BORDER CLOSURE: Customs acquire seagoing gunboats for marine operation

In its bid to further take the battle against smuggling a notch higher, the Nigeria Customs Service on Thursday commissioned two seagoing gunboats to boost its anti-smuggling capacity on waters.

The commissioning of the gunboats is coming on the heels of reports that smugglers, who couldn’t bring in their goods through the land borders due to the joint security enforcement team had decided to bring them in by sea.

The two boats, christened ‘Pride of Customs’ and ‘Group of Nine’ are expected to be deployed for deep-sea patrol, surveillance, interdiction and reconnaissance on water.

The Comptroller General of Customs, Col Hameed Ali (retd) explained at the commissioning ceremony that Nigeria’s desire at improving its non-oil revenue was dependent on the NCS to fight smuggling and bring it to the barest minimum.

Ali further explained that experience has shown that whenever smugglers face stiff resistance from Customs anti-smuggling operatives on the land, they turn to the waterways to carry out their illegal trade.

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He said: “Unfortunately, before now the Service has been weak on the water arising from the lack of seagoing vessels to effectively checkmate smugglers on the high sea. This situation led to the death of nine Customs Marine officers while confronting deadly petrol smugglers on the sea in 2014.

“It is in honour of this group of nine gallant officers who died in the service of their fatherland that one of the seagoing vessels is named ‘Group of Nine’ while the other represents the ‘Customs Pride’ on the sea.”

According to him, the commissioning of the two seagoing vessels, well equipped with necessary firepower and other requirements for long-time water patrol was in line with the ongoing repositioning of the Service to effectively deliver on its mandate to the nation.

He said: “With these vessels, I hope smugglers will no longer take advantage of NCS vulnerability on the water to smuggle in contraband. NCS Marine operatives can now sail to intersect them right on the high sea.

“The timing of this commissioning is strategic as it will boost the ongoing joint security response on the water and henceforth remain a symbol of NCS’ strength on the sea.

“The Service now has four marine Commands, namely Western marine, Easter Maritime, North western marine and North Eastern marine Command. It is, therefore, the resolve of management that smugglers find no space to operate either on land, air or sea.”

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