By: Ologeh Joseph
The newly appointed Comptroller General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi is the third person from Southern Nigeria to occupy the exalted position since 1891 when the office was set up, Irohinoodua has discovered.
President Bola Tinubu this week appointed Adeniyi to be in charge of Nigerian Customs.
He is also the third Comptroller from Southern Nigeria to have occupied the exalted position since 1960 when Nigeria got her independence from Britain.
It has created a paradigm shift in power equation in Nigeria.
“This is an event that nobody would have imagined to happen so soon”, a Chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP) in Lagos told our correspondent.
But a source at the Presidency said Adeniyi was appointed based on his competence, dedication to duty and his well celebrated sense of discipline
Since 1960, the position of the Comptroller General has always been historically reserved Northerners, especially people of Fulani and Hausa heritage.
The Nigerian Custom generates an average of N1 Trillion in a year.
Some observers think the IGR is in reality up to ten times this figure, considering the cases of savage looting and corruption associated with the Nigerian Custom.
The Nigeria Custom was established in 1891 when the previous British Colonial organization delegated T. A. Wall as the Director General, succeeded by H. L. Seal in 1900, succeeded by G. E. H. Migeod in 1903, which was also succeeded by C. E. Dale in 1906.
The names of the previous Director Generals in the Custom since 1960: are listed below:
1961 – S. G. Quiton; 1964 – A. Divan; 1968 – H. E. Duke; 1975 – S. A. Musa; 1976 – Oyebode Oyeleye; 1982 – Abubakar Musa; 1988 – Dr. Bello H. Mohammed; 1993 – Major Gen. S. O. G. Ango; 1999 – A. A. Mustapha; 2004 – Jacob Gyang Buba; 2008 – Hamman Bello Ahmed Kojoli; January 2009 – August 2009 – Bernard Shaw Nwadialo; 2009 – 2015 – Abdullahi Dikko; 2015 – 2023 – Hammed Ali”.