The Nigeria Customs Service has said it has not carried out any fresh disengagement of its officers.
Reacting to a report of a recent disengagement of 59 officers, the Public Relations Officer of NCS, Mr. Joseph Attah, in a statement said that the exercise was the one carried out last year and not this year.
Attah said that the report was based on an internal memo dated January 19, this year, which was a compilation of the names of those that were warned, retired or dismissed for different offences.
He said, “As a routine practice of keeping officers and men of the service informed, the Ag. Comptroller (Discipline) compiled the names of all officers affected by the disciplinary action for circulation to all customs formations across the country. The notification to serving officers and men is in keeping with the service’s pre-emptive measures to deter any affected officer who may choose to hang around to engage in illegalities.
“It is therefore, unfortunate for a reporter to stumble on an internal communication of an organisation and rush to press without seeking clarification.
“For the avoidance of doubt, the service has not dismissed any officer since the one duly reported last year. The story is false and represents a repetition of same story delivered as new.
“While the NCS will not hesitate to discipline errant officers, such action is usually painstakingly driven through all well-established disciplinary procedures.”
