DSS
…Drag Buhari to court over serial sectionalism
By Henry Umoru
LEADERS of thought and elder statesmen from four of the six geo-political zones of the country, under the aegis of Southern and Middle Belt Leaders Forum, have taken a swipe at the Director-General, Department of State Services, Yusuf Bichi, saying his lopsided recruitment in favour of the north has put a sharp knife to the rope holding what is left of Nigeria.
In a signed statement, the leaders of the Middle-Belt, Ohaneaze Ndigbo, Pan-Niger Delta Forum, PANDEF, and Afenifere, described the action of the DSS head as insensitive.
The statement signed yesterday by Yinka Odumakin for South West; Chief Guy Ikokwu for South East; Senator Bassey Henshaw for South South and Dr. Isuwa Dogo for Middle Belt, the Southern and Middle Belt Leaders Forum disclosed that it had taken the government to court based on its serial sectionalism.
According to the elders, the case comes up at the Federal High Court in Abuja on October 2, 2020.
The statement read: “Divisive Recruitment By DSS 24 HOURS after VP Yemi Osinbajo and SGF Boss Mustapha both warned separately that cracks on the Nigerian wall could lead to its break-up, a scandalous report came out in the People”s Gazette showing how the DG of DSS has put a sharp knife to the rope holding what is left of Nigeria together through an insensitive and lopsided recruitment into the agency.
”Director-General Yusuf Bichi was said to have activated a lopsided hiring process that tends to overfill the State Security Service with personnel from the northern parts of Nigeria. Peoples Gazette reported based on official documents and contributions of senior intelligence officials.
“The Gazette’s findings obtained over a period of two weeks showed that the North has a massive share of the roughly 1,300 Nigerians currently undergoing cadet training at two different camps of the secret police in Lagos and Bauchi.
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“Of the total 628 cadet trainees who had resumed at the Bauchi facility as of September 23, 535 trainees joined the service from either the Northeast or the Northwest. Only 93 were from either the Southeast, South-South, Southwest or North-Central.
“The Gazette’s findings also showed that at least 71 of those currently undergoing cadet training hail from Bichi Local Government Area, Kano State the director-general’s home local government area. Officials said the number was more, but the Gazette could not independently confirm the higher figures — as well as a slew of other disturbing allegations of bigotry against Mr. Bichi — prior to its publication.
“The list of candidates was not compiled state by state, but officials believe a state-by-state breakdown would exist at the headquarters in Abuja. In Lagos, the Gazette was unable to obtain official attendance records of trainees at the camp in Ojo, but multiple participants, including senior officials, said Mr. Bichi disregarded the federal character concept and skewed the process for Nigerians from the North.
“A top official estimated 708 trainees were at the Lagos training facility as of September 26. Officials were unsure how many people were taken as cadet trainees in total because some were still arriving three weeks into the six-month exercise.
“Senior intelligence officials said even though the sectional disparity mirrors Nigeria’s reality under President Muhammadu Buhari, they are, nonetheless, worried that the development could potentially tip the ethnic and religious balance of national security in favour of a section of the country for decades.”
