The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), on Saturday held a reunion, on the occasion pledged to bridge gaps between the retired and serving officers of the service.

It harped on the need for the NCS to tap former senior officers’ rich wealth of knowledge.

The Comptroller General of Nigeria Customs Service, Adewale Adeniyi, made the pledged in Abuja, during the reunion/sendforth for retired senior officers of Service, with the theme: ‘Our Customs Heroes.’

Adeniyi explained that the reunion aims at targeting a thorough upward welfare review for retired officers to ensure effective and efficient service delivery.

He noted that NCS will commence a review of retirees’ welfare, digitize its verification exercise for retirees, and look forward to establishing a pension board.

He said: “Today we embark on a journey to bridge the gap between the vibrant energy of our current officers and the season expertise of our retired colleagues.

“The importance of this connection is evidence in various successful organizations that are unless the wealth of experience from their retirees.”

He said that the reunion will be a symbol of commitment to unity and a stronger more resilient customs for the the future, adding that “I am confident that with your continued support and guidance and of course prayers for the time we will overcome the challenges and achieve the greater heights.

“Nigeria Customs Service has initiated a number of measures aimed at ameliorating the plight of our retired officer. The first, the provisions in the gazettes are currently undergoing a thorough review and exploration to enhance the welfare free walk of retired officers.

“Additionally, the HRD the human resource departments will be actively engaged in transitioning the current verification exercises of retired officers and migrated from being a physical format to a digital format, streamlining and expediting the processes.

“We appreciate the wisdom and dedication each of you contributed to serving the Nigeria Customs. It is beneficial for us to use this occasion to celebrate you.

“This event is to connect the past, present and future of present management of the Nigeria Customs Service. To bridge the gap between the past management and the serving customs officers.”