Murtala Mohammed Area Command Upholds High Ethical Standard in Cargo Operation

Murtala Mohammed Area Command Upholds High Ethical Standard in Cargo Operation.

By Joe Njoku,
Global Freight News.

The Murtala Mohammed Area Command of the Nigeria Customs Service has reiterated the command’s resolve to keep the business ethics of ensuring that the operators and clearing agent pay stipulated duty for goods before the can be completely cleared from the airport.

The Customs Area Controller, Comptroller Godwin Otunla made this statement during a courtesy visit of executive members of the Maritime Journalists Association of Nigeria (MAJAN).

He told newsman that every items that comes into the country are way billed separately, not collectively as most agents tend to present them during inspection.

According to him, “Every items coming into the country are captured in the database of the Nigeria Customs Service,” he said.

“Most Clearing Agents mischievously bunch items together in other to conceal them, only to declare one or two out of many others. The unfortunate aspect for such saboteurs is that even when the concealed items are eventually taken out of the customs domain, the system will show that they were not properly cleared, this making the command to impose stiffer penalty on terminal operators handling the said cargoes.

On revenue, Comptroller Godwin Otunla who has been at helm of affairs in the command was barely two months in office has triggered the command’s monthly revenue from #16,673,433,040.00 in January 2025 to #23,410,408,103.20 in the month of January 2026.

Otunla who had worked under different Customs formation has attributed his achievements so far to his experience in the terrain and the support and contribution of dedicated officers whom he inherited from the last administration.

During his short stint at the Ogun I Command, he said that it was a peaceful time in all the seven months that he worked there.

He recalled that the command fought against smugglers and made some spectacular seizure with no loss of lives on both sides of the divide.

In his closing remarks, he advised the trading public to see the Nigeria Customs Service as friends and trade facilitator, not as enemies.

He warned that before any member of the public would buy any product, there should be thorough enquires about the items on sale to be sure that it was properly cleared from the airport.