The house of representatives has resolved to investigate the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) over reports that its officers aid and abet smuggling.

The resolution followed a motion of urgent public importance moved by Sesi Whingan, a lawmaker representing Badagry federal constituency in Lagos, during plenary on Wednesday.

Whingan said the allegations against officers of the service were “deeply troubling”.

“Recent reports by Sahara Reporters on 18 November 2024 exposed the mass smuggling of over 2,000 cars carrying six million kilogrammes 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.”

He added that the allegations contravene the law establishing the NCS, noting that the agency is mandated to “prevent smuggling” and not enable it.

The lawmaker said some military officers seconded to the NCS have also been accused of complicity in the smuggling ring.

“Reports of brutality have emerged, including an incident along the Badagry-Seme Expressway on 1 December 2024, where officers from the Nigeria Customs Service, in collaboration with soldiers, violently assaulted two transporters, Taofeek Olatunbosun and Rafiu Abdelmalik,” he said.

“The victims were suspected of documenting smuggling activities, leading to threats against their lives and a standoff that required intervention from residents and the police.

“The actions of some officers within the Nigeria Customs Service contravene its core mandate, erode public trust, and raise concerns about the oversight of joint security operations involving military personnel.

“The complicity of customs officers in smuggling operations and the use of violence to intimidate civilians pose significant risks to national security, economic stability, and the rule of law.”

Subsequently, the house directed its committees on defence and customs to conduct a probe into the allegations against the officers.

The house resolved that the NCS officers and the attached military officials should be investigated, with the committees given six weeks to conclude their inquiry.

Earlier this year, an undercover investigation by Soyombo detailed how officers of the NCS allegedly update smugglers on the itinerary of their colleagues in a bid to facilitate the movement of smuggled goods.

The Edo State Assets Verification Committee, set up by the State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, says it has uncovered how the contract sum for a road project in the state was inflated from N8 billion to N16 billion by the immediate past government of Godwin Obaseki.

DAILY POST reports that the contract sum for the 17.5-kilometer road project was inflated thrice within a year.

The Sub-committee on Physical Assets and Infrastructure of the Verification Committee discovered the inflation during an inspection of the reconstruction of the Benin-Abraka Road Phase 1C.

The contract was awarded to Nsik Engineering Company Limited on May 16, 2023, while work commenced in September 2023.

The project manager of the construction firm, Engr. Ifiokebong Ekong, who spoke to members of the committee during the inspection, said the company was mobilized with the sum of N2.9 billion, representing 25 percent of the contract sum of N8 billion.

Ekong said after the mobilization, the contract sum was varied, and some amount was added to the initial cost of the project.

He added that the completion period of the job, which was initially three and a half years, was, however, reviewed downward to 18 months (one year and six months).

The project manager said the contract sum was initially N8 billion when it was awarded in September 2023, but it was reviewed upward to N12 billion in 2024 and later to the current sum of N16.4 billion in June 2024.

Speaking on the revelation, a member of the subcommittee, Engr. Abass Braimah, who frowned at the development, said the increment was 100 percent.

According to him, “I don’t think there is anywhere in Nigeria or outside that a project can be awarded for N8 billion, reviewed to N12 billion, and further reviewed to N16 billion.

“Why not just review it and take the entire purse of Edo State? If we can review from N8 billion to upward of between N12 billion and N16 billion in one year?

“What has substantially changed for you to have a 100 percent increment from N8 billion to N16 billion? Meanwhile, the job specification or contents have not changed. It is still the same thing.

“And all of these went through the Tenders Board processes. The Board must have sat down to peruse, and it was not only you who submitted documents and bid for the contract.

“Against the backdrop of several other companies that tendered, they gave you this job at N8 billion. After the job was awarded at N8 billion, they reviewed it with a 50 percent increment. Fifty percent of N8 billion is N4 billion, which increased the sum to N12 billion, and they further reviewed it to N16 billion.

“What type of games are we playing here? These are games,” he said.

