CUSTOMS POLICE CLINCHES FOOTBALL TROPHY: CGC Adeniyi Urges Officers to Apply Skills to Duty

CGC Adeniyi with the players

By Temitope Adebiyi, Correspondent

IN a tightly contested final, the Customs Police Unit defeated the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Command 1–0 to be crowned football champions of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) Zone A Inter-Command Games.

An early first-half goal made all the difference, giving the Unit a lead they successfully defended until the final whistle.

 Adeniyi addressing the players and fans

Players and fans erupted in celebration as the Unit clinched the football championship TROPHY—a tournament highlight built on fitness, teamwork, and officer camaraderie.

The football tournament was part of the Zone A Inter-Command Games, which featured 16 teams from regional Customs commands competing across four sports: football, chess, badminton, and table tennis.

Held from August 17 to September 5, 2026, at the Customs Training College in Ikeja, Lagos, the event was organised under the theme, “Fit to Serve, United to Lead.”

At the closing ceremony, Comptroller-General of Customs Bashir Adewale Adeniyi commended the Zone A leadership and organizers for delivering a colorful, high-quality tournament.

He stated that the games reflected his administration’s core pillars of consolidation, collaboration, and innovation.

Furthermore, Adeniyi emphasised that the involvement of sister agencies, including the Nigeria Immigration Service and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, underscored their strong partnership in maintaining national security.

The CGC praised the parade by the participating commands as a highlight of the event, commending their creative outfits and presentation.

Additionally, Adeniyi called to revive and expand the competition beyond the zonal level, noting that past Customs zonal games successfully led to inter-zonal competitions.

He also stressed the importance of upgrading sports infrastructure—especially training facilities—across Customs formations, highlighting the Service’s long-standing contributions to sports development in Nigeria

He pointed out that Customs currently has teams and athletes excelling in several sports, including volleyball, basketball, football, beach volleyball and athletics, making improved sporting infrastructure necessary to provide officers with opportunities to develop and showcase their talents.

Adeniyi said the planned new location of the Customs training college in Ogun State would include suitable sporting facilities, while efforts could also be made to provide temporary facilities at the existing college to cater for recruits.

Adeniyi stated that the proposed location for the new Customs training college in Ogun State will feature modern sports facilities. In the meantime, efforts will be made to set up temporary facilities at the current college to accommodate new recruits.

Beyond the medals and trophies, the CGC urged officers to embrace the core values of athletic competition—specifically discipline, teamwork, and strategy.

“The virtues of discipline, teamwork, and strategy are the most vital takeaways from a competition like this,” he said.

He explained that these same qualities are vital to Customs operations, stressing that discipline drives patrol missions, teamwork enables seamless collaboration, and strategy is essential for hitting revenue targets.

Earlier, Assistant Comptroller-General Mohammed Babandede, the Zonal Coordinator for Zone A, thanked the CGC for greenlighting the games, noting that the event would not have been possible without his executive support.

Babandede applauded the organising committee’s hard work in delivering a highly successful sporting event that brought diverse commands together.

Beyond the final scores, he reminded everyone that every single participant walked away a winner. He challenged the officers to let this experience fuel their growth, push for excellence, and come back stronger in future competitions.