Customs FOU Zone A New Building Costs N73bn — CGC Adeniyi

President Bola Tinubu on Saturday commissioned the newly completed office complex of the Federal Operations Unit (FOU), Zone A of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), located in Iperu, Ogun State.

Speaking with journalists after the commissioning ceremony, the Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, disclosed that the project was conceived at an estimated cost of N73 billion, but noted that financial realities and inflation had altered the original projections, with only 45 percent of the full project completed so far.

“This was conceived to be in the region of N73 billion. But, of course, between inception and now, a number of things have happened,” Adeniyi said.

He revealed that the service was now seeking presidential approval to revise the earlier approved figure in order to see the project through to completion.

“We are now in the process of seeking Mr. President’s understanding that we might need to vary what was originally approved. We are only 45 percent in the execution of the project that we have done here. And so, we still have a fairly long way to go,” he said.

The CGC expressed optimism that the project would be completed within President Tinubu’s tenure, saying: “It would be our interest, it would give us delight if Mr. President would give us the enablement to finish this during his tenure.”

Adeniyi explained that the relocation from the service’s longstanding Ikeja base was necessitated by years of operational expansion that had outgrown the existing facilities.

“Basically what led to this is the need for us to balance the discharge of our mandates, the basic mandates, revenue generation, trade facilitation and enforcement, with the need to enhance the welfare of our officers, produce a good working environment for them, and do something about our trading facilities in Lagos,” he said.

He recalled that the Ikeja facility, which once adequately served the service, had become too cramped to support its current scale.

“When we joined the service over 30 years ago, this was a very big place. It was a very big place for us. It was enough to accommodate all of those activities. But over the years, the operations of the service, the size of the service, the scope of our mandates have really, really expanded. And we needed a bigger space, a bigger space that is more conducive,” he stated.

The CGC paid tribute to Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun for facilitating the acquisition of the land on which the new complex stands, describing the relationship as a productive partnership.

Adeniyi said the land hosting the new building is covering over 50 hectares, and that it was secured through the governor’s intervention.

He also acknowledged his predecessor’s role in initiating the project, saying: “I must also pay glowing tributes to my predecessor, who actually started this project. It was his doggedness that ensured that we got the land, over 50 hectares, that we are using for this.”

Adeniyi said the FOU officers would take up the new facility immediately, noting that it had already been furnished and was being equipped with, among other things, a modern armory. The complex also sits adjacent to a warehouse facility which he said would complement the existing warehouse at the nearby aviation village.
On customs operations at the Ogun State airport, the CGC confirmed that the service was already positioned there, with officers deployed to the terminal building and to cargo operations.

“We know the budget cost of this place. We are already at the airport. Our officers are already there,” he said,