Earlier, the chairman of the subcommittee, Patrick Obahiagbon, said the explanation by the project manager of the company confirmed the content of a petition the committee received from some citizens of the state on the alleged inflation of the contract sum for the road project.

Obahiagbon, who said the inflation took place within one year, alleged that it must have been done by the immediate past government to use the funds to finance the September 21, 2024, governorship election.

“The reason we have to take pains to particularly visit this site is based on a petition from Edo State citizens that we have just received.

“And the narrations of the construction firm’s project manager seem to justify the reasons and the nitty-gritty of that petition. The content of that petition was to the effect that there were massive reviews of contracts on this project because of the election.

“That the contract was colossally inflated because the outgoing governor needed money urgently and desperately to fund the September 21 governorship election.

“It makes no sense that within one year, a road contract sum would be varied from N8 billion to N12 billion and, in June, some few months to the election — maybe for election purposes— the contract sum again was varied from N12 billion to N16 billion.

“Maybe the petitioners were correct after all. If they were correct, this is an unfair deal to the people of Edo State,” he said.

Obahiagbon, who described the development as sad, added that the committee would urge the main committee to recommend to the state government that further investigation be carried out on the petition and the statement of the company’s project manager.

President Bola Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Policy Communication, Daniel Bwala, has asserted that his principal is making efforts to make life much easier for Nigerians in all areas.

According to Bwala, the Renewed Hope agenda of the incumbent government aims to improve the quality of life for all Nigerians.

Bwala expressed this sentiment while highlighting the recent introduction of electronic gates by the Immigration Service at international airports, which seeks to enhance the travel experience and minimize issues related to human interaction in Nigeria.

The presidential aide emphasized that this progressive initiative by Tinubu’s administration represents a crucial advancement in the modernization of Nigeria’s airport infrastructure.

“As part of @officialABAT renewed Hope promise to Nigerians, the administration’s Immigration Service launches electronic gates at international airports, all in a bid to enhance the travel experience and reduce challenges associated with human contact.

“This innovative move by this government marks a significant step towards modernizing Nigeria’s airport infrastructure and improving the overall travel experience of passengers.

“The idea of President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope is to make life easier for Nigerians in all areas of their endeavours.

“The reforms are yielding some positives already and will only get better on a long run. Let’s keep the hope alive!” [sic],” Bwala wrote on his X handle.

The leader of the United Kingdom, UK, Conservative Party, Kemi Badenoch, has replied to Nigeria’s Vice President, Kashim Shettima, saying she stands by her remarks about Nigeria despite criticism that she is denigrating the country.

Badenoch has allegedly described her upbringing in Nigeria as being overshadowed by fear and insecurity in a country plagued by corruption.

Born in the UK in 1980 to Nigerian Yoruba parents, she married a Scottish banker, Hamish Badenoch, and took her husband’s surname.

Before she was elected leader of the Conservative Party, Badenoch described Nigeria as a socialist nation brimming with thieving politicians and insecurity.

“This is my country. I don’t want it to become like the place I ran away from. I grew up in Nigeria, and I saw firsthand what happens when politicians are in it for themselves, when they use public money as their private piggy banks, when they pollute the whole political atmosphere with their failure to serve others.

“I saw what socialism is for millions. I saw poverty and broken dreams. I came to Britain to make my way in a country where hard work and honest endeavour can take you anywhere.

“I grew up in a place where fear was everywhere. You cannot understand it unless you’ve lived it. Triple-checking that all the doors and windows are locked, waking up in the night at every sound, listening as you hear your neighbours scream as they are being burgled and beaten, wondering if your home would be next,” she said.

DAILY POST reports that Vice President Shettima on Monday responded, accusing Badenoch of denigrating Nigeria.

Shettima had asked Badenoch to remove the “Kemi” from her name if she was not proud of her nation of origin.

Asked about Shettima’s comments, Badenoch, through her spokesperson, said she stands by her statements and is not interested in doing public relations for Nigeria.

“She is the leader of the opposition, and she is very proud of her leadership of the opposition in this country.

“She tells the truth. She tells it like it is. She’s not going to couch her words, and she stands by what she says,” the spokesperson said.