Crime
Corruption in Customs is from top to bottom – Japheth
A man simply identified as Japheth has alleged that the Nigerian Customs Service is a corrupt organization.
Japhept, in a statement on X on Saturday, alleged that “the corruption in the Customs is from top to bottom.”
Recounting a personal experience, the X user stated that he witnessed firsthand the bribing of personnel of the Nigerian Customs Service by an undisclosed businessman who came for the clearing of his consignment.
According to Japheth, during a visit to the Customs office at Ikeja, Lagos State, “one file needed to be attended to, and when she (the NCS Officer) opened the file, she took an envelope filled with cash, put it in her drawer, signed and stamped, and passed it on to the next person.”
He further alleged that each officer in the office, which totals five, received a share of the bribe.
Japheth’s statement reads, “The corruption in the customs is from top to bottom.
“Those officers at NACO in Ikeja are corrupt as hell; I witnessed it firsthand.
“One day, when I was still working in one ICP here, I went to deliver a mifi to a Customs officer in NACO.
“The officer told me to wait outside for a while, which I did, but after some minutes, she told me to come in to set up the device for her, activate it, and connect to her laptop and phones.
“When I got into her office, there were about five officers in the office with her.
“One file needed to be attended to; when she opened the file, she took an envelope filled with cash, put it in her drawer, signed and stamped, and passed it on to the next person.
“Each person took an envelope filled with money before they signed. When they were done, the owner of the file happily took his file and left, goods about to be cleared.”
Furthermore, he asserted that the NCS officers will not attend to a person’s file until the officers are bribed.
“Your file will not be attended to till you do the needful,” Japheth stated.
