The Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi MFR has said that the just concluded 2026 edition of Zone ‘A’ inter-command games aligns with the management’s policy direction of Consolidation, Collaboration and Innovation, which currently drives all the reforms and modernisation projects being executed in the last two and half years when he mounted the saddle.

The sports competition with the theme: “Fit to Serve, United to Lead”, saw three weeks of intense sporting activities across the commands under Zone A, Lagos of the Service comprising volley ball, football and other games, bringing together all the officers and men of the commands over the three weeks.

Speaking at the grand finale of the games, which saw match past and colourful displays by all the commands, biking and a final football match between the Customs Training College, Ikeja and the Murtala Mohammed Airport Area Command, the CG noted that it took a combination of innovations and strategy, which align the management’s policy direction to organise such a colourful event, which held Saturday September 5, 2025 at the Customs Training College, Ikeja Lagos.

“From the number of vehicles parked on the road as we were trying to drive in, something told me that something big was happening here. Even when we drove into the college, the number of people we saw also suggested a carefully planned and executed sports festival.

“It takes innovation and collaboration for all the commands to put up this beautiful and colourful event and I can tell you that this quite commendable because it resonates with the management’s initiative of ensuring and enhancing work-health balance”, the CG said.

Commenting on the facilities at the College, the CG expressed displeasure over the state of the facilities at the college more than 30 years after he passed out of the college.

He argued that the Service, which is actively involved in so many national sporting activities should have modern sporting infrastructure at the Lagos college that befits its image, adding that plans are underway to commence the upgrading of the sporting infrastructure at the College.

He said: “I am ashamed that the sporting infrastructure at this college is still at this same level about 30 years after I passed through this college. Truly, it is a sad commentary for an organisation like the Nigeria Customs Service, which is the defending champion in the national volley competition; the CG is the President of the National Wrestling Board and the Service is also doing well in other football activities.

“I was in Kano last week and I saw that modern sports infrastructure is being built at the college and I was quite impressed. We might need to begin an upgrade of the sporting facilities at the Lagos College but we are concentrating on building a more modern sports infrastructure at the new site of the college in Iperu, Ogun State but in the interim, we may need to do something to upgrade the state of the facilities here.”

In concluding, the CG noted that three lessons could be drawn from the successful hosting of the sporting event, which include discipline, insisting that the officers and men must be discipline if the organisational goals were to be achieved, team work without which the Service cannot move forward and enabling strategy, which would be a combination of action plans methods of achieving them.

He commended the Zonal Coordinator, Customs Zone A, Assistant Comptroller General Mohammed Babandede and the chairman of the organising committee, Comptroller Chidi Okorie, who doubles as Customs Area Controller of Murtala Mohammed Airport command and indeed all the officers and men of under the zone, who worked as a team to make the even colourful and successful.

Earlier in his welcome speech, ACG Babandede attributed the huge success of the event to the zeal and dedication of all the officers and men, who put in everything into the event to ensure it succeeded. He also thanked the CG for graciously approving the event, which has not only entertained people in the last three weeks but has also brought about boding among the officers and men.

Chairman of the organising committee, who also spoke earlier, noted that the aim of the competition was to ensure work health balance, make the officers and men fit and also enhance boding within the large Customs family.

He made a strong case for the expansion of the competition among all the zones of the Service to make it more robust and all-embracing for the entire Service, arguing that a healthy workforce remains the future of the Service.

A highpoint of the event was the final football competition between the Police College and the Murtala Mohammed Airport command, which was won by the College boys, lifting the trophy while winners in other fields of sports were presented with their trophies and other consolation prizes.