Nothing to celebrate in Bichi's exit from DSS- Jafar Jafar

A Nigerian investigative journalist, Jaafar Jaafar, has accused the immediate past Director-General of the Department of State Service, DSS, Yusuf Magaji Bichi, of turning the agency into a graveyard of career aspirations.

Jaafar said that Bichi recruited the highest number of Cotonou “graduates” into the service and allowed his wife to lord over the Service by influencing recruitment, promotion and discipline.

The journalist urged the new DG to review the cases of detainees and be professional in the discharge of his duty.

DAILY POST reported that Bichi’s replacement was made known in a statement signed by the media aide to President Bola Tinubu, Ajuri Ngelale on Monday.

In his stead, Tinubu appointed Adeola Oluwatosin Ajayi as the new Director-General of the DSS.

In a post on his X handle on Wednesday, the journalist suggested that the Service does not only need a factory reset but flushing.

Jaafar said: “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.

“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 novo 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 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!”