The Presidency has announced the appointment of Adeola Ajayi and Mohammed Mohammed as the new Director-Generals of the Department of State Services, DSS, and the National Intelligence Agency, NIA, respectively.
Ajayi succeeds Yusuf Bichi, who had held the position since 2018 before recently stepping down. Mohammed replaces Ahmed Abubakar, who also resigned.
Both Bichi and Abubakar were appointed by former President Muhammadu Buhari during his administration from 2015 to 2023.
According to a statement from the President’s office on Monday, Mohammed has had a distinguished career in the foreign service since joining the NIA in 1995. His service includes key roles in North Korea, Pakistan, Sudan, and the State House in Abuja,
“He had served in various roles, culminating in his promotion to the rank of Director and his subsequent appointment as the head of the Nigerian mission to Libya,” the statement added.
Ajayi, meanwhile, has risen through the ranks of the DSS, serving as State Director in various states, including Bauchi, Enugu, Bayelsa, Kogi, and Rivers, before reaching the position of Assistant Director-General.
President Bola Tinubu called on the newly appointed security chiefs to “work assiduously to reposition the two intelligence agencies for better results.”
He emphasised the need for them to use their experience to tackle Nigeria’s security challenges by fostering stronger collaboration with other security agencies and “in surgical alignment” with the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).
The President also expressed his gratitude to the outgoing DGs for their service to the nation and wished them well in their future endeavours.
These new appointments come at a critical time as Nigeria continues to face significant security challenges, with the expectation that the new leadership will make a substantial impact.
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