Customs Comptroller General tasks spokespersons on impactful communication to strengthen institutional trust 

By Clement Omanibe, Abuja

The Comptroller-General of Customs (CGC), Adewale Adeniyi, has charged Public Relations Officers of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to up the ante beyond conventional media engagement and embrace strategic communication to drive reforms, strengthen institutional credibility and sustain public trust.

Adeniyi gave the charge during the closing ceremony of the 2026 Nigeria Customs Service Public Relations Conference in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

The four-day conference focused on repositioning corporate communication as a strategic management tool for institutional effectiveness.

Reforms cannot succeed unless they are understood, accepted and trusted by the people they are designed to serve.

The CGC said the conference provided a valuable platform for reflection, learning and institutional renewal at a defining moment in the Service’s transformation journey.

“Around the world, communication has evolved from a support service into a strategic management function. Reforms cannot succeed unless they are understood, accepted and trusted by the people they are designed to serve” Adeniyi said.

He added that the growing influence of digital media, artificial intelligence and real-time information required Customs Public Relations Officers to become more proactive, research-driven and intelligence-led in communicating government policies and the Service’s operations.

“Every seizure, every reform, every trade facilitation initiative and every act of service must be communicated professionally and purposefully, Adeniyi said.”

Earlier, the Acting Zonal Coordinator, Zone ‘C’, Comptroller Pascal Chibuoke, described corporate communication as a strategic asset that shapes public perception, strengthens stakeholder confidence, promotes transparency and reinforces institutional legitimacy.

“Corporate communication is no longer a support function. It is a strategic asset that shapes public perception, strengthens stakeholder confidence, promotes transparency and reinforces institutional legitimacy, Chibuoke said.”

The National Public Relations Officer, Deputy Comptroller Abdullahi Maiwada, described this year’s conference as another milestone in the evolution of Customs corporate communication.

Institutional reforms cannot succeed without an effective communication framework.

He said that it could build on the successes recorded in Lagos, Gwagwalada and Kano in the last three editions.

“Institutional reforms cannot succeed without an effective communication framework. This conference was designed not merely to exchange ideas but to develop practical solutions, strengthen professional networks and reposition Public Relations as a strategic corporate communication function within the Nigeria Customs Service,” Maiwada said.

Delivering the closing remarks, the Customs Area Controller, Port Harcourt Area I Command, Comptroller Salamatu Atuluku, commended the Comptroller-General for sustaining investments in professional development and institutional capacity building, urging participants to apply the knowledge acquired to improve service delivery across their commands.

In their goodwill mesaages, the President of the Nigeria Institute of Public Relations, Ike Neliaku, and the President of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Alhassan Yahaya, applauded Adeniyi’s leadership in institutionalising strategic communication within the Service and challenged Public Relations Officers to uphold professional standards.

The conference, themed: “Realigning Corporate Communication as a Strategic Driver of Institutional Effectiveness and Public Trust,” featured technical sessions on Customs modernisation, crisis communication, media intelligence, digital innovation, stakeholder engagement and evolving communication technologies.

This forms part of efforts to shape the future of the Service’s communication architecture.

Read Also: Nigeria: Borno Cholera Cases Hit 35,500 as Atiku, Tinubu Trade Words; Ango: “The North Has Lost Its Values”