Mixed reactions trail Customs’ directive on illegal checkpoints

Following the recent directive by the Comptroller General of The Nigeria Customs Service, Col Hameed Alli (retd) that all illegal checkpoints across the country should henceforth be dismantled, mixed reactions have begun trailing the directive.

It would be recalled that Hameed has ordered the immediate abolishment of all illegal checkpoints; and has even gone ahead to release o official checkpoints in the country to guide members of the public and customs’ operations.

However, stakeholders in the sector are divided over the directives.

According to the National Publicity Secretary of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF), Stanley Ezenga, the directive will not change anything, as the CG’s task force and Federal Operating Units are still mandated to rove the city corridors.

He said, “No illegal checkpoint has been removed in the true sense of it because the CG’s taskforce and Federal Operations Unit (FOU) still have the mandate to rove the city corridors; so, for the fact that they have been asked to leave a place does not mean they have been removed. They are still there; it is not going to change anything.”

On his part, the media aide to the President of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agent (ANLCA), Mr. Joe Sanni said the directive would, at least minimise the menace of illegal checkpoints by customs.

He said, “If it cannot stop it totally, at least, it will minimize it because, the CG did not say all checkpoints must be removed. Don’t forget that some officers go out to establish illegal checkpoints, extort money from few people and then disappear. Illegal checkpoints can come up anywhere. They look for where containers pack mostly or where importers use as their routes; and then mount checkpoints there for like two, three hours, collect money and leave.

“Officially, it is not a bad idea. I believe it will reduce extortion. What the CG of Customs should do is that once a container is arrested, whoever released the container and illegality is discovered, that officer should face the repercussion and not dealing with the importer and agent. If structures are right, there is no need for interfaces.”

Similarly, Secretary of the Port Facility Security Officers (PFSO) Forum ,Ignatius Uche, faulted the directive.

“It is a two-way fault in the sense that, one cannot stop an illegal checkpoint when you still constitute CG monitoring team after you have also considered a federal operation team. The same things checked at these various points are the things that have been released by Customs, duly cleared, pass through rigorous systems, paid for and certified by Customs” he said.