As imminent leadership transition, from the old-generation to the new-generation officers, stares the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) in the face, the incumbent management of the Service led by Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, intensifies efforts at concluding the final takeover processes, even as a handful of the officers set to inherit Customs leadership are currently delivering excellence in their different beats
By Innocent Chukwu
Time is ticking for the new-generation officers of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to take over, completely, the leadership of the Service. New-generation officers refer to those who enlisted in the NCS between 2009 and 2012. These officers and men have filled the gap between 1992 and 2008 when no new intakes were recruited into the Service, with the exception of the few officers who came into the Service through sporting activities and were later converted to general duty officers. The gap became a huge challenge for the NCS.
Amid the challenge, next few months will see the accomplishment of the much talked about seamless leadership transition within the Nigeria Customs, courtesy of what stakeholders tagged as the pragmatic leadership of the personality many regard as the last old-generation Comptroller General of Customs (CGC), Dr Bashir Adewale Adeniyi.
Indeed, the imminent takeover of Customs leadership has been confirmed by Adeniyi himself recently, precisely on Thursday, July 16, 2026, as he also confirmed that the processes for the takeover would be midwifed by the Nigeria Customs Board (NCB). When asked to disclose the timeframe under which the transition process would be consummated, the Customs boss declined to be specific, but insisted that the NCB would handle the final processes in an orderly manner.
Thus, the “boys” and youthful female Deputy Comptrollers (DCs) and a few of them who have attained the rank of substantive Comptrollers, are currently warming up to inherit the Customs management positions after Adeniyi who is billed to exit the Service by February 2026. Adeniyi just got another extension of his Service years by six months from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Thursday, July 16, 2026, was another significant date in the transition programme being pursued by the NCS management to hand over leadership to the new-generation officers. The event was the three-day “Strategic Refresher Course for Deputy Comptrollers” of Customs organized by the Customs management for that category of officers in Zone A, South west region. The event which the CGC said had been replicated in Abuja for other zones where the Service operates was held at the Customs Training College, Ikeja Lagos and attracted many resource persons from both the NCS and the military. It was organized to equip the new-generation officers of the Zone A with the required knowledge and attitudes necessary to achieve excellence in global Customs leadership in order to put the NCS abreast of Customs Services of developed economies.
Delivering a keynote address on the closing day, Thursday July 16, the Zonal Coordinator of Zone A Customs, Assistant Comptroller General (ACG) Mohammed Babandede, told the DCs in attendance that they had what it would take to drive positive change and uphold the highest standards that befits the NCS. ACG Babandede charged the officers to be ready to make sound decisions during operational challenges and crisis. According to Babandede, the charge is due to the fact that the incoming leaders would soon be put in positions where it would be expected of them to set leadership standards of discipline and professionalism necessary to drive the impending change.
Babandede, “This programme stands as a clear demonstration of the visionary leadership and commitment to personnel development of the Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi. His progressive policies on capacity building continue to strengthen the Service and prepare senior officers like you for higher responsibilities in a dynamic operating environment.
“You have been thoroughly engaged with the important theme ‘Information Security and Professional Ethics in the Digital Age.’ The sessions have reinforced the need for protection of official information and documents, responsible use of mobile phones and electronic devices, social media etiquette for senior officers, cyber-security awareness, and the ethical obligations of officers in a technology- driven environment.
“As senior officers and true ambassadors of the Nigeria Customs Service, you are now better positioned to set standards of discipline and professionalism, lead by personal example, manage public perceptions through transparency and fairness, and make sound decisions during operational challenges and crisis.
“I commend your dedication and active participation throughout this course. The presentations on Senior Officer Etiquette and Command Presence by Brig Gen RK Apata and The Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023 as a Leadership Framework by AVM GI Jibia have provided practical tools for leadership excellence and institutional transformation.
“Go forth and apply these lessons with renewed vigour, confidence, and commitment. You have what it takes to drive positive change and uphold the highest standards of the Service in all your assignments”.
Also delivering a speech, the special guest of honour at the event, the CGC Adeniyi said, “For them to provide leadership they must have leadership qualities. That’s why we’re preparing them through this kind of training because you can’t give what you don’t have. If I leave as CGC tomorrow my happiness is that the transition will go as orderly as we planned it”.
Admonishing the DCs further, Adeniyi said, “From managing change, change must be orderly. What does it mean for individual actors who manages this change? You must not compromise. You must show personal example in your conducts which will set you apart from the people you’re leading. How you use your phone, how you spend your time. You must place your institutions above your interest. Your personal interest must be subjected to institutional interest”.
The Customs boss also stated that for the incoming leaders to provide effective leadership for their followers, answers must be provided to such questions as, “What capacity do you have?” “What do you know about the service?” “Am I giving to personal improvement?” Adeniyi added that the essence of the questions is that, “Some of the things you were taught in training college may no longer be relevant. There was nothing like advanced ruling then, fifteen years ago. You must put yourself ahead of all these developments. That’s why we are investing in you to develop your capacity. We’re also planning similar program for the Assistant Controllers (ACs).
Hinting that the next leadership burden would rest on the shoulders of the DCs, Adeniyi stresses, “In the next few years leadership will rest on your shoulders. You must equip yourselfs. You must resist inviting external sources, a good number of them are hanging out to see if you will fail. We pray that you manage this transition in a result-oriented manner. I want to thank our resources person whom I know personally, what they have done in the time past”.
As Adeniyi’s era winds up in the first or second week of February 2027, the NCS now focuses much attention on the criteria to select his successor, as well as those suitable to form the successor management team of the Service, including the Deputy Comptrollers General (DCGs) and the ACGs. Barring any last minute change of plan on the part of Tinubu, the hope of any of the members of the old-generation management team of Adeniyi to replace him has been foreclosed by the recent extension given to him by Tinubu. The implication remains that by February next year, most of the old-generation officers would have retired, leaving only Adeniyi and the sports officers of 1994. The latter and the 2009-2012 officers will then inherit the Customs management.
