The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, on Friday paid homage to the Emir of Kano, Aminu Ado Bayero, in his palace, and promised to distribute seized food items to residents of the state.
During the visit, Adeniyi reiterated the importance of strengthening the bond between the Nigeria Customs Service and the Kano community.
“We are here in Kano for two reasons: first, as we approach the season of Ramadan, it is good for us to come around and extend our felicitations to the Emir and join him in prayers that Almighty God will make this month a blessed and glorious one for us and our country,” he said,
He said the second reason for his visit was to check on customs officers posted to the state “to supervise how they carry out their duties in and around Kano”.
“The country is currently undergoing a security crisis regarding the sorry state of food shortages, and as a responsible agency, the Nigeria Customs Service is saddled with the responsibility to come up with solutions to such challenges in the country.
“The Federal Government had given a matching order to the Service to mitigate the challenges,” he said.
Adeniyi said the NCS will soon start distributing seized food items to the residents of Kano State.
“We have already kick-started this program in Lagos and other parts of Nigeria as directed by President Ahmed Bola Tinubu,” he said.
He promised to strengthen collaboration with the Kano Emirate, considering the vast operations that the service has in the state.
“The biggest airport in northern Nigeria is in Kano. We have a dry port and many other things,” he said.
Responding, the Emir of Kano, Aminu Ado Bayero, expressed delight over the NCS’ plans to distribute food items to Kano residents amid the hardship and hunger that most ordinary people face in the country.