Zamfara State Governor Dauda Lawal, Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service Bashir Adeniyi and Senator Abdulaziz Yari have called on customs officers and other stakeholders to uphold the Customs Act 2023 to boost the national economy.
These dignitaries revealed this in Abuja on Tuesday during the Public Presentation and Book Launch on “Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023: Historical Context, Service Reforms and Predicament of Application.”
The book launch held at the Ahmed Makarfi Hall, Nigeria Customs Service Command and Staff College, Gwagwalada, was authored by retired Customs Comptroller Abdullahi Bello Gusau.
CG Adeniyi, who served as the Chief Host, said, “The true brilliance of the book lies in its willingness to tackle the “predicament of application,” which is by “transitioning from a 65-year-old legal framework to a cutting-edge statutory regime in a complex journey.”
He told Customs officers and stakeholders that, “Laws do not enforce themselves; they are applied by people within a dynamic economic ecosystem.”
The book, he added, “brilliantly captures the real-world friction of this transition, exploring operational adaptability, stakeholder alignment, and jurisdictional clarity.”
Mr Adeniyi, represented by the Commander, Training and Doctrine Command, DCG Suleiman Ciroma, encouraged stakeholders to read the book with an open mind, saying that, “Let it be a guide for compliant trade. The NCSA 2023 was not designed to punish; it was designed to protect Nigerian businesses, secure and boost the national economy.”
The Special Guest of Honour, Governor Lawal, represented by the MD/CEO of Acacia African Commodity Exchange, Alhaji Usman Balarabe, congratulated the author for documenting his decades-long experiences.
He said, “The book by retired Comptroller Abdullah Bello Gusau would contribute tremendously to the institutional memory of the Nigeria Customs Service as it makes bold efforts to revolutionise our foreign trade.
In his remarks, the Chairman of the Occasion, former National Security Adviser, General Aliyu Muhammed Gusau (rtd), said the book would serve as a rallying point for Customs officers, professionals and other stakeholders for years to come.
Represented by the Danmasanin Gusau, Alhaji Shehu Umar Sambo, he commended the publisher for making Customs and Zamfara State proud. He urged other officers to emulate the author in writing books that would contribute to the body of knowledge.
The Chief Launcher, Senator Yari, said the book launch is a testimony to the author’s distinguished career in the Nigeria Customs Service.
Represented by former Zamfara State Governor Mahmud Aliyu Shinkafi, Mr Yari said the presence of people from Katsina, Sokoto, Kebbi, Zamfara, Taraba, Abuja, Kano, and Kaduna states at the event further burnished the author’s image as a credentialed retired officer.
The Sultan of Sokoto was represented at the event by the Sarkin Burmin Jabo, Alhaji Aliyu Garba. The book was reviewed by the Commandant of the Nigeria Customs Command and Staff College, Gwagwalada, ACG Dow Gaura.
