FG powerless against economic terrorism? – Dele Sobowale

"Since I took over the leadership of the Nigerian Customs Service, if there’s anything that we are battling with, if there’s anything that is big challenge to us, it is smuggling— Col. Hameed Ali (rtd). Comptroller-General of NCS."

THAT was in a news report published in a national newspaper. The Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has raised alarm about the increase in the volume of rice, fish and poultry products being smuggled into the country. The Ministry, obviously speaking to deaf ears, warned that “importation of rice and frozen fish through land borders is illegal and prohibited.”


Somebody must assume that smugglers are not aware of the illegality of their actions. On the contrary, my years of experience at Idiroko, Ajilete, etc. point to the fact that smugglers are very much aware that they are breaking the law with impunity. They keep doing it because successive governments of the Federation, having depended largely on crude oil revenue have not regarded smuggling as economic terrorism which should be fought with the arsenals mobilized for other wars. The NCS boss lamented that “This year alone, I have over five officers who have gone down fighting smugglers.” That is unfortunate and the NCS has our sympathies. At the same time, it would appear as if the NCS and the Federal Government, under Buhari, like its predecessors are fighting terrorists with weapons meant for policing civil society. Adolf Hitler, 1889-1945, a first class terrorist himself and, perhaps a cousin to President Donald Trump of the USA, left the world with useful advice when he said: “You don’t fight terror with appeasement. You fight terror with terror.” Now that the Age of Oil is coming to an end, Nigerians and their governments must turn their attention to the economic terrorism which smuggling represents and which had led to the devastation of our manufacturing sectors, crippled our agro-allied industries and is making our quest for self-sufficiency in rice, tomato, sugar and vegetable oil appear like a mirage. This is a war for which all the governments in Nigeria must enlist the support of all of us.