The House of Representatives has announced plans to amend the Customs and Excise Management Act ,CEMA, 2023, to allow for the appointment of a Comptroller General of Customs for a four-year tenure.
The development is coming when the controversies trailing President Bola Tinubu’s extension of the tenure of the Inspector General of Police Kayode Egbetokun was yet to die down.
The President, a Yoruba origin from South West Nigeria has been accused of tribalism in the appointment of key office.
The amendment when passed into law would pave way for the current Controller General of Customs Adewale Adeniyi to remain in office when he is due to retire from the Service.
Mr Adeniyi, a former spokesperson of the Service was appointed as NCS DG on 19 June. He took over from Hameed Ali, a retired colonel, who illegally occupied the position from 2015 to 2023.
The Act which previously provides for the appointment of a career officers to head the service, would end career progression, hinders them from attaining the peak of their career, and effectively demoralize them when amended and passed into law.
Chairman of the House Committee on Customs and Excise, Leke Abejide who announced the plan at the headquarters of the Zone A, Federal Operations Unit of the Nigerian Customs Service said the provision which was initially inserted in the current Act but was removed by the Legal Department of the service on the premise that it will negate the provisions of the civil service rules.
He said, the Tinubu’s administration was determined to effect necessary changes as regards to the appointment of Customs CG.
“We wanted to have a provision in the current Act to make for a four-year tenure for the CGC, but legal department removed it saying it will not work. But it is working in the police.
“If you appoint a CGC, he will need sometime to implement his programmes and ensure a reform of the system. But if he just spent one or two years and leave, maybe due to retirement, what impact can he make?
“So, we are going to work on amending the Act so we can return that provision to the law. We will work with the management of the service on this”.
He however denied that the committee was not aiming to extend the tenure of the current CG, rather to ensure that anybody appointed by the President to that position will serve for four years.
