Tin Can Customs Spokesman Honored for Data-Driven Transparency That Lifted Revenue and Trust

By Lod Onyeji

LAGOS — When the Congress of Nigerian Maritime Media Practitioners celebrated its fifth anniversary last month, the group did not just mark a milestone for journalism. It spotlighted what measurable, open communication can do for a federal agency.

On June 25–26, 2026, CONMMEP named Chief Superintendent of Customs Oscar Enya Ivara, Public Relations Officer of the Nigeria Customs Service’s Tin Can Island Port Command, as its Customs Commands' Best Public Relations Officer. The award cited 13 years of consistent media engagement, but the data behind the last 18 months tells the sharper story.

Under Ivara’s stewardship, Tin Can Island moved beyond routine announcements to a practice of timely, verifiable disclosure. The Command publicly released its first-quarter 2025 revenue of ₦347.93 billion within days of close, and later reported a single-day collection record of ₦16.41 billion on August 19, 2025. 

Those figures matter. In a sector long dogged by opacity, publishing hard numbers on a regular cadence has correlated with two outcomes CONMMEP and industry stakeholders tracked: fewer speculative reports in the press, and faster clearance times at the port.

Ivara’s team paired that transparency with targeted digital advocacy for the B’Odogwu Customs clearance platform at Tin Can. The platform, designed to digitize declarations and payments, has been credited by the Command with improving trader compliance, reducing documentation errors, and creating an auditable trail for revenue. While the NCS does not attribute all revenue growth to communications alone, the overlap is clear: as information became more accessible, so did compliance.

“Information is infrastructure,” Ivara said after receiving the award. “The reward for hard work is more work. I am deeply humbled and will not take this recognition for granted.” Speaking on behalf of Customs Area Controller Comptroller Joseph Anani, he reaffirmed the Command’s commitment to working with maritime media as a partner in accountability.

Founded in 2021, CONMMEP has made it a mission to promote professionalism in maritime reporting. President Comrade Udo Onyeka said the association will “continue to identify and celebrate public officers whose integrity and service contribute to the growth of Nigeria’s maritime sector.”

At Tin Can, the results are quantifiable. By publishing revenue data promptly and explaining policy changes in plain language, the PRO’s office reduced the lag between policy and public understanding. That shortened lag, industry analysts note, cuts down on misinformation, demurrage costs, and informal inquiries that slow cargo movement.

The award was presented during CONMMEP’s Annual Lecture in Ikeja, which convened regulators, terminal operators, and journalists to debate efficiency and trust at Nigeria’s ports. In that context, Ivara’s work stands out not for rhetoric, but for a simple formula: disclose data early, explain policy clearly, and stay accessible to the press.

For an agency that collects billions in revenue and touches nearly every importer in West Africa, that formula is producing returns — in naira, in time saved, and in public confidence.

At a glance: Tin Can Island Port Command under Ivara’s PRO tenure

- ₦347.93 billion: Q1 2025 revenue, publicly disclosed

- ₦16.41 billion: Record single-day revenue, Aug. 19, 2025  

- 13+ years: Cross-command media engagement experience

- Key initiative: Digital advocacy for B’Odogwu clearance platform to improve compliance and transparency

As CONMMEP enters its sixth year, the Tin Can example offers a case study Harvard readers will recognize: when public institutions treat communication as operations, not optics, performance follows.