New details have emerged regarding President Bola Tinubu’s decision to replace Ahmed Rufai, the former Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), and Yusuf Bichi, the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS).
The changes were made on Monday following a series of incidents that have raised concerns over the effectiveness of the country’s intelligence agencies.
Sources close to the presidency told Naija News that the removal of the intelligence chiefs was linked to the recent seizure of Nigerian assets by Zhongshan Fucheng Industrial Investment Co. Limited, a Chinese company.
This incident reportedly angered President Tinubu, who considered it a major security lapse and a failure of the intelligence agencies to act promptly and effectively.
Yusuf Bichi, the former DSS chief, faced further allegations of insubordination towards the office of the National Security Adviser (NSA). These accusations were reportedly a factor in the decision to remove him from his position.
Additionally, insiders revealed that President Tinubu was “not impressed” with the intelligence reports reaching his office and felt that critical information was either delayed or poorly handled.
In response to these issues, President Tinubu appointed Mohamed Mohammed as the new Director-General of the NIA and Adeola Ajayi as the DG of DSS.
It was also reported that Rufai resigned after being questioned about the security lapses that led to Nigeria failing to obtain timely information about legal proceedings in foreign courts, which resulted in the asset seizures.
President Tinubu expressed hope that the new appointees would work diligently to strengthen the intelligence agencies and improve coordination with other security organizations, under the direction of the National Security Adviser.
