Towards A Peaceful Handing Over Of Comptroller Mohammed Shuaibu To Comptroller Godwin Otunla
By Asuquo Nuwak
Towards A Peaceful Handing Over Of Comptroller Mohammed Shuaibu To Comptroller Godwin Otunla
For the colleague, officers and men of the Ogun 1 Area command, who witnessed the handing over ceremony at Ogun 1 Area command, Idioroko, it was yet another remarkable event. Eminent royal fathers, esteemed heads of sisters security agencies, respected members of the press, and stakeholders were in attendance.
At the event, for over an hour, these distinguished personalities sat glued to their seats listening to the dignified comptroller.
Comptroller Mohammed Shuaibu, the outgoing Customs Area Controller of Ogun 1 Area command Idioroko, who narrated his incredible journey, challenges, triumphs and invaluable lessons, also said his career in the Service has given him an opportunity to contribute to the growth and security of the nation.
In his speech, comptroller Shuaibu, said serving as Customs Area Controller of Ogun 1 Area command has been the pinnacle of the journey, a role he embraced with commitment and resolve.
Beyond that, he said, under his leadership, the command has not only enforced the mandate of revenue generation, border security, and trade facilitation, but has also made stride in building stronger collaborations with sister agencies, stakeholders and Benin Republic counterpart.
From all indications, the collective efforts of intercepting illicit goods, curbing smuggling, facilitating legitimate trade, have positioned the Ogun 1 Area command as a key player in Nigeria’s economic and security architecture.
As he moves to the next stage of his career as a customs officer, he expressed his profound gratitude to the Comptroller-General of Customs, for the trust reposed in him, and for providing the support that contributed to the command’s successes.
Beside this, he expressed his debt of gratitude to his deputies, management team, and the entire officers and men of Ogun 1 Area command, whose efforts on daily bases have kept the wheel running smoothly.
He had a lot of respect for their team work, invaluable support, advice, and it has been privilege and honour to have worked closely with everybody for the past three months.
Comptroller Shuaibu, in his speech, took the audience on a journey of how professionalism, dedication and cooperation of his deputies, management team, and officers and men of Ogun 1 Area command have been his strength and how he is immensely proud of what they have achieved together.
He also deeply appreciated the collaboration of sister security agencies, traditional leaders, stakeholders for their invaluable partnership in maintaining peace and stability at the borders.
He wholeheartedly congratulated his successor, Comptroller Godwin A Otunla, on his well deserved deployment as the new Customs Area Controller of Ogun 1 Area command.
He expressed confident that Comptroller Otunla will bring his wealth of experience to bear in the administration of the command.
Shuaibu, however said for the new Comptroller to succeed, he needs the unalloyed cooperation of everyone.
At the same time, Comptroller Shuaibu, who described the new Comptroller as ” a courageous and highly principled anti- smuggling fighter”, also called for the unwavering support of officers and men of the command, sister security agencies, traditional institutions, and esteemed stakeholders for Comptroller Otunla.
He recalled that during his tenure as the Customs Area Controller of Ogun 1 Area command, a lot of hard decision were taken for effective performance and general output.
But, at least, the difficult decisions he made to his humble opinion yielded positive results. Though feathers were ruffled, toes were stepped upon in the course of taking these decisions.
Nevertheless, those decisions were not taken for personal gains, but it was rather taken for set targets.
Comptroller Shuaibu strongly believe that it is in this light that the command has changed dramatically in structures, revenue generation, anti- smuggling activities and trade facilitation.
In the area of revenue generation, he said, under his leadership the command generated N43, 412, 794.00 from January to April this year 2025.
In the area of anti-smuggling activities, he said for the past three months, the command have recorded 161 seizures of different prohibited items, including seizures of 3,699 cannabis sativa of different make and sizes, 150 sacks of Indian Hemp, three single barrel long guns, four packets of 25 cartridges of 100 pieces of cartridges and 7, 000, 000, 000 CFA.
At the end of the handing over ceremony, Comptroller Shuaibu, thanked the Comptroller-General of Customs and his management team for giving him the opportunity to serve in this position and for their encouragement and confident in him.
He said, he truly felt that the last three months have been fulfilling and have given him the opportunity to gain valuable experiences.
He is quoted as saying that: “I have run with perseverance and I have finished the race”. Furthermore, he said, in addition that, whether he has finished the race successfully or not, is not for him to say, but would leave it to the stakeholders to be the judge.
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