EXCLUSIVE: Adeniyi Reveals Influence of Ooni of Ife in his Emergence As Customs CG

By DAPO OLAWUNI

The newly appointed Acting Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service, CGC Wale Adeniyi has paid homage to the Ooni of Ife, Arole Oodua, Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi to appreciate him for the role he played in his clinching the top customs job.

Adeniyi was accompanied on the visit last week Wednesday by the Ogunsua of Modakeke in Osun State, Oba Joseph Toriola, as well as other stakeholders.

DAILY TREND recalls that President Bola Tinubu on Monday 19th of June 2023 appointed Adewale Adeniyi as Acting Comptroller-General of Nigeria Customs Service (NCS).
Adeniyi replaced former Customs CG, Hammed Ali, who was relieved of his job alongside all service chiefs. Mr Ali. a former military governor of Kaduna, was appointed by former President Muhammadu Buhari on August 27, 2015,

While speaking at the traditional rulers’ palace, the Customs boss appreciated the role played by both the Ooni and Ogunsua in positioning him for the job. According to him, importance of traditional rulers in the Nigerian constitution has been relegated and it needs to be given more prominence.

He said “The most thorny thing to do is giving thanks, whoever does not appreciate what is done to him would not know how to give thanks.

“When we started this journey, about about five years ago that we started, sometimes, people would notice our coming to the palace, sometimes, they don’t notice our coming, the Ooni would just open his door to us quietly and we would come in to greet him.

“He has been standing strong behind me since we started, he is giving me support and assurances that all will be possible.

“I learnt a lesson from all these happenings, when we entered the service, I can remember very well, when we entered government job, we always believe that there is nothing the traditional rulers can do for us, most times, people usually run after the Governor’s, the Commissioners, the President and the Honorables, they believe that those are the only people that can help out.

“However, it is only in South West that these kind of mistake is being made, in the North, whenever their children gain employment, that very day is when they start projecting where the child would be positioned in the next twenty years, the position they want the child to be in the next thirty years, they would start positioning them, all the posting they would be giving him is to further position him for the bigger assignment.

“As this is going on, they would keep going to their Emirs because they are the ones that know how they positioned them in the service. However, in the Southwest, we don’t do that, we believe that our traditional rulers have nothing to offer.

“One deficiency in our constitution is that it does not stipulate specific role that should be played by our traditional rulers. I have seen it that, no matter how we do it in Nigeria, either we practice the Presidential system or not, we must not undermine the influence of our traditional rulers.

“As a matter of fact, the Kabiyesi Oonirisa is quite different, because since he came on the throne, he made us know that he would be a father to all, he has further demonstrated this in his character, his behaviors and the words of wisdom coming out of his mouth at all time.

“He has always been telling us as a nation that we must coexist in peace for progress to happen. He also told me that he cannot be preaching peace across Nigeria without first ensuring peace between Modakeke and Ife” Adeniyi stated

The Customs CG assured that with the coming of the traditional rulers from Modakeke to Ooni palace, there would be no more war between Ife and Modakeke.