COWA President, Kikelomo Adeniyi Commission’s NPA Tugboat, MT BAMA Amidst Fanfare 

—As Husband, Wale Adeniyi Says, Customs Moved 5th Position on PEBEC Ease of Doing Business Ranking 

By DAPO OLAWUNI 

Wife of the Comptroller-General of Nigeria Customs Service, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, and President of Customs Officers Wives Association (COWA) Mrs Kikelomo Adeniyi on Thursday commissioned one of the two newly acquired 80 tons bollard pull tugboats of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) MT BAMA.

The second tugboat. MT IRAGBIJI was commissioned by the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola.
The two tugboats were deployed to enhance the berthing of vessels at the Dangote Refinery and Lekki Deep Seaport.

Coincidentally, Mrs Adeniyi hails from Iragbiji, a town in Oshogbo, Osun State, the same community with the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola.

Meanwhile, speaking at the commissioning, Comptroller-General of Nigeria Customs Service, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi expressed satisfaction with the existing collaboration between Customs and Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) in areas of export, customs modernization and port decongestion.

Adeniyi also revealed that the Nigeria Customs, like the NPA, recently ranked 5th on the Ease of doing business ranking by the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC)
He said the agency moved 27 places, up to the 5th position, thereby scoring a 100percent.

Speaking, he said “As Nigeria Customs Service, what we know is that 70percent of all our operations is conducted in all the ports that we have in this country, this means that we must be deliberate and intentional in working with the custodians of the port.

“The MD of NPA puts collaboration in the forefront and we have found it comfortable for us to work together. 
The Nigeria Customs Service sees this event as an opportunity to deepen the efficiency of NPA and translate into better collaboration with the Nigeria Customs Service.

“We also believe our collaboration with NPA is taking different dimensions, we are collaborating on export, which President Bola Tinubu takes seriously, we are also collaborating on the Customs Modernization Process that is going on, we have a very active partner in the Nigerian Ports Authority.

“There are many other ways we are collaborating, particularly on port decongestion and to ensure efficiencies of our ports.

“The positive outcome of these outcome have led to the NPA ten days ago being named the best agency in terms of ease of doing business by PEBEC, the agency scored 100percent which is a remarkable feat, for consistently putting in effort to ensure its operations get better.

“During the same service, the Nigeria Customs Service moved 27 places from where we were before, to the top five, and we were scored at 100percent.

“For me, the good news is not about NPA being ontop of that ranking, it is not about Custom scoring 100 percent, for me,  if you look at the top ten agencies on the ranking, they are related in one way or the other to what is happening in the maritime industry. 

“This underscored the fact that all the agencies working under the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy are aligning with the vision of the Minister on repositioning the maritime industry and deliver all the existing potentials” Adeniyi stated

On a lighter note, Adeniyi who hails from Modakeke in Osun State, recounted how he took his beautiful wife from IRAGBIJI, a small town in Oshogbo, Osun State, the same community with the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, which automatically signifies that they are in-laws.