The Comptroller General of Customs Bashir Adewale Adeniyi MFR has charged indigenes of Saki town in Oyo state to embrace locally made goods to enhance food and national security.
He gave the charge when he visited the palace of His Royal Majesty Oba Khalid Olufemiloye Olabisi, The Okere of Shaki town, on Tuesday, 15th August 2023.
In his remarks, the CGC emphasised the rich agricultural produce of the land.
He urged them to develop interest and likeness for made-in-Nigeria goods to enhance food and national security.
He said, “Each time we see the customs trying to defend what is ours, the message is that we should develop some interest, some likeness for what is produced in Nigeria locally”.
“We must be ready to feed ourselves, let us redouble our efforts, let us see what we can do to feed the food deficit in the country, produce food that will be consumed in Nigeria, so that we will depend less on imported rice, flour and food items generally”, he emphasised.
The traditional ruler, in response, assured the CGC of his support and corporation with the government.
“We believe in Nigeria, and we are going to do whatever we can to sustain it. We are going to cooperate with this government, and whatever you ask us to do, we will play our part”, he noted.
The CGC also visited the Customs Patrol Base in Saki, where he met with officers and representatives of sister agencies, as well as stakeholders and community members.
He commended their sense of patriotism and commitment while also urging them to do more in the interest of the country.
“I would like to call on you to continue to assist security agencies; you have a very onerous challenge to help customs and our security agencies to stem down the rising trend of smuggling”, he said.