Investigative journalist Jaafar accuses Bichi of allowing his wife to run the agency
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Yusuf Bichi killed off career aspirations at the Department of State Service (DSS) which partly explained why staffers jubilated over his ouster on Monday by President Bola Tinubu, investigative journalist Jaafar Jaafar has disclosed.
The claim tallies with that of Austin Okai, a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Kogi, who described Bichi as the worst person ever to head the secret police as Director General, a post now occupied by Adeola Ajayi.
“Bichi wasn’t even supposed to be there initially, it’s [former President Muhammadu] Buhari nepotism that brought the man back from retirement. One of the worst @OfficialDSSNG DG,” Okai posted on X (Twitter) the day Bichi was sacked even though the official gloss on his fate was that he “resigned”.
Jaafar alleged Bichi recruited the highest number of “Cotonou graduates” [persons with fake degree certificates] into the DSS and allowed his wife to lord over the secret police by influencing recruitment, promotion and discipline.
He urged Ajayi, the new Director General, to review the cases of detainees and be professional in the discharge of his duty.
“The former DG of SSS, Yusuf Magaji Bichi, has turned an otherwise elite, professionally-run service into a graveyard of career aspirations, an orchard of nepotism and an armed corps of 40 Blantyre Crescent.
“He lowered the recruitment bar, removed multi-layer screening process to recruit personnel who couldn’t even pass Halogen Security aptitude test,” Jaafar posted on X.
“Bichi arguably recruited the highest number of Cotonou “graduates” into the service. He willfully extended the tenure of some retired directors in his good book for years, killing the ambitions of the aspiring directors.
“He allowed his wife to lord over the service, influencing recruitment, promotion and discipline. As a peasant socialite and [nouveau] riche, she always oppressed people with a superfluity of everything at the expense of public funds.
“She moved around in a long motorcade with dozens of Tavor-wielding personnel, harassing motorists. She was a stormy petrel who was majorly in the news for either assaulting her tailor for failing to meet a deadline or picking a fight with opposition politicians.
“His impudent, spoiled brat son shrugged off public criticism to gleefully display a fleet of luxury cars on social media. At the expense of public funds, he has a number [of] SSS operatives giving him cover at football arena, nightclub and political campaign rallies.
“The new DG should review the cases of detainees, be professional in the discharge of his duty and keep his family away from meddling in the affairs of the service. The service does not only need a factory reset but flushing!”
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UPDATED: Tinubu sacks DSS DG, Yusuf Bichi, appoints Ajayi
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