“Ogun is the gate way Command and a major regional trade hub”

Comptroller Dera Nnadi, CAC Ogun Command

Comptroller of Customs, Customs Area Controller of Ogun Customs Command, CAC, Dera Nnadi is one among officers of the Nigeria Customs Service, NSC, recently promoted by management of the service as part of reforms being carried out to reposition the Nigeria Customs and enhance its responsiveness and effectiveness in implementing Federal Government economic and fiscal policies for national rebirth.

Comptroller Nnadi with MAritime Stakeholders after an interactive session on Maritime Development

Prior to his elevation, Comptroller Nnadi has been in the centre of activities in the Service. From lecture halls to Command centres within and outside Nigeria, Nnadi has transversed in various capacities either in train the trainers programmes or in representative capacity to the highest level of management of the service.

The Zone A of the NCS comprising Lagos, Ogun, Seme, Oyo, Osun and Ondo/Ekiti is the hub hub of Customs operations in Nigeria.

That the zone accounts for 95% of annual revenue is traceable to the fact that the Zone is the centre of economic activities of the Nigerian economy.

Understandably, Management of the Service deploys its best officers to man operational areas; the objective of which is to effectively implement policies of the Federal Government as approved by the Federal Executive Council, FEC, in the overall economic aspiration of the government.

The Zone A headquarters is in Harvey road in Yaba Lagos while the Apapa and Tin Can Commands also in Lagos are very strategic Commands of the Service where only the best of the best are privileged to serve.

That controller Nnadi has served in these very strategic and sensitive Commands highlights hisprofessionalism, dexterity, hands-on knowledge and understanding of Customs procedures and processes.

Evidently, Comptroller Nnadi is a seasoned administrative and operational officer of the Service whose services the Service continues to count on after years of training and retraining which Nnadi, alongside other officers have had the privilege of going through in the Service in the course of duty over the years.

Having worked with and understudied renowned former and serving very senior officers of the Service, Nnadi is well-positioned to further improve previous records of Enforcement, Revenue generation and Excellence in service to fatherland.

Known for his intellectual acumen, smartness, fitness and no nonsense position on duty, Comproller Nnadi is a friendly officer who nonetheless does not joke nor compromise when it comes to operational matters.

With his promotion and saddled with the responsibility of enforcing economic policies at the Ogun command, it is expected that he will bring his administrative and operational experience to bear in tackling the many issues bedeviling the Ogun axis Command of the Service and quell the overhyped restiveness often associated with the Ogun Command.

With his shiny boots and brains on ground, with his operational handbook clutched firmly in his hands, Controller Dera Nnadi has his job clearly defined as stakeholders wait to to see how he responds to the many issues affecting the area.

Already, the Ogun 1 Command CAC has assured that Customs operations will continued unhindered under his watch.

According to him,  “I am resuming in this office with a high sense of responsibility knowing that this Command has tremendous significance to Nigeria Customs Service, Ogun State and Nigeria. Ogun is the gate way Command with potentials of not only being a major regional trade hub for West and Central Africa and beyond but can also be an example of coordinated border with Nigeria’s proximate neighbors.

“I am resuming in the Command knowing that though it has consistently recorded numerous achievements in the past, a lot is still desirable and expected of us by the stakeholders which include the CGC, management of the Service, Zone A coordinator, the officers and men in the Command and of course the border community with whom we expect strong partnership in the enforcement of government policies”.

“Other government agencies who partner with the Service also expect us to continue to play the role of lead agency and we cannot afford to let them down”.

With such declaration, it is glaring that Comptroller Nnadi is on a familiar turf and very much at home in Ogun.