A Chronicle of Dr Ben Oramalugo’s Footprints as Controller, Seme Customs Command

A Chronicle of Dr Ben Oramalugo’s Footprints as Controller, Seme Customs Command

The Controller, Seme Customs Area Command, Dr Ben Oramalugo, an erudite Scholar with numerous published books and other works to his name, a tested Customs officer with pedigree. Dr Oramalugo takes us on a journey to Kebbi, Oyo/Osun and Seme Customs Command, places where he touched lives and didn’t forget to make a mark. In this interview with Todaynews and Maritime Connect online, anchored by Jerry Aguigbo and Okezie Nnadi, Dr Oramalugo delves into the activities of these Commands and events that become the highlights of his illustrious Carrier as Customs Controller in Seme, Oyo/Osun and Kebbi. We avail you excerpts from that Interview:

_Good afternoon Sir, Could you please give us an appraisal of what you have done, as Customs Controller who has traversed Oyo/Osun, Kebbi and now, Seme Customs Area Command; having seen your footprints in these places._

My name is Dr. Ben Oramalugo, Controller, Seme Customs. I assumed duty at Seme Area Command in the month of February 2025.
Before now, I was in Kebbi, from Kebbi, I was taken to Oyo/Osun, from Oyo/Osun to Seme, when I was appointed a full Controller in 2022, I was first of all taken to Kebbi.
However, because of my performance in Kebbi, the CGC, Mr Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, told me that he was going to give me a higher responsibility. And that higher responsibility was, you know…Oyo/Osun. In Kebbi, I was able to prove that I had capacity.
I made a lot of humongous seizures there. Especially, this animal skin that is against CITES, donkey skin. I made a seizure of donkey Skin worth Millions of Naira. You know, it’s against CITES.

CITES is the Convention on the Endangered Species. It was that seizure that launched me into limelight. And also, I started raising revenue in a place that was regarded as a dry land.
And I had a very robust relationship with the stakeholders who also had good things to say of me and my achievements. In all honesty, our CGC was solidly behind me and promised that he would give me a higher responsibility, which he did. Then, when I went to Oyo/Osun. Oyo/Osun was quite big,
Oyo alone is about 20,000 square kilometers, while Osun is about 14,000 square kilometers. And they had not less than six to eight borders covering them. I was able to make a lot of seizures there too.

For example, my key seizures were in the area of fake pharmaceuticals. I made one particular seizure worth about 1.2 billion of fake pharmaceutical products. And as you know, the influx of fake pharmaceuticals has been a problem
Nigeria has been having, right from 1989, over 150 children died in Kano because of ethylene glycol that was injected into the paracetamol. In 1992, in Jos, 47 children died because of the ethylene glycol. Ethylene glycol is a substance
used in manufacturing dyes and cigarettes and so on and so forth. So because of the sweetness of the chemical, they normally use it to produce paracetamol. This has killed a lot of Nigerians.

So I came to Oyo/Osun with that mindset. I was also aware of the struggles or travails of Professor Dora Akunyili against fake drugs. She fought them to a standstill.
She even told the story of how her elder sister died because of a fake drug administered on her. She was operated upon and she was taking medication, not knowing that the active ingredients in those drugs were not there. In the end, they were drinking ordinary powder and the lady lost her life.

So I came to Oyo/Osun with that mindset and I vowed to myself that I would not allow them (fake and substandard Pharmaceuticals) to enter Oyo/Osun. Even in Kebbi, I waged war against hard drugs which made
Col.Mohammed Buba Marwa to give me an award as an “Ambassador Against Illicit Drugs”. He basically gave me an award there. So in Oyo/Osun, I got an award from different groups.
I got an award from different groups of people because of that particular situation. I also made a lot of seizures of cannabis and of the other groups.
I also made the highest revenue that has ever been made in that command since it was established.

And then the CGC decided to also give me a bigger stake by bringing me to this (Seme) command. And one important fact I want to also say about Oyo/Osun is that, before I came there, the barracks where officers were living was like an abandoned museum.
I mobilised and brought it to its present state and it became the cleanest and most beautiful Customs barracks in Nigeria, acknowledged by the headquarters of Nigeria Customs. Even recently when the CGC visited, he reminded the present Area Controller that he hoped that he would keep the barracks clean the way Dr. Ben kept it.
So I left a very big shoe for them there.

_So Sir, can you also give us an overview of your performance so far in Seme Customs Area Command._

When I came to Seme, first of all, I discovered that there was no peace in Seme among the stakeholders. That was the first thing I did, to bring them together.
I observed that it’s only when there is peace that there will be trade. So I’ve been able to achieve that. Then among the security agencies, there was no forum where they could sit and talk.
They had a meeting about five, six years ago. It stopped, but I reinvented it.
So we are now having regular meetings. We can now share our ideas. And I’ve been able to reduce the checkpoints, especially with Customs.
And even the police, they have listened to us, though we still have challenges along those lines. And when I came to Seme too, four days after getting here, I made a seizure of cannabis, a brand new Hiace, filled up with cannabis.

That was when they knew that a new sheriff was in town. And since that time, I’ve been making a lot of seizures. Currencies, you know, they are banned.
You don’t import or export currencies, especially coins. I have been seizing rice and other food products. You can see there is a little sanity within Seme here.
Yes, than when I arrived here, you can see the signposts we are putting all over the place. “Smuggling is bad for the economy.” “Customs is your friend.”
All these are to raise the psyche of Nigerians. And to also show the public that within the border, Customs is the leading agency. We have also started the same sanitation we did in Oyo/Osun at Seme

In other words, we are also giving Seme a better treatment. So I know in the next few weeks, the result will be profound. Moreover, in terms of revenue, we are also doing very well.
I think in April, we made about N800 million, almost going to N1 billion. And it’s also going up, we hope to increase this. In terms of exports, we have encouraged tremendous exports here.
I may not been able to give you the exact figure. But I know we have done tremendously well. And you know, export is very, very important.
Any country that doesn’t involve good exports, will be a very poor country. Whatever you produce, you ship out to make money. And that is exactly what we have done in Seme.

_It appears very habitual for you to make a big mark wherever you go. What has been your motivating factor so far_ .

Well, since I joined the service, it has been my desire to serve and serve well.
Anywhere I go, I always want people to separate the boss from the man. You can even see it in my educational background. When I joined the service, I didn’t just relax my hand.
Anywhere I see knowledge, I will go and pick it. So that is really what I have done. My motivating factor, my motivator is the insatiable desire to excel.
I don’t want to be seen as a failure anywhere. So I want to leave the service on a clean note. As a man that came and served.
Another thing that has given me motivation is the leadership of the Customs now. We have never had it so good. CGC Bashir Adewale Adeniyi and has been a very good motivating factor.
There is no more tribalism in Customs. It is no longer whom you know but what you know. Before now, it was difficult for a Controller to call the CG and get him online.
We didn’t know the phone number of the CGC before now. But now I can call the CGC, he will pick his call.
I can send a message, he will reply. That is strategic leadership. A leader should be able to communicate with subordinates, so that they can give him feedback.
So that the boss can also give instruction to people in the field. And he has motivated us a lot. Vehicles, allowances, name them.
So we are happy doing the job for him. Barracks, if you go all over there.
I think they have started renovating all the abandoned barracks. In all the borders at Oyo/Osun, they are building barracks there. So when a man is giving you this kind of encouragement and motivation, you have no other alternative than to work hard.
And that is exactly what I tell my officers, that we have never had it so good. So this is my motivation. And above all, I have efficient subordinates that are working with me.
I have been very, very lucky to have these kind of officers.

_What is your relationship with the community, stakeholders, like the leaders._

Yes, wonderfully well. When I reported, I paid a Courtesy visit to Oba Badagry
and the other Obas, so we have a very good relationship. If they are doing anything, they invite me. And in fact, no Agbero or anybody will make trouble with me here,
because of the relationship I have with the Obas. It’s a matter of calling them forward. I’m also in touch with Ghani Adams,
The Are Onan. Kakanfo.

So in the next coming week, we’ll pay him courtesy visit. The commander of OPC is always here. So we have a very good, cordial relationship.

__At your last briefing, sir, the CGC was here. He spoke glowingly of you, your achievements at every level where you have been sent to, especially Oyo Osun.
He mentioned how you transformed the area and made humongous Seizures. Was it as a result of the robust relationship with the Obas and the people around there that led to this outstanding performance. Having said that, it I also know that you have a title in your place; “Nnkeke enyi na chuo ugwe enyi oso” I can’t remember the exact title.
It sounds to me like… Atom Ant. What would you say about that, sir._

Okay, let’s start with the title. My place, I have one.
I even got this title maybe, about 10 years ago.You know that translated, means, a small Elephant that chases away bigger Elephants.
Yeah. There are possibly many elephants, big elephants but the smallest shows how powerful it is.
Just to show how strong and resilient I have ever been. I’m never tired. Any time any task is given to me, I make sure that I execute it and I must deliver.

_So for them to have looked at you and picked that particular title, I’m sure you’re not the one that picked that name._

No, it’s not me. In fact, that title was given to me by a high court judge in my place.
There was a town union election and I won. And the person I had contested with at the election was a billionaire.
A big man, and the small me won the election. The Judge then said that from now they should be calling me by that name.
That was how the thing started.

_Okay, and they turned it into a title._

Yes. From there, the whole regional rulers in my area gathered and gave me the title.

_From amongst your achievements so far in service, I want you to pick out one or two that can signpost your achievements, what you have done through your service as a controller._

Well, the highest one was that drug, that fake drug that I seized in Oyo/Osun. The hard drugs in Kebbi, that also gave me an award. And you remember last year I won three awards, CGC award in Abuja, at CGC’S Annual Conference.

I was the only controller that won three personal awards. Not a question of highest revenue, no! These were Personal awards.

First of all, I won the Area of strategic stakeholders engagement in excellent service. I was the first. Then as the best Controller of the year, I came second to Apapa.
And you can imagine somebody in Oyo/Osun competing with somebody in Apapa, I think it was huge…it was a huge task.
Apapa is like 20 times or even 50 times bigger than Oyo/Osun in terms of revenue, and see me getting second to Apapa. I even beat TinCan then.
So that award was the high point of it, as you say, the high point of my career. So I thank the CGC for giving me those awards. I will always see it as something very remarkable.

_So let’s talk about your time at Seme, having left a footprint in Seme.
Where do you want to see Seme Customs Command in the next two-three years._

I want to see a smarter Seme, where technology will take care of everything. Like we are now operating B’Odogwu, we want to see a situation where B’Odogwu will be perfect.
I want to see more sanity in Seme. Where every good that comes in is accounted for and duties are paid. I want to see a situation where the Nigerian government will open up the borders for trade to flourish. I want to see
accountability. I want to see a situation where Benin people will relax this double taxation. You pay in Benin Republic, and you pay here again.
It’s against international best practices. Goods that are entering are supposed to be in transit. If you are going to pay it, you pay it in Seme, not Benin Republic.
It’s only here, which is the border, that you are supposed to pay duty while entering Nigeria. Benin Republic collects duty, and importers are also required to pay duty here. So I want to see a situation where there will be liberalized trade and a harmonised process.
Transit goods should be transit goods. Yes, and I want to see a situation where there will be more interaction between Nigeria Customs and Benin Customs.

How would we live in the same building here, but because of the language barrier, we find it difficult to interact freely with people from Benin. Last time the ECOWAS people came, I gave them a lot of… I gave them a few solutions that would make these things work.

First, the Nigerian government should make French compulsory in Nigerian schools from primary school. Because we are surrounded by French speaking countries. Likewise, the Benin Republic should also make English compulsory in their own schools.
That’s number one. Number two, officers that are about to be posted to border stations should go and learn French, even in two or three months. Maybe at French language village here,
before they resume duty here. So if you don’t want to learn it, you don’t go to serve at the border. They should make it compulsory.
So you can interact with each other. So, this is the way I want to see it.

_On our way here, we noticed that the environment is looking tidier. I know you have put a lot of effort into this. And I hope it will continue._

I’m aware the management in Abuja knows what’s happening here, however, my officers are on top of this and hopefully they will continue with it, with or without me.
I also know that the city is normally sending confidential memos about this place. So I hope that in due time, they will implement most of these suggestions. You can see the sanity of the place.
The cleanliness we are putting on here, if you go to the barracks, the officers would take one Saturday in a month to do sanitation.
So the whole place is… getting cleaner.
Yes, it’s getting cleaner. We hired labourers that we are paying to keep the place clean.
And we ourselves, including me, we come out once on Saturday to help clean the place.

_That’s leadership by example._

Yes.
That’s what I did in other places.
We also saw the transformation that took place at that time. The officers mess,
the renovated officers’ mess. The gym …
then the COWA office. Those are wonderful.

Well, first of all, I want to give credit to my predecessors.
Bomadi and Dera Nnadi and Kolade.They did well. They started most of these projects.

What I did was to energize the projects, complete them, and equip them more. Like the COWA Office, they had already gotten a space for COWA.
All I did was to paint it and equip it. If you go to COWA, there is a complete office with chairs. Even when the CGC came, after he left, I still equipped it more.
So what you saw when CGC came, was just about 50% of what is there now.

_That was the tip of the iceberg._

Yes.
So the same thing with the gym. I also put in more equipment after the CGC’S visit, to make it look all impressive. If you want to keep yourself fit.
The same thing with the mess. So I’m encouraging officers because all works and no play makes Jack a dull boy.
Officers, once in a while, should go there and enjoy themselves, unwind. On a more serious note, walking in a border area is not an easy thing.
The border area between Benin and here, is several hundred kilometers. It’s a wide area. And we are doing this with great technology.
I always insist they have more procedures. Yes, that’s why we are here. Procedures and revenue generation.
And to the best of our ability and to the glory of God, we are achieving our mandate. Thank you.