The Nigeria Customs Service(NCS) is set for a major administrative shake-up as its board approved disciplinary sanctions against some officers and appointed six new senior management personnel.
The decisions were taken at the 65th Regular Meeting of the Nigeria Customs Service Board, chaired by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele.
The board approved the appointment of Constantine Dim as Deputy Comptroller-General and named five officers as Assistant Comptroller-Generals.
The new ACGs are Pascal Chibuoke, Ethelbert Nnaji, Sani Yahaya, Franklin Onyeka and Chibuzor Eyakwaire.
According to the NCS spokesperson, Abdullahi Maiwada, the appointments followed the statutory retirement of some officers and complied with the Federal Character Policy.
But beyond the new appointments, the meeting also produced disciplinary decisions affecting other personnel.
Maiwada said the board considered several appeals and approved outcomes ranging from dismissal and compulsory retirement to warnings, exoneration and reinstatement.
The disciplinary actions come as the service seeks to strengthen accountability and improve its revenue-generating capacity.
The board said it was also stepping up efforts to modernise the service, approving the elevation of the NCS Medical Corps to a sub-department headed by an Assistant Comptroller-General and supported by nine Comptrollers.
On revenue, the Customs Service recorded ₦4.30 trillion in collections by the end of June, representing 36.4 per cent of its ₦11.074 trillion target for 2026.
Maiwada attributed the performance partly to the full deployment of the Unified Customs Management System, B’Odogwu, alongside expanded post-clearance and real-time audits.
The service has also intensified the use of geospatial technology, joint border patrols, the Authorised Economic Operator programme and advance ruling mechanisms.
The board further approved the Nigeria Customs Service De-Minimis Regulation, 2025, aimed at aligning customs operations with the provisions of the NCS Act, 2023.
Meanwhile, successful candidates in the ongoing 2024/2025 recruitment exercise have been invited to begin documentation, physical and medical screening.
The board also considered proposed amendments to the NCS Act and was invited by the Federal Ministry of Finance to submit memoranda for possible inclusion in the 2027 Finance Bill.
