In a surprising turn of events, Yusuf Bichi, the former Director- General of the Department of State Services (DSS), and Ahmed Abubakar, the former Director- General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), have both resigned from their positions. ..Read Full Article
This comes after growing dissatisfaction within Nigeria’ s government regarding the performance of these key intelligence agencies.
Background On The Resignations
Sources within the Presidency have revealed that President Bola Tinubu, along with the National Security Adviser (NSA) Nuhu Ribadu, raised serious concerns about the effectiveness of the DSS and NIA in gathering and acting on intelligence.
Two major incidents sparked this dissatisfaction: the violent #EndBadGovernance protests across several northern states and the unexpected seizure of three Nigerian presidential aircraft in France by a Chinese company, Zhongshan Fucheng Industrial Investment Co. Limited.
The #EndBadGovernance Protests
The #EndBadGovernance protests, which began on August 1, were sparked by widespread public discontent over the removal of fuel subsidies, rising electricity tariffs, and the increasing cost of living.
The protests quickly turned violent, particularly in states like Kano, Gombe, Yobe, Borno, and Bauchi, leading to the destruction of both public and private properties. The unrest was so severe that curfews had to be imposed in Kano, Bauchi, and Plateau states to restore order.
President Tinubu and NSA Ribadu were reportedly displeased with the DSS’ s inability to provide actionable intelligence that could have prevented or at least minimized the violence. The failure of the DSS to foresee and manage the situation was seen as a significant lapse, leading to Bichi being held accountable for the agency’ s shortcomings.
Seizure Of Nigerian Presidential Aircraft
At the same time, the NIA faced criticism for its failure to anticipate and prevent the legal actions that led to the seizure of three Nigerian presidential aircraft in France. The aircraft, which included a newly acquired Airbus, were seized following a court ruling in France related to a longstanding legal dispute between the Chinese company Zhongshan Fucheng Industrial Investment Co. Limited and the Ogun State Government.
The seizure of the planes was an international embarrassment for Nigeria, further straining relations between the two countries. The incident highlighted the NIA’ s failure to foresee and manage potential threats to Nigeria’ s interests abroad, leading to scrutiny of Abubakar’ s leadership.
Internal Conflicts And Fallout
It has also been revealed that tensions between Bichi and NSA Ribadu had been brewing even before the protests. The two officials had reportedly been on bad terms for some time, with their differences escalating to the point where Bichi was unable to meet with the President for an extended period.
The fallout from the northern protests, combined with the internal conflict, ultimately gave the Presidency a reason to ask for Bichi’ s resignation.
Official Announcements
Ahmed Abubakar announced his resignation on Saturday, August 24, following a meeting with President Tinubu. Yusuf Bichi’ s resignation, on the other hand, was announced on Monday, August 26, through a statement issued by the President’ s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale.
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These leadership changes reflect the Nigerian government’ s commitment to holding its security agencies accountable and ensuring that intelligence operations are effective and aligned with the country’ s national interests…..Read Full Article