The task ahead of the NCB within the transition period of few months includes the promotion of the DCs to substantive Comptrollers and onward to ACGs, DCGs and selection of the points man to take over the mantle of leadership from Adeniyi. The task is considered by many stakeholders as an onerous one due to the array of vibrant, energetic, enthusiastic, knowledgeable and dedicated youthful officers who are hungry to take the NCS to compete with Customs Services of developed economies in the areas of standards and achievements.
Meanwhile, the Adeniyi-led management has been test-running the managerial and leadership competency of a few of the new-generation officers by posting them to strategic formations and grade A Commands as leaders. Their performances in those locations have proved to the outgoing old-generation officers that they would be bequeathing the NCS leadership to competent successors. A roll call of the few new-generation officers occupying strategic leadership positions include Comptroller DC Fayem who is a new-generation substantive Comptroller currently in charge of the Customs Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and Modernization Unit at the Customs Headquarters.
Comptroller Murtala Muazu, the most senior of the new-generation Comptrollers is in charge of the System Audit Unit, also at the Customs Headquarters, Abuja. Comptroller Muazu is regarded as a highly intelligent officer with the capacity to deliver exceptional services at his duty post. Comptroller Shedali who was formerly in charge of the ICT Unit has since proceeded to the prestigious National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) at Kuru in Plateau State. The Customs Provost Marshal General (PMG), DC TS Salawa, has remained steadfast in rendering impersonal services at his duty post to the admiration of the Adeniyi-led management, so also is DC Abdulkareem MBA who is the acting Comptroller Pre-Arrival Assessment Report (PAAR) Unit at the Customs Headquarters, Abuja. DC MBA was formerly the Technical Supervisor (TS) in the Customs Processing Centre (CPC) at the Apapa Area 1 Command and Ports and Terminals Multi-Services Limited (PTML) Command both in Lagos before his new posting.
The current acting Comptroller Scanning Unit, Abuja, DC UA Madugu is also a new-generation officer saddled with that responsibility, and he is said to be excelling in that capacity. Before his recent move to the Customs Headquarters Abuja, the officer fondly referred to as the “Customs tech expert” and “Customs scanning guru”, held sway at the Apapa Premier Port Scanning Unit, Lagos where he performed excellently before his current elevation.
Arguably, the two most charismatic, admirable and respected leaders among the new-generation officers are the duo of OO Afeni and NI Miko, acting Customs Area Controllers (CACs) occupying two powerful revenue generation and enforcement Commands respectively. DC Miko is the current CAC of the PTML Command where he has shown great capacity for pragmatic leadership, turning the Command into a revenue engine room for the Federal Government. Youthful, amiable and easy-going Miko served as the DC Revenue at the Apapa Area 1 Command before he was elevated to acting CAC of PTML Command. He blocked all avenues of revenue leakages at Apapa and ensured the ever-rising profile of the Command in the area of revenue generation. Now at PTML Command, Miko is said to be making sure that he squeezes revenue out of the rocks.
Amiable Afeni who deploys his youthfulness, vigor, tact and operational sagacity in combating smuggling activities, is a competent leader who commands great respect and elicits strong admiration among his colleagues. Afeni is the acting CAC in charge of the Ogun 2 Area Command, Idiroko, Ogun State. His leadership of the Command has since destabilized the camps of die-hard smugglers in that state. Before his current posting, DC Afeni was the O/C Intervention at the Federal Operations Unit (FOU) Zone A, Lagos. At the position, he prevented the loss of billions of Naira on the part of the Federal Government to illicit business deals. He has equally locked up all the unapproved routes in Ogun State via which smugglers ply their illicit trade as he keeps making huge seizures of smuggled items that deter smugglers in the state.
Acting Comptroller Bolaji Adigun is another youthful, energetic and charismatic leader in the mold of Afeni and Miko, who is also winning the administration of the Customs management due to his capacity in making huge revenue generation for the Service. The acting Comptroller Adigun is the current CAC of the Kiri-Kiri Lighter Terminal Command also in Lagos. DC Adigun’s agenda at KLT is simply to maximize government revenue and arrest any form of illicit trade. Adigun is said to possess vast knowledge in Customs operations which is his trademark within the Service. He had been the DC Revenue at the NAHCO Airport Command, Ikeja, Lagos.
Deputy Comptroller Abubakar Faisal Dabai is the current acting Comptroller Special Duties at the Customs Headquarters Abuja. Dabai had been a Chief Instructor at the Customs Command and Staff College, Gwagwalada, Abuja where he performed excellently.
The current National Public Relations Officer (NPRO), DC Abdullahi Maiwada, is never the least among the new-generation officers who are transforming the Service. It is worthy of note that the incumbent CGC, Adeniyi, was the NPRO for many years before he was elevated to higher ranks. Maiwada, today, is the new face of the NCS due to his pragmatic leadership of the Customs PR Unit which has worked tirelessly, not only to project and promote the corporate image of the NCS, but to equally ensure that the Service never had any bad press that could affect its image negatively. DC Maiwada is a professional Public Relations expert.
DC UU Adamu is among the new-generation middle-level officers making waves in Customs leadership. Adamu is currently in charge of the Kano/Jigawa Command where he is working very hard to increase its revenue generation capacity. The gentle Adamu was formerly in charge of the Customs Intelligence Unit (CIU) at the Apapa Premier Port as the Team Leader of the Unit before his elevation to become the acting CAC of the Kano/Jigawa Area Command.
