Ali, CG Customs

The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Col. Hameed Ali (Rtd) NCS, has approved the promotion of a total of 3,487 senior officers of the service of various ranks.

The promotion exercise, is sequel to an earlier approval by President Muhammadu Buhari covers senior officers of the ranks of Comptrollers, Deputy Comptrollers, Assistant Comptrollers and Chief Superintendents of the service, among others.

The promoted officers include former National Public Relations officer of the service, Mr. Wale Adeniyi, who was elevated from the rank Deputy to full Comptroller while the incumbent, Joseph Attah and a former PRO of Apapa command of the service, Mr. Dera Nnadi were promoted from their former rank of Assistant to Deputy Comptroller.

The deputy PRO Abubakar Dalhatu was promoted to the rank of Chief Superintendent respectively.

A statement by the PRO, Attah said that the service has also harmonised the dichotomy that existed between officer with the Higher National Diploma HND and the with university Degree certificates

According to him, the promotion was strictly based on merit, considering the cumulative scores from the promotion examination, oral interview and seniority.

Apart from the former National PRO, other officers newly promoted to the rank of Comptroller include Musa MBA, Angbalaga J.J and Seriki-Kebbi MM.

The Comptroller General, who decorated some of the promoted officers, charged them to see their promotion as a call to higher duty.

The CG also said that the service has approved the removal of dichotomy between holders of Higher National Diploma and Bachelors Degrees.

According to the CG, this move is in line with the ongoing reforms pursuant to circular Ref: HCSF/EPO/EIR/CND/100/ST/98 dated September 8, 2016 from the Head of Service of the Federation and the approval of the Federal Government as far back as April 1992, in which the Nigeria Customs Service was directed to align with the Nigeria Police Force rank structure..

He therefore directed immediate alignment of rank structure of the service with that of Nigeria Police.

He said: “With this directive officers in the Inspectorate cadre on Salary Grade Level 08 and above are to align with the appropriate rank in the Superintendent Cadre”..

Meanwhile, Comptroller Olusemire Kayode, who responded on behalf of the newly decorated officers, thanked the management of the service and assured that the officers would rededicate themselves to effective service delivery in the overall interest of the Nigerian nation.

He also pledged that the newly promoted would justify the confidence reposed in them by contributing their best to the course of nation building.

A breakdown of the promotion shows a total of 17 officers were promoted from the rank of Deputy Comptrollers to full Comptroller, 27 Assistant Comptroller to Deputy Comptroller, 156 Chief Superintendents to Assistant Comptrollers, 62 Superintendents Chief Superintendents, 86 Deputy Superintendents to Superintendents, 144 Assistant Superintendents 1 to Deputy Superintendents and 2, 522 Assistant Superintendents ii to Assistant Superintendent i as well as 23 officers of the rank of Deputy Chief Inspector of Customs to Chief Inspector of Customs.

Others include 30 Assistant Chief Inspector of Customs promoted to Deputy Chief Inspector of Customs, among several others.

The new management had in the last one year embarked on several reforms in the service, which has led to the promotion of several officers, including those in the ranks of Deputy and Assistant Comptrollers General of the service..

Conversely, many officers and men of the service have also been sacked from the service as part of the reforms, which is in tandem with the policy of the management to rid the service of the bad eggs within the system.