The Comptroller-General of Customs, Mr Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, has stressed the importance of motivating personnel of the agency in order for them to double their productivity, which will, in turn, have a positive effect on the country.
Adeniyi spoke on Monday during the flag-off ceremony of Cooperative Pacesetter Estate, a Customs Housing Scheme, at Ajoda New Town, Ibadan, Oyo State, as well as handing over units to beneficiaries.
The housing units were provided in partnership with Cooperative Mortgage Bank.
He commended the Customs Cooperative Society for the achievement, saying that having one’s own building is a success which brings peace of mind.
He said the project is one of those put together to complement the overall welfare and wellbeing of men and officers of the Nigeria Customs Service.
He noted that encouraging Customs personnel through the provision of projects and programmes that would make their lives more comfortable, would make them go the extra mile in discharging their assignments dutifully.
“Customs personnel work and live in an environment very different from where other Nigerian workers are living. It’s becoming increasingly difficult for them to get affordable houses over their heads.
“From our experience, a number of them would work for 30, 35 years and yet don’t have a decent place they can call their own.
“While working, they are allocated quarters, and by the time they leave service, they would have to vacate the quarters.
“Those who would not want to engage in malpractices that border on corruption would find it very difficult to get places of their own.
“This was why we thought it necessary for us to have this project that would guarantee them a decent housing while in service and after leaving service,” the Comptroller General explained.
He pointed at the payment structure as very convenient “because being officers of Nigeria Customs Service contributing to cooperative scheme makes them very eligible to benefit from the project.
“This is what we are doing: catering for different ranks, different income levels in different parts of the country, subject to their choices.
All officers and men, irrespective of their ranks, are eligible to participate in the scheme. This is because when you draw salary, you set a part of it for the housing and cooperative. This is the seed you need to make your eligibility validated.”
Saying that that of Oyo would not be the last, the CGC disclosed that there were plans at advanced stage to run the scheme in other state commands, adding that the project would be made bigger by increasing it from 5,000 houses as that would not go round all officers and men.
“We have the firm commitment to the project as we recognise the importance of welfare to the morales of officers and men.
“For us to motivate them to perform well and increase their productivity, we need to assure them, that while in service and when they leave the service, they have decent places to rest their heads,” he stated.
The Group Managing Director of Coop Holdings, the parent body of Cooperative Mortgage Bank, Mr Kabir Ayinde-Tukur, promised that in every quarter of year 2024, 250 housing units would be provided, which would, in turn, provide jobs for Nigerians.
Earlier, Senior Special Assistant to the Oyo State Governor on Economic Planning, Mr Kehinde Ogunsanya, while speaking, said “the project is actually in line with what Governor Seyi Makinde is doing by providing housing and other developmental infrastructure for the people of Oyo State.”
Described housing as one of the essentials of life, saying that having a decent accommodation is not a luxury but a necessity.
In his remarks, the leader of Cooperative societies in Nigeria, Mr Tajudeen Ayeola, commended the Comptroller General and Customs Cooperative Limited for taking the giant step in providing decent housing for their members.
He enjoined all other government parastatals and agencies to follow the footsteps of the CGC to provide not only housing but all other necessities for their members.
Ayeola also appreciated the Board and Management of Cooperative Mortgage Bank for the contributions they had been making towards solving Nigeria’s housing shortage.
He expressed an urgent need by government, both state and national, to be deliberate and specific in provision of houses, especially low cost housing in Nigeria for Nigerian citizens.
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