CG Customs, Adeniyi’s Extension In Office: DCG Nwafor Not Next In Rank

By Adesina Soyooye

It has been confirmed that  the news which made the rounds on Friday that President Bola Tinubu deliberately extended the tenure in office of Adewale Adeniyi, Comptroller General of Customs, by one year, to prevent Deputy Comptroller General, BU Nwafor, from succeeding him in office is false.

Contrary to that news which was given vent, and went viral, when former Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, who was also a former Aide to late President Muhammadu Buhari, Lauretta Onochie,  listed the reasons why Tinubu denied Nwafor the top position, Nwafor, a female from Anambra State,  is nowhere near being the next in rank to Adeniyi.

Recall that on Thursday, President Tinubu had extended, by one year, the tenure in office of Adeniyi to, according to the Press Release signed by Bayo Onanuga, Presidential Spokesperson, enable him complete the modernisation  exercise which he had  started. Adeniyi was to retire in August 2025 before it was extended to August 2026.

However, Onochie had slammed the extension and claimed it was done deliberately to stop Nwafor because, among other reasons: her gender, her State of origin, Anambra, has no husband or boyfriend in the Villa, and has no Governor backing her.

However, investigation has put a lie to the claim that Nwafor is next in rank.

Here are the facts:

Five Officers were promoted on 4th May 2023,  to the rank of Deputy Comptroller-General (DCG).

On that same  4th May, 2023, Nwafor was promoted to the rank of Assistant Comptroller-General (ACG).

Her promotion to DCG followed a full year after the promotion of the five DCGs including alongside the current Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi.

The accurate ranking as documented are:

Assistant Comptrollers‑General (ACGs) confirmed on 4 May 2023

• 1. O. Peters – ACG / Zonal Coordinator Zone ‘C’

• 2. A. I. Alfa – ACG Strategic Research & Policy

• 3. H. J. Swomen – ACG Excise, Free Trade Zone & Industrial Incentives

• 4. K. C. Egwuh – ACG Doctrine Development and Administration Command

• 5. M. B. A. Musa – ACG Tariff & Trade

• 6. A. Dappa‑Williams – ACG Enforcement, Inspection & Investigation

• 7. B. M. Jibo – ACG Headquarters

• 8. A. Hamisu – ACG / Commandant, Nigeria Customs Command & Staff College

• 9. Y. Salihu – ACG Finance & Admin

• 10. M. I. Yusuf – ACG Training & Coordination

• 11. S. A. Bomai – ACG Board

• 12. C. K. Niagwan – ACG Technical Services

• 13. K. I. Adeola – ACG ICT / Modernisation

• 14. I. O. Babalola – ACG / Zonal Coordinator Zone ‘D’

• 15. B. U. Nwafor – ACG Human Resource Development

DCG Nwafor, alongside others, is billed to retire in October, 2026.

For the records, Adeniyi is not the only one in that category whose tenure in office was extended by  President Tinubu. He had, earlier, extended that of the Inspector General of Police by four years and that of the Comptroller General of Immigration by one year.

Instructively, the CG of Immigration is  female – Kemi Nanna Nandap.