By Stephen Ubanna

For years , there had been rumours making the rounds of  the use of partitioned trucks by smugglers to carry out their nefarious trade through the land border routes.  The situation was so bad with the use of branded vehicles loaded with dutiable goods to conceal prohibited goods such as rice.

Mohammed Ali, Comptroller , Seme Command may have opened the eyes of the Comptroller Federal Operations Unit, FOU, Zone  A, Mohammed Uba Garba,to beam his search light on the land border Areas with the south west geo-political Zone.

A s a prelude to giving a bite to Command anti-smuggling  war,  Muhammed was said to have reshovelled his operational team  a fortnight ago. The arrow head of the Command Lagos Roving team was moved to the Rapid Response team, which gave him the opportunity to patrol the entire so  states in the south west : Ogun, Lagos, Ondo Oyo, Osun and Ekiti.

Mohammed was said to have replaced him with Riks Lura, a Chief Superintendent of Customs, who was formerlly a Surveillance team leader at Idiroko axis in Ogun state. Within one week of being on the sadle as the officer in-charge of the Command Roving team, Riks apears, to be changing the line of seizures of the Command from intercepted Containers at the seaports to the sophisticated tools used by smugglers

The Magazine learnt within one week of mounting the saddle  the Command Lagos Roving  intercepted a truck  a truck suspected to be carrying contraband within Shop Rite axis at Sango Otta. The truck was found to have been partitioned by using dutiable goods to Conceal  about 190 bags of ”50” kg foreign parboiled rice. The interception of the partitioned truck by the team may have forced Muhammed to boost that whatever  method employed by the smugglers to carry out their nefarious trade  would be puncture, noting that the Command  was far ahead of them.

A   truck intercepted by the team was said to have carried about 680 heavy duty vehicle  tyres but concealed  inside the truck was an additional 158 bags of rice. This is in addition to an alleged Nigeria Breweries Plc truck carrying 170 bags of rice but used its crates to conceal it. The seizure of the Nigeria Breweries, Dangote  and other  Corporate Organisations truck to smuggle rice and prohibited goods into the country may have informed why  the FOU, Zone A, Comptroller had warned  Companies engaging the services of drivers  to look at the reliability  and integrity of  the person before going ahead to employ him.  The Command  was said to have an investigation team to ascertain the culpability of the Organisations which trucks are been detained in the Command for carrying smuggled goods. The Comptroller was said to have made it clear to all that care to listen that if any of the Organisations found wanting would lose their trucks to the g government.

A visitor to the Command mechanical workshop turned warehouse would be surprised at  the number of exotic vehicles and branded trucks detained.   Muhammed, the Comptroller confirmed that  the Command detained over 30 exotic vehicles between April 10 and  May 10, 2018. Riks led Lagos Roving team was said to have intercepted three  Toyota Prado Jeep along the Lagos-Ibada Expressway and three Toyota Hilux van , along Ijebu Ode axis . The vehicles were said to be 2017 model. Prior to breaking into the ranks of smugglers in the Idiroko axis  based on credible information, the team  was said to have  seized two Containers  with no: MSKU130295/2 and MRKU8777140/1, over alleged false declaration.  The two Containers, according to the Customs boss  carried goods with a duty paid value, DPV,.  of  about N25 million.

He disclosed 14 persons were arrested in connection with the 125 seizures made by the Command within the period.  Given an insider information,  e confirmed that the Command in the last one month intercepted Contrabands with a DPV  of N1.01 billion. the Command, he also said recovered  for the government N 1.04 billion. This is money that could have entered into private accounts without the vigilance of the officer s of the Command patrol teams.

It is not surprising why Muhammed could boast that  his  men up to their responsibility in suppression of smuggling , blocking all areas of revenue leakage  and enhancing  trade facilitation thus sustaining  best International standars.

