recent times, forcing the management of the service to temporarily place a
moratorium on further voluntary resignation from personnel of the service.
Investigations by Vanguard at the headquarters of the Nigerian secret police
indicated that in the last 10 months, no fewer than 70 middle cadre and junior
cadre officers had resigned from the service, both from the state commands and
the national headquarters.
While some of the officers resigned because they got better offers of
employment from, especially embassies of western nations, others resigned
because of unfavourable terms of employment they alleged had pervaded the
service since the take over of the present Director General of the agency,
Mallam Lawal Musa Daura.
One of the staff who resigned two weeks ago, told Vanguard : “The condition of
service is no longer favourable. Some allowances that we were entitled to were
stopped, while others were cut in half without explanation.
"Most importantly, operation allowances that we used to enjoy were stopped
without any reason. And we were still expected to put in our best. If I cannot be
treated well while in service, how will my family be treated well when I am
dead? It’s unfortunate that I had to leave after so much has been invested in
me by this country.’’
Another personnel who said he would also leave in the next few months, told
Vanguard that the condition of service was no longer palatable.
“During the last dispensation, the service personnel were well motivated to do
their job. We embark on dangerous covert assignments to keep the nation safe
and all that we get in return is insults and suspicion from the leadership of the
service. Fortunately, most of us are well trained so our services are needed by
those countries that helped in training us. We cannot be jobless. If you get a
better offer, it’s only natural to move” he said.
Another complain given by those who left is that “there appears to be no future
in remaining. When I joined the service, it was like one family. There was no
regional or ethnic segmentation. What we have seen so far is perception of
actions or inactions from the prism of where one comes from. We were told
during training that your competence will make or mar you. That promise has
been compromised. It’s no longer interesting” she said.
Vanguard gathered that at the last count, five of those personnel who left were
absorbed by the American Embassy, ten by several banks and other financial
institutions as head of security, while about four have joined oil companies.
Worried by the steady resignation, the management of the service issued a
circular through departmental heads and state Directors directing that voluntary
resignation by service personnel should no longer be accepted until further
notice.
No member of the service was ready to speak on record and the service has no
official spokesman since the last one, Marylyn Ogar left service.
However, a senior official of the service who spoke with vanguard in confidence
claimed that the last dispensation exposed its personnel to unnