efforts were necessary because the provisions of CEMA had become obsolete and could no longer adequately meet the contemporary fiscal policies of the Government and the mandate of the Service”.
Add, “We are aware of the onerous responsibilities on the shoulder of Nigeria customer service. And I want to assure all our stakeholders that by working on the pillars of consolidation, collaboration, and innovation, we will discharge our responsibilities on the ACT.
“We are going to engage in very constructive consultations with members of the organized private sectors and all the other stakeholders to ensure we get the maximum benefit from this act. We recognize the role of customs as catalysts of economic growth.
“Now we have the power and we have the legal framework that gives us the leverage to do this, we will therefore, start by reviewing our policies or processes that constitute obstacles to free trade.”
Meanwhile, the Director of Legal Services, NCS, Bar. Smart Amanda, noted that the Act was put into use will strengthen and promote the operation and administrative capacity of the service in the discharge of his mandate.
In his remarks, the former of House Committee chairman of Customs, Hon. Leke Abejide, said that the reforms injected into the Nigerian Customs Act 2023 is the enhancement of trade facilitation policies of the service, which has upgraded the status of the 21st-century strategic revenue-generating institution.
Abejide said: “The reforms introduced by the new Act have a tremendous effect on every facet of our national economy and also the officers’ career progression with some enhanced level of professionalism and job motivation which has hitherto been deprived of the Service.
“This new legislation further marks a significant milestone in our efforts to streamline Customs procedures, enhance trade facilitation, and foster a conducive environment for economic growth and development.
“Today every Customs Officer is assured that his labour is not going to be truncated at the peak of his career neither is he going to be denied the fruit of long, faithful and dedicated service to his/her motherland. The provisions of Section 14 (1) of the new Act is very instructive on professionalism, by providing appointment of a career officer from the Service to be head of management of the service.”
Speaking earlier, the Director-General of, the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC), Mr John Asein, restate his commitment to work with the Customs, said: “The handshake between the NCC and the Nigeria Customs Service has yielded so much fruit in bringing down piracy across the borders.
“I believe that under the new dispensation, we will renew what we already have as a memorandum which had been working very well with us.”
