Nigeria Customs Service Administers Nationwide Promotion Exams to Enhance Transparency

In a bid to promote transparency and career growth, Nigeria Customs has conducted promotional examinations nationwide for officers and men of the service.

The examination, which started with the rank of Deputy Comptrollers, Assistant Comptrollers, and Chief Superintendent of Customs on October 16, 2023, at Sascon International School in Abuja, saw dedicated officers hailing from various Area Commands and Units showcase their intellectual prowess in line with the Standard Operating Procedure established to promote deserving officers based on merit.

The Ag Comptroller General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, MFR, while noting that the exams ensure transparency and fairness in the process, stressed that promotion is not just a welfare program for customs; it's essential to regenerate the service and ensure that those who are deserving of various positions are elevated.

"We had some pep talks with them to help them believe in the system and understand all the efforts that we have made to ensure that there is a lot of integrity in the process. We want them to know that promotion now is based on performance and not who you know.

"The report I got regarding the level of preparations attests to this fact that we are now reconciling ourselves to that reality; it's about what you know, how capable you are, and how you can demonstrate the knowledge of the job. So that's what should come out, and that's what we count for each of these officers writing the exams," Adeniyi explained.

Speaking with newsmen, an Assistant Comptroller of Customs, Odedeji Babajide, noted that the promotion would serve as an incentive to spur officers to perform more efficiently.

"Anyone granted the privilege of leadership should definitely know that to whom much is given, much is expected, and that means we should put in more than we have been doing before to make sure that the service is improved. We must ensure that there is value addition," he stated.

DC Oluremi Omisere, in her remarks, noted that officers who gain promotion must ensure that the key primary role of customs, which is trade facilitation and border security, must be carried out judiciously.

"Officers must ensure that revenue targets set by the government are met, and every leakage in revenue is being controlled," she stressed.

Speaking on the examination, Deputy Comptroller Hussein Ejibunu said, "There's a lot of transparency in it. My expectation is high, and I hope to climb higher. Because to whom much is given, much is expected, this promotion will help me do better.

Deputy Comptroller of Customs Idris Abba-Aji said, "We give others the lead to follow. The examination was conducted with world-class standards. With the trend of development globally and the training we get, we will be able to withstand every challenge."