By Oji Odu

It seems that Smile Telecoms Holdings, reserve bidder in the sale of 9 Mobile, Nigeria’s fourth largest telecommunications operator will have to wait longer to know whether it will takeover 9 Mobile. This is because preferred bidder in the sale process, Teleology Holdings Limited has embarked on an aggressive bid to raise the $300 million for the payment of the firm. This is after paying the non refundable $50 million.
Teleology has hired a global financial service firm USB, a financial services firm in over 50 countries to raise a $300 million bridge loan to seal the acquisition deal.
The Magazine learnt that Teleology had sought out the service of USB, to raise bridge loan from local banks and investors while the balance of $200 million will be raised through equity. This is in contrary to a recent report that Teleology actually offered $301 million to beat Smile Communications’ $300 million bid.
Teleology, a special purpose vehicle (SPV), was set up by Nigerian investors.Teleology is under the stewardship of Adrian Wood, one of the past CEOs of MTN Nigeria. Adrian Wood, an Australian-born technocrat, was the Chief Executive Officer of MTN Nigeria from 2002 to 2004.
In all of the opposition, Wood remained resolute and optimistic that he would deliver on promise in terms of the financial ability of Teleology to pay all monies pertaining to the acquisition of 9mobile, and in terms of the technical capability to handle 9mobile.
After beating the March 22 deadline to pay the non refundable $50 million, Woods set the ball rolling in less than 24hours as he announced his 10-point agenda on which the telecoms company would be managed. This he said will reposition the telecommunications company to deliver optimum value to its customers.
“9mobile is transiting into a new phase that will be defined by optimal value delivery: value to our employees, value to our customers, value to local communities and indeed to all stakeholders,” he said.
In a statement, Teleology detailed an ambitious action plan that would guide its rapid overhaul not only of the network but all aspects of the operations.
But Smile Telecoms Holdings , the reserve bidder has said it would reposition the company and make it attractive again within a space of 90 days, if given the opportunity to acquire it.
The company had expressed dissatisfaction over the manner in which the sale of 9mobile was handled, through a protest letter it wrote to Barclays Africa, the financial adviser that handled the sale of 9mobile, while calling for the review of the entire sales process that produced Teleology as the preferred bidder, because it believes 9mobile deserves the best and should be sold to an existing and qualified telecoms company with the right technical expertise and financial strength that is capable to manage and turn it around for the highly competitive market within a short period.
The Executive Director, Operations, Smile Communications, a subsidiary of Smile Telecoms Holdings, Ahmad Farroukh, who reacted to this recently said Smile has all it takes to reposition 9mobile and make it attractive and competitive again within a space of 90 days.
“We will bring three dimensional values to 9mobile if given the opportunity to acquire it. The first value is that we are Nigerian company already existing in the Nigerian telecoms space. So we will come up with our existing assets to boost the 9mobile operations. We will seek the permission of NCC to flip our existing 800MHz frequency to 9mobile to enhance its operations. What we are bringing to 9mobile is huge.
“The 800MHz frequency, which Smile Communications currently operates on, will be added to that of 9mobile to achieve the best frequency ever that will serve the customers better and help 9mobile to come out of its current challenges. Without exaggerating, we are sure to add additional 600 Base Transceiver Stations (BTS) of Long Term Evolution (LTE) technology, into the operations of 9mobile within a space of 90 days, if given the opportunity to acquire it.
“We will from day one, integrate our existing facilities with that of 9mobile to get the company back to its old good days, when it was the best voice and data telecoms company in Nigeria. 9mobile currently has 500 BTS across the country, and by the time we add our 400 existing BTS and combine it with the 600 BTS that we can provide within 90 days, 9mobile will be having approximately 1,500 BTS, which will match the number of BTS that the largest telecoms operator in the country currently has. So should we acquire 9mobile, we will make it competitive from day one with unprecedented speed of service delivery.”
He added, “The second value that we will bring to 9mobile is the monetary value. We will bring in fresh millions of dollars from foreign financing outside Nigeria, into 9mobile to pay off its indebtedness to the banks and also pay off any other group that the company is indebted to, and we will still have enough to invest in 9mobile and make it competitive. Let me tell you that several countries around the world still believe in the Nigeria story and we will reach out to them to get fresh funds to invest in 9mobile.”
The third dimensional value that Smile Telecoms Holdings will bring to 9mobile, according to him, is about the company’s long standing experience in telecoms business.
“I have handled telecoms business in Nigeria, including being the CEO of MTN Nigeria from 2006 to 2011, before I was appointed as Director to oversee the MTN West African operations, before joining Smile Communications. Nigeria has made me what I am today and I am grateful to God and to Nigeria. In Smile Communications and Smile Telecoms Holdings, we have seasoned telecoms experts and we are bringing that expertise to 9mobile if given the opportunity to acquire it. We are convinced that our three dimensional values will make 9mobile a successful company if we are allowed to manage it,” Farroukh said.

The acquisition process was recently put on hold by an order of the Federal High Court, Abuja. Two companies that claimed to be major stakeholders of 9mobile had earlier headed to the court to asked for a refund of $43,330,950 which was the amount they invested in the company.
Just as the fate of the entire acquisition process is no longer on the court case alone, Teleology Holdings has to raise the total $500 million for payment of 9 Mobile as Smile Telecoms Holdings prays for a slip by the preferred bidder so as to take over 9Mobile.

By Stephen Ubanna
Until the tail end of Last April,Dantani Mohammed, a former Chief Superintendent of Customs, and Uche Ejesemie, a former Deputy Superintendent of Customs and Public Relations officer, Tincan Island Command were not sure of wearing new ranks in the next month being May, 2018. This is because of the news making the round in Customs circles that the Customs senior officers promotion results had been changed several times by powers that be for their own pecuniary gains. The duo and others in similar disadvantaged position like them may have kept away from calling any of their contacts at the Customs Headquarters for help because of their believe that ”promotions comes from God and not man” They may have further encouraged themselves that” God’s Time is the best”.
Their fear was further worsened when information leaked out that on only a few hundreds of senior officers out of the thousands who took the Promotion examination were recommended to the Customs Board headed by Kemi A deosun, minister of Finance by Hameed Ali, a retired and the Customs Comptroller General led Management.
Their intial fear of not getting the promotion may have been wiped out when Joseph Attah, a Deputy Comptroller Comptroller and the Customs National Public Relations officer issued a Statement the Customs during its first meeting on Thursday, May 10, 2018, has approved the promotion of because t 1,997 senior officers to various ranks.

The duo and scores of hundreds of other senior officers from the various ranks waited anxiously to cite the complete list of the approved promotion list and to go through it to check if their names were there. It was learnt that even before the document could be forwarded to the various Area Comptrollers for their attention between last Thursday and Friday, information had leaked out that the duo were among the 1,997 , promoted senior officers.
They were said to have waited patiently to get the call of Baba- Musa, the Comptroller who may have flipped through the list and to confirm that their names were on the list of the approved promoted senior officers list. A source told the Magazine that when the Comptroller went through the list he was not particular about any senior officer but knowing the number of senior officers in the Command who scaled through the promotion hurdle.
The source disclosed that that he heaved sigh of relief when he found that 114 senior officers names from the Command on the promotion list. He has no option but to reach out those of them he had their contacts because of the sensitive position occupied in the Command. Among the senior officers he was said to have reached out to were one or two of the new Deputy Comptrollers, Dantani and Ejesemie, the Command image maker to break the news of their promotion.
Insiders told the Magazine that when it became clear that the Complete promotion list had reached the Command, the senior officers who had got the privilaged information that their names were on the list started trooping to the Command Deputy Comptroller in=charge of Administration to re-confirm their names and to make assurance doubly sure. the duo of Dantani and Ejeseme were not left out as they joined others to check their names on the list.
What may have given Baba Musa, the Command Comptroller the greatest joy was the promotion of six Assistant Comptrollers from the Command to Deputy Comptrollers out of the 52 on the promotion list, across Customs Formations nation-wide , meaning that some Customs Command may not have even produced one Deputy Comptroller on the list .
Perhaps, to avoid the delay that characterised the release of the promotion after about eight months of taking the promotion examination, Ali, the Comptroller general gave the go ahead to the Customs Zonal Coordinators and the Comptrollers to decorate the newly promoted senior officers under their control with their new ranks. The Deputy Comptroller Generals of Customs were also asked to decorate the senior officers promoted in their various Departments .
true to Ali’s directive that the newly promoted senior officers should be decorated with their new ranks on Tuesday May15, 2018, the DCGs, Command Zonal Coordinators and the Comptrollers were said to have heeded to . At Tincan Island Command, the occasion was said to have turned out to a celebration for the beneficiaries.
Officers and men atatched to the Bond , headed by Dantani, as a Chief Superintendent but now an Assistant Comptroller, may have surprised him with the lavish drinks bough to entertain guests including an expensive cake that was bought at Shop Rite. At Ejesemie’s office, there was enough take away for guests including the officers who got the promotion and those who witnessed the decoration including personnel from other agencies who were there. He was able to take care of the Visitors and the officers with the support of the Comptroller.
The Magazine cited the Complete list of the senior officers approved officers for promotion last Tuesday and found out that the Comptroller General had started implementing the recommendation sent to the Minister of Finance for the Customs Board approval .
This is evident with the deployment of Deputy Comptrollers Dangladima Sambo Kalid from SR and P to Presidential Task Force on Cross Border movement, Agbara Ojobo Michael as acting Comptroller, Ogun Command Olumoh Kamaldeen as acting Comptroller, Adamawa/Taraba Command. The three Deputy Comptrollers were said to be among the 49 promoted to the Comptrollers rank this time around.
investigation by the Magazine shows that about three and one of the newly promoted Comptrollers had either died or retired before the Customs Board finally met to approve the promotion list last Thursday.
Many believe that delay in releasing the promotion list by the Customs Board may have contributed to the death of the officers through thinking.