Hamman Bello

Hamman Bello Ahmed, OFR, was a Nigerian customs officer, philanthropist and politician. He served as the comptroller general of the Nigeria Customs Service from 2008 to 2009 by Umaru Yar Adua. He was replaced by B. E. Nwadialo; prior to becoming the CG of Customs, he was the Assistant CG of Customs at the Abuja headquarters.

Background

Ahmed was born and raised in Kojoli Village in the Jada local government area of Adamawa, Nigeria.
Ahmed began his early education at the Jada Primary School from 1956 to 1963, then attended the Government Secondary School Ganye for his secondary education from 1965 to 1969. He obtained his WASC at the Government Secondary School Bauchi in 1970. He attended Ahmadu Bello University in 1977, where he obtained his B.A. Hons and did his National Youth Service Corps program in 1978.

Career

Ahmed joined the Nigerian Customs Service as an assistant superintendent after graduating and serving his NYSC in 1978. He served and commanded multiple branches, including the Valuation Unit, Customs Headquarters, and Tin Can Island. He was then promoted to Assistant CG in 2005 and was the inspection officer of the Inspectorate Unit at the Customs Headquarters until May 2008, after which he was appointed Comptroller General.

As comptroller

In 2008, he banned Nigeria Customs officials from setting checkpoints outside of border security areas, before which he established an anti-smuggling patrol.

Other contributions

Before his career in Customs, Ahmed was instrumental in bringing rural electrification and communication infrastructure to communities in Jada.

Personal life

Ahmed died on 26 January 2022 at the age of 74.