Acting comptroller-general of the Nigeria Customs Service Bashir Adewale Adeniyi has said stiff punishment will be meted out on violators of the new Customs Act. It provides for the reform of the administration and management of Customs and excise. The focus is on improper exportation of goods.
The CG gave the warning during a sensitisation workshop at a two-day ‘Sensitisation Workshop on the Nigeria Customs Service Act, NCSA, 2023’. The workshop was organized for members of the Nigeria Customs management.
Speaking to participants at the workshop yesterday in Abuja, Adeniyi expressed excitement on the fact that the Act is punitive enough for violations of customs laws.
“Criminals are always willing to commit fraud, because they know that they’re going to get a slap on the wrist. So what this law has brought are very, very heavy, punitive sanctions. That should deter people from committing those violations against the customs law,” he said.
“At the risk of leaking out our plans, I would tell you that one of the things that I intend to do, as we start, will be to take a look at our procedures, processes and the parks in the border areas, our enforcement strategies. We are going to review all of that and we want to do it in such a way that they promote user friendliness and also promote economic growth without compromising national security.”
Stating that the NCS has been statutorily empowered to administer and enforce the provisions of the Act, Adeniyi said, “We can now also Collect and account for revenue from Customs and Excise among others. Also, our Service will be able to promote trade facilitation, prevent smuggling activities and carry out border enforcement.”
The new law empowers Customs to superintend over its budget line items which cost 10 per cent or less of the entire capital budget under review. This makes it faster for the Service to be able to implement their capital projects as quickly as possible to enhance the performance of officers in service delivery.
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