The House of Representatives, has mandated its joint Committee on Customs and Excise, and Defence, to investigate the operations and activities of the Nigerian Customs Service across Nigerian borders, with specific focus on smuggling activities, allegations of complicity and incidents of brutality.
The House has also directed the committee to examine the role of military personnel attached to Customs patrols, ensuring their operations comply with legal frameworks and human rights standards.
The committee is to recommend appropriate measures to enhance oversight, accountability and efficiency within the Nigeria Customs Service to restore public trust and safeguard Nigeria’s economic and national security interests, and report back within six weeks.
This followed Wednesday’s adoption of a motion, sponsored on the matter by Hon. Sesi Otuwaseun Whingan, who noted that recent reports by an online newspaper “exposed the mass smuggling of over 2,000 cars carrying 6,500,000kg of rice through Badagry under the watch of Customs officers.”
He said videos published by investigative journalist, Fisayo Soyombo, provided evidence of complicity by Customs officers in these illegal activities.
“Reports of brutality have emerged, including an incident along the Badagry-Seme Expressway on December 1, 2024, where officers from the Nigerian Customs Service, in collaboration with soldiers, violently assaulted two transporters, Taofeek Olatunbosun and Rafiu Abdelmalik.
“The victims were suspected of documenting smuggling activities, leading to threats against their lives and a standoff that required intervention from residents and police,” he said.
