Adeniyi Tasks Customs Police to Embrace AI, Intelligence-Led Policing
The Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, has charged officers of the Customs Police Unit (CPU) to build a doctrine-driven, intelligence-led and technology-enabled policing system anchored on discipline, restraint and integrity.
He made the call during his keynote at the opening ceremony of the inaugural Customs Police Summit 2026 in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja on Thursday.
The summit was themed “Reimagining Customs Policing: Learning from the Past, Responding to the Present, and Preparing for the Future”.
The CG, who also serves as Chairperson of the World Customs Organisation (WCO) Council, said customs must facilitate legitimate trade and stop illicit trade, noting that neither objective can be achieved without a disciplined and trusted police unit to uphold the Service’s own standards.
Adeniyi traced customs administration in Nigeria to 1891, with preventive service and enforcement in place by 1945, noting that the CPU was only inaugurated in 2019 with a clear mandate to investigate erring personnel, prevent crime and ensure compliance.
“Its founding principle remains as true today as it was in 2019, and that is the fact that no officer is above the law,” Adeniyi said, commending the Provost Marshal and personnel who have built the unit over the past seven years.
He said the past offers three lessons for the CPC. According to him internal discipline must come first, lawful restraint must guide every use of power and collaboration must replace isolated enforcement.
“Before we demand integrity from traders and the public, we must show it ourselves. Internal discipline must come before external enforcement.
“Every search, arrest, and detention must rest on lawful grounds and withstand public and judicial scrutiny. The NCS Act 2023 gives the Service sweeping police powers that must be exercised responsibly.
“Enforcement and facilitation work best when they are together,” he said, citing coordinated initiatives such as the one-stop shop as proof that collaboration improves results.
The CG warned that criminal networks have grown more sophisticated, using the same routes as legitimate traders to move firearm components, narcotics, fake medicines, protected wildlife and illicit funds, often through digital channels.
“As criminal become more sophisticated and innovative while exploiting the same route as legitimate trader, our answers must be smarter; they must not be harder,” he said.
He listed WCO instruments such as the SAFE Framework of Standards, Authorised Economic Operator programmes, advance rulings, time release studies and the Revised Kyoto Convention as tools that reward compliance, free officers to focus on real risk, and reduce room for abuse and misuse of discretion.
He described data as one of the Service’s most valuable assets, bringing declarations, valuation and risk management into one platform with reliable audit trails, and said the Interpol data centre at Customs Headquarters gives the Service access to global criminal databases.
“The Customs Police Unit sits at the centre of all of this. It ensures that discretion is exercised lawfully, and that interception becomes successful prosecution,” he said.
On consolidation, collaboration and innovation, Adeniyi said consolidation means translating practice into lasting doctrine, clear procedures for arrest, detention and investigation, and court-ready case files, while collaboration means working closely with the Police, Armed Forces, NDLEA, NAFDAC, DSS, ICPC, EFCC and other stakeholders.
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“No single institution can defeat illicit trade alone, and partnership rests on trust that is earned through our conduct,” he said.
On innovation, he pushed for artificial intelligence, advanced scanners, geospatial tools and electronic cargo tracking, but warned that technology must serve the law.
“Algorithms must flag risks, but only officers acting within the law can exercise enforcement powers, with audit trail, data protection, and human oversight at every step,” he said.
He urged the summit to deliver a Customs doctrine anchored in the NCS Act 2023 and the Revised Arusha Declaration, workable protocols for joint operations, evidence management and information exchange, responsible guidance on data and AI in investigations, and practical recommendations on training, welfare and recognition of personnel.
“Now that technology has given us better means of managing containers in transit, it is time now for CPU to take a second look at some of those mandates and see what technology has changed, what technology has enabled, and what we can now do better,” he said.
Earlier, the Assistant Comptroller-General, Headquarters, Muhammad Salisu Shuaib, described the summit as more than a statement of intent, saying it calls for profound institutional reflection, meaningful structural renewal and a steadfast commitment to a CPU that is professional, disciplined, responsive and guided by unwavering integrity.
Shuaib said since the establishment of the unit in 2018, it has made significant strides in strengthening internal compliance, enforcement, discipline, investigation and safeguarding the integrity of the Service through complex investigations, lawful arrests and enforcement support.
“Our history teaches us that enforcement without professionalism leads to injustice and unaccountable authority destroys institutional trust,” he said.
He described the CPU as essential not only as a disciplinary body but as a vital entity in specialised criminal investigation, internal security operations, compliance monitoring and strategic reputation management.
“The Customs Police must embody these principles through exemplary conduct, strong internal controls, consistent enforcement of standards, and impartial investigation,” Shuaib said.
In his welcome address, the Acting Provost Marshal, Tasiu Saulawa Sanusi, described the summit as a significant milestone in the institutional development, positioning and strategic transformation of the CPU.
“Its establishment underscores a fundamental reality: an institution entrusted with enforcing laws and regulating international trade must equally possess credible mechanisms for imposing discipline and accountability within its own structure.
“we cannot effectively demand compliance from others when we fail to demonstrate it within our ranks,” he stated.
The Acting Provost said the importance of the unit is further reinforced by increasingly complex dynamics of international trade, transnational organised crime, illicit financial flows, corruption and emerging threats, warning that without compliance, even the most sophisticated policies, technologies and enforcement strategies could deliver limited results.
Sanusi thanked the Comptroller-General for his leadership, continued support and approval and hosting of the inaugural summit, describing it as a clear demonstration of commitment to institutional innovation and recognition of the strategic importance of the unit.
“Let our regulations represent integrity, respect, care, professionalism, and accountability. Participants must move beyond discussions to actionable outcomes that will strengthen institutional structures, deepen collaboration and advance a disciplined, compliant and integrity-driven Nigeria Customs Service,” he added.
