The Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Col. Hameed Ali rtd. has said that the decision of the service to carry out a major shake-up in the top management of the service was to reposition the service to enable it cope with future challenges.

The CG had approved the redeployment of eight Assist Comptrollers General ACGs and other senior officers in what stakeholders described as a minor cabinet reshuffle.

Details of the shake-up show that a total of 246 officers were affected, comprising eight Assistant Comptrollers General and 238 Deputy Comptrollers of Customs. which the statement says takes immediate effect.

In a statement signed on behalf of the Comptroller General by the Deputy Public Relations Officer, Mr. Joseph Attah, an Assistant Comptroller of the service, said that the exercise was in line with the efforts of the current management to strengthen the operations of the service and reposition it to meet the challenges of the New Year 2017.

It was however gathered that the shake-up was designed to inject some fresh blood in some strategic units to enforce government fiscal policies and also boost the declining revenue profile of the service.

The affected Comptrollers General include ACG Charles Edike, who was until now, the Zonal Coordinator in charge of Lagos Zone A, who now moves to the Customs headquarters, Abuja as ACG in charge of Human Resource Development HRD while ACG Ahmed Mohammed formerly in charge of the HRD becomes Zonal Coordinator in charge of zone B.

Similarly, ACG Aminu Dangaladima formerly in charge of Zone B moves to the Enforcement unit at the headquarters even as ACG Francis Dosumu moves from the Enforcement unit to Zone D.

Also ACG Augustine Chidi formerly of Zone D moves to the Excise, Free Trade Zone and Industrial Incentives Ex,FTZ, & I I, while ACG Monday Abueh formerly of the Ex, FTZ, & I I moves to Zone A to take over from ACG Edike while ACG Umar Sanusi moves from the headquarter to take over Zone C in Port Harcourt from ACG Abdulkadir Azerema who returns to the headquarters.

Among the 238 Deputy Comptrollers of of the redeployed include the National Public Relations Officer of the service, DC Wale Adeniyi, who is now posted

to Apapa Customs Area Command in Lagos.

Also, all the affected officers are expected to report at their new Zones and commands with immediate effect..

The Comptroller-General, who also spoke on some of the new fiscal policies of Federal Government and operations of the service insisted that the ban on

importation of rice and vehicles through the land borders remain in force.

He however charged all the affected officers and men of the service to ensure maximum collection of revenue and strict implementation of fiscal policy of Government.