By Rabiu Musa
The Nigeria Customs Service nationwide has witnessed a renewed vigour and spirited efforts aimed to consolidate, collaborate and create more innovations in line with the policy thrust of the Comptroller General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi MFR.
In view of the above, the Nigeria Customs Service, Onne Area command, has redoubled efforts and strategies to generate more revenue, suppress smuggling activities to the barest minimum and improve trade facilitation in accordance with the CGC vision for the service.
A routine visit to Onne Area Command revealed a holistic reforms in operational procedures, streamlined documentation processes, openness in ideas and information dissemination and mutual respect from officers and men with Agents and Stakeholders in the discharge of their duties.
Onne Customs Area Command facilities, Offices, training centres, sports training arena and car parks has received a boost and recreation with a view to create a healthy body able and fitted to achieve results and efficient service delivery; all these achievements are credited to the pragmatic, astute and value addition specialist par excellence, ACG Imam BABA, ( then Compt. of the command) who despite all odds sacrifice his comfort, time and pleasure to ensure that Onne Customs Command is a flagship for discipline, hard work, more revenue generation, trade facilitation and most importantly value addition in all operations and administration in the command in accordance with international standards and best practices.
In furtherance to that, the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agent, ANLCA, the foremost and oldest association in the Nigeria Maritime industry, Onne Area Command Chapter, under the chairmanship of Mike Ebeatu has enforced discipline, due process and fiscal policies of the federal government on imports and exports compliance aimed to be on the same page with the Nigeria Customs Service. Mike Ebeatu stewardship at ANLCA Onne Chapter has created needed robust relationships and synergies with customs, Agents and Media Practitioners in the south south and south east including the south west alike. Most operators, stakeholders and Journalists have lauded the excellent cordial mutual relationship created by the Mike Ebeatu leadership style since he assumed office as the chairman, ANLCA Onne Chapter; an unassuming, proactive, hard working and resourceful personality who always advocate for peace and mutual cooperation in work place and life as a veritable tool to achieve brotherliness, growth and development in life and the society at large.
According to GLOBAL RAYS forensic investigation, a peep into Mike Ebeatu life style shows a humble, God fearing, peace maker and advocate of hard work to achieve goals and results. Since, he took over as chairman, several human capacity development programmes, improved healthcare for the elderly in ANLCA and renovations of ANLCA secretariat and creation of a new ANLCA lounge at FOT gate and resolution of disputes or grey areas in cargo documentation and clearance at the Onne Seaport.
In addition, Mike Ebeatu has continued to advocate for due process, adherance to fiscal policies and objectivity in actions or inaction from all critical stakeholders and Media Practitioners alike in the area command aimed to foster a cordial and conducive working environment devoid of rancour and acrimony.
Sequel to the background, the entire member of coalition of Maritime Journalists Association of Nigeria (COMJAN), have risen from an emergency meeting in view of the behavior and unethical attitude of some Maritime Media Practitioners named Nigeria Maritime Journalists Forum in the industry, who had continuously made it a stock in trade to write reports and reportage based on unverified, unfounded and baseless speculations aimed to put an undue pressure at their alleged personality without recourse to the norms and ethics of the profession with intention to extort and cajole alleged personalities for gratification.
Journalism is a respected profession which is the watchdog of the society tagged the fourth estate of the realm. Basically to inform, educate, entertain and enlighten the general Public. In view of the above, the profession should not be a tool to intimidate, coarse and harass for gratification.
The profession rewards the genuine practitioners who render service in line with the norms and values tailored towards societal sustainability.
The Coalition is aware of some journalists and irresponsible acclaimed writers who parade themselves in the corridor of the industry feigning themselves to be relevant whereas by practice of the profession they are nobody.
It is only in their figment of imagination that they think putting baseless allegations on personalities, organizations and government officials would make them relevant and rich quick.
We the Coalition are credible media practitioners who are tested, trusted and proven over the decades and stand to challenge any of these Voodoo writers to show their works.
We Coalition of Maritime Journalists of Nigeria are not going to let this misdemeanor continue aimed to tarnish our hard earned reputation.
We hereby call on all stakeholders, industry chieftains, Government Agencies to be aware and verify the clandestine activities of those self acclaimed Media Practitioners who their so called very proud and assuming President had been arrested and detained due to the same blackmail mannerism of reportage by the then Customs Area Controller, Area 1 Customs Command, Compt. Adeogun, ( Rtd) during Mr. Kalio chairmanship as NUJ Rivers State chapter because of this same unethical behavior Which members of COMJAN then swiftly rescued from being jailed.
We belief that “what causes the smelling rat to ooz out and spoil the air is in his blood”. These characters need to be thoroughly examined.
