One of the acclaimed best brains and most enthusiastic officers in today’s Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Dr Babatunde Olomu, resumes work as the Customs Area Controller (CAC) of the Apapa Area 1 Port Customs Command, Lagos, with a pledge to diligently and jealously guard the fortunes of the Premier Port to enhance national security and economy
By Innocent Chukwu
Monday, May 6, 2024, was the D-DAY. Venue was the Apapa Premier Port Customs Command’s Conference Hall. The Hall was bursting with intimidating attendees made up of large numbers of the maritime business media personalities, some of the high profile members of the Apapa Premier Port business community and the very senior officers and management team of the Nigeria Customs Command in charge of the Premier Port.
It was the handing over and taking over ceremony between one of the finest officers in the Nigeria Customs Service of today, Comptroller Babatunde Olomu, and then incumbent Customs Area Controller of the Command, Babajide Jaiyeoba.
The reason for the overcrowding the hall of the ceremony is not far -fetched: Dr Olomu, the incoming CAC, is a man of the people. Dr Olomu, an academic of high repute, is seen today as a rare officer in the history of the NCS. Apart from being an academic, Comptroller Olomu’s friendliness is as amazing as it is infectious. He is regarded as the most peaceful, gentlest, most patient and most enthusiastic officers in today’s Nigeria Customs.
Olomu is de-tribalized, a pan Nigerian and a patriot, endowed with special acumen for problems solving. Hence it was not surprising that the oval Apapa Port Customs Hall was unable to accommodate friends and well wishers who gathered on that Monday to welcome the ever smiling new CAC to his new posting.
Comptroller Olomu is seen as an all rounder in customs operations. He is an Enforcement officer, formerly the Deputy Comptroller (DC) in charge of the Apapa Port Command Enforcement Unit. He was the Officer-in-Charge of the Revenue Unit of the Federal Operations Unit (FOU), Zone A, Ikeja. He was the Comptroller in charge of Delta Port, Warri, Delta State where he squeezed revenue from the near moribund port and set a revenue record that remains hard to match. He is a Public Relations Manager with enviable reputation.
Interestingly, wherever Comptroller Olomu served, he accumulated large friendship base that refused to let him go. Thus, his stint at Apapa Command endeared him to many hearts who had been praying fervently for his return to head the Command as a substantive CAC. Their prayers have been answered.
Speaking at the handing over, Dr Olomu said, “I see my task as the Customs Area Controller Apapa Command as a serious assignment from the Comptroller General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, of which our only option is to deliver diligently not only in revenue collection, fight against smuggling, but trade facilitation and sustainable stakeholder engagement”.
With his assurance, the business community in the nation’s Premier Port has been invited to the most disciplined and friendliest business environments. The achievement of a desirable business environment, with the most disciplined approach to customs operations, stakeholders said, are what will help Comptroller Olomu become the best CAC of the Command.
He also insisted that the Command under his watch is not willing to betray the trust of the authorities that posted him to man the Command. He said, “My assumption of this office is with a mind of confidence that we won’t betray the trust reposed in us by the Federal Government of Nigeria, the CGC and the entire management of the NCS”.
Already, there is jubilation within the Apapa Port business community over the deployment of Dr Olomu to head the biggest Customs Area Command which oversees the activities of the biggest port in the West African sub-region. Many businesspeople within the community said there would be drastic changes in the operations of the port due to the presence of the gentleman officer. There is high expectation from the current customs management that there will be exponential growth in the revenue generation of the Command when Comptroller Olomu replicates his Delta Port revenue magic in Apapa Port.
Prince Julius Ologbese, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Ogbese Marine Services Ltd, a frontline clearing and forwarding firm based in Lagos, said there are hidden revenues everywhere in Apapa Port which Olomu has the capacity to locate and collect for the Federal Government. He described Olomu as a disciplined, thoroughbred, and distinctive officer in a class of his own. Ologbese added that with Olomu on the driver’s seat of Apapa Port Customs Command, the Federal Government should be rest assured that no revenue will be lost to any act of inefficiency.
Speaking earlier on why Olomu should be posted to head the Apapa Customs Command, Ologbese had extolled the qualities of Olomu to include prudence, discipline, patience, enthusiastic, passion, loyalty and patriotism.
“As for Dr Babatunde Olomu, you know Olomu is a disciplined officer too. I can tell you that Olomu is a prudent officer, not that he does not like to spend money, what I mean is that Olomu is not corrupt. When an officer is absolutely, absolutely not corrupt, that money that would have been shared up and down would go to government purse.
“Have you not seen how Olomu is handling the overtime cargoes auctioning? No noise, no accusations, no misdeeds, that is who Dr Olomu is for you. I know him closely, he’s a highly disciplined officer.
“I remember there was a time Olomu was posted directly from Abuja to Lagos to take over a position in Apapa Command, I think the Revenue office then.
“But by the time he got to Apapa they denied him the posting and people were saying he should fight for the posting and he said no and walked away. If it were others alarm would blow. That is the personality of Olomu. Those who did that to him at the time thought they had hurt him but Olomu did not take it serious.
“We pray that some of these Revenue officers be posted to the presumed vacant offices because, there are hidden revenues, I said there are hidden revenues that are not entering government purse and disciplined officers have to bring them out.
“I, Alaye Baba, am talking with all sense of responsibility, there are some hiding revenues which only disciplined, hard working officers can dig out, people like Olomu.
“My fear is that the powers that be do not allow these officers to come in, it’s not only happening in customs, even in political service. That is why President Bola Ahmed Tinubu knows the right people to help him generate revenue, and he is putting them in those places to function without minding because some people know the secret of breakthrough in politics”.
At the handover event, the immediate predecessor of Dr Olomu, Comptroller Jaiyeoba, said he was full of gratitude to the Almighty God who granted him the position of the CAC Apapa, as well as to the CGC who found him worthy to head the Command. Posted to Apapa Customs Command in September 2023, Comptroller Jaiyeoba said he made the Premier Port import and export friendly without undermining national security, and also led the Command to pursue increased revenue generation by blocking areas of revenue leakages. He further stressed that “We had extra hours at work and worked some of the weekends with the aim of surpassing our revenue target”.
Consequently, under the Jaiyeoba leadership, Apapa Customs Command was able to generate over N675 billion between the months of January and April, 2024. According to the outgone CAC, the amount generated within the period represented an excess of over N52 billion of the revenue target of the Command for the first four months of the year 2024. Comptroller Jaiyeoba further disclosed that in the month of April 2024 alone, under his watch the Apapa Customs Command generated over N186 billion revenue into the Federation Account, an amount he said was a record-breaking revenue in the history of the NCS.
Meanwhile, Comptroller Olomu has begun to hit the ground running as he paid familiarisation visit to Port Commissioner of Police in Apapa Port, Lagos on Wednesday, May 15, 2024.
The Commissioner of Police (CP), Ports Authority Police (Western) Command Lagos, Mr Olarenwaju Ishola received the new Customs Area Controller (CAC), Apapa Port Command Olomu, in his office.
The visiting Comptroller Olomu told his host that the Nigeria Customs Service has always received support from the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), stressing that there must be security, tranquility, and stability for the Nigeria Customs to generate revenue for the Federal government.
The CAC appreciated the Ports Authority Police (Western) Command for always providing maximum security for the Nigeria Customs to achieve its mandate of trade facilitation and revenue generation while reiterating his commitment to ensuring that the existing interagency collaboration between the NPF and the NCS is strengthened and sustained.
The Commissioner of Police, in his response, welcomed the CAC and his officers to the Command headquarters.
While congratulating the CAC on his recent appointment, the CP noted that the Apapa area command is strategic to the nation’s economy as the port premises serve as a critical national infrastructure, hence the need for proactive policing to ensure maximum protection of port facilities and maintain public safety.
