The Acting Comptroller-General of Customs, Wale Adeniyi, says he will remain committed to partnering with the media for effective service delivery.

Adeniyi in a statement by Customs Public Relations Officer, Chief Superintendent of Customs, Abdullahi Maiwada on Monday, said media was critical to implementation of Customs mandate.

According to the statement, the Customs boss made this known when he met with Nigeria Guild of Editors, Zone A Public Relations Officers, Zone A Customs Area Controllers and journalists in Lagos.

He said the service would require the support and guidance of the media to consolidate progress made in trade facilitation, revenue collection and other areas of its mandate.

“In over 10 years, Customs has made some progress.

“We have broken several grounds on Information Communication Technology (ICT), human resource development and revenue generation.

“In the next few years, we will be building and consolidating on those grounds and hoping that there are some areas where we will deploy innovative solutions.

“Collaboration is going to be very strong on the agenda of Customs and this is why we are starting this with our partners in the media,” he said.

Adeniyi further said, “we will be open to collaborating with our partners in bringing more comprehensive reports to let Nigerians know what our challenges are.

“We will also be open to reports on what the gaps are, what we can do to bridge those gaps to improve border security and generally Nigeria.”

He said he would run an open-door policy while collaborating with the media and other stakeholders.

In his remarks, President, Nigeria Guild of Editors, Mr Eze Anaba, congratulated the Customs boss on his appointment.

He said the guild would be committed to collaborating with the service, adding that communication was very important to achievement of the service’s mandate.

“Your coming on board is a refreshing development and I am sure we will enjoy much interactions.

“Some people say they are afraid of the media but the truth is that if there is no communication there will be miscommunication,”he said.(NAN)