Customs CG Adeniyi Bags Lifetime Achievement Award Honours Outstanding Officers

By Zainab Uzomah|Abuja

The Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, has received a Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of his contributions to public relations, strategic communication and institutional reforms in the Nigeria Customs Service.

Adeniyi received the honour at the Award Dinner Night marking the conclusion of the 2026 Nigeria Customs Service Public Relations Conference in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, on Thursday, 23 July.

The award highlighted the Customs chief’s efforts to strengthen strategic communication, promote professionalism and reposition public relations as an important component of the Service’s reform agenda.

The ceremony also celebrated officers and personnel who distinguished themselves through professionalism, dedication and innovation in the discharge of their duties.

The event brought together senior Customs officers, public relations professionals, media executives and development partners, with speakers commending the Service for using recognition and capacity development to encourage higher professional standards.

Speaking at the ceremony, the National Public Relations Officer of the NCS, Deputy Comptroller Abdullahi Maiwada, said recognising outstanding performance was critical to motivating personnel and strengthening the institution.

“Recognising excellence is one of the most effective ways of motivating officers to do more. Tonight, we celebrate commitment, hard work and the values that continue to strengthen the image and reputation of the Nigeria Customs Service,” Maiwada said.

President of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations, Ike Neliaku, commended Adeniyi’s leadership, particularly his efforts to institutionalise professionalism and capacity building within the Customs Public Relations Unit.

Neliaku said recognising excellence encourages personnel to aspire to higher standards, adding that the NCS had demonstrated the importance of strategic communication to institutional success and public confidence.

The President of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Alhassan Yahaya, also described the initiative as an investment in human capital and urged recipients to remain committed to ethical conduct, transparency and national service.

Other honours presented at the ceremony included the Distinguished Service Award in Public Relations, which went to Superintendent of Customs Elizabeth Anawanti and Superintendent of Customs Umar Abdullahi.

Chief Superintendent of Customs Nuruddeen Sa’idu and Yusuf were recognised for outstanding contributions to the development of the Nigeria Customs Service Public Relations Unit, while Chief Superintendent of Customs Lukman Abdullahi-Lagos received the Alex Akiyenyele Award as Outstanding Public Relations Officer of the Year.

The ceremony also featured awards for the Best Dressed Male and Female Officers, while Abdulkarim Zurmi and Lucy Nyambi were recognised as the Best NCBN Staff attached to the Public Relations Unit for their dedication and support to its activities.

The awards brought the 2026 NCS Public Relations Conference to a close, with Adeniyi’s Lifetime Achievement Award emerging as one of the major highlights of the ceremony.