The Right Perspective of League’s Gold Award for Excellent Leadership on Comptroller Frank Onyeka
Comptroller Frank Onyeka, CAC, TinCan Island Command, NCS
According to some academic quotes, ‘True leadership is a product of inspiration, not manipulation, as true leaders do not seek power, but are driven by a passion to achieve a noble cause. Also, as every human has the instinct and capacity for leadership, many do not have the courage and will to cultivate it’.
Again, one good attribute that is easily acknowledged to mankind as the surest way to success is dedication and hard-work. It wins hearts as well as opens doors. This explains why parents would often remind their children to be hardworking and not depart from it. Similarly, leaders of nations would encourage their citizens to be hardworking if they want their countries to be developed. In effect, great nations are achieved through hard-work.
For the Customs Area Controller of the Tin Can Island Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Comptroller Frank Okechukwu Onyeka, there has been a clear display of leadership instinct, capacity and hard-work since he assumed office as Customs Area Controller (CAC), TinCan Island Area Port Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) in December 2024.
He started his leadership mandate at the command by preaching hard-work and followed it up. For observers, he has since the past nine months exerted a lot efforts to succeed and is adjudged as successful in all ramifications as far as the vision of trade facilitation and revenue generation by the Customs Service for the federal government is concerned.
This explains why the League of Maritime Editors (LOME) recently on Tuesday this week honoured him along with few other recipients. Onyeka was bestowed with Gold Award for Excellent Leadership.
For LOME, it was in recognition of his glaring commitment to leadership qualities which have helped in promoting trade facilitation and collection of more revenue from the Tin Can Island port.
Since his appointment Onyeka has shown his strong belief in transparency and stakeholder’s engagement.
On assuming office, he has focused more on promotion of service efficiency, trade facilitation and revenue collection. While promoting trade, Onyeka has fought anti-smuggling to a standstill in what has led to seizures running into billions of Naira.
The Tin Can Customs Controller believes so much on the power of technology and this explains his zeal in implementing the block-chain and the B’Odogwu systems.
As part of the efforts to facilitate trade, Onyeka declared early enough his determination to end age-long tradition of multiple alert systems for which importers and customs agents have been complaining about. The scenario was a situation in which containers earlier cleared from the system could be stopped at the gate or shortly after the gate over excuses of multiple alerts. This is one policy that has endeared him so much to the stakeholders.
As at the first half of this year, June, the Tin Can Command of the Customs has been able to collect as much as N747.079bn. Onyeka told members of League few months back that the Command has been doing everything possible to promote trade facilitation at the ports for the economic wellbeing of all Nigerians. The Controller explained that part of the measures put in place is to introduce ‘policy of collectable revenue instead of maximum revenue’.
According to him, this is in line with present administration’s renewed hope agenda for Nigerians, adding that this is specifically aimed at promoting and encouraging quick turnover for the importers.
Onyeka while talking about the decision on multiple alerts, added that this led to the emphasis placed on examination of containers as very necessary to check how compliant the traders are, adding that this has given the Command the needed result.
However, he is quick in making it clear to customs agents that promoting trade facilitation does not mean joking with observation of rules and regulations in trade.
He explained that the Command spends time to create awareness on the need to keep to the rules of the game, assuring that those who are compliant with trade rules are not choked.
He further explained that once containers are opened for examination, and there is compliance, clearance of such goods is not delayed.
He said during an engagement, “We do this to promote trade. We have the support of the trading community. We are also working to ensure that the President’s Renewed Hope Agenda’ on trade succeeds. What we preach is that importers keep to the rules and regulations. By this we talk to our partners, importers and freight forwarders to be compliant if they want the best”.
Stating that he has done about 98percent of what he is supposed to do as a Controller, Onyeka is full of optimism that the Command will meet its N1.5trillion revenue target for the year considering the revenue figure already recorded. He also reveals that his Command has been enjoying tremendous support from the CGC Bashir Adewale Adeniyi to succeed in given mandate.
Meanwhile, most industry watchers that graced the occasion thumbs up for the League of Maritime Editors for honouring an astute customs officer with sterling work principle, a Rare Gem, Iconic customs revenue mobilizer, a worthy officer of the Nigeria Customs Service, Comptroller Frank Okechukwu Onyeka, the Customs Area Controller In Charge of TinCan Island Area Command, Customs’ second largest revenue earning command, for exceptional display of quality leadership, proficiency, evident in the unprecedented performance and feat recorded so far, especially with the recent revenue upswing, vibrant inter-agency parley, and extra-ordinary anti-smuggling exploits of the command since the advent of your leadership to date.
It is on record that under his watch there have been an unmatched Revenue collection trajectory and contributions to NCS purse at the command, maximizing potentials through mechanisms put in place to ensure strict compliance to the service extant laws, effective plugging of leakages, achieving robust inter-agency collaboration, building effective capacity and ensuring discipline among Officers and Stakeholders operating within the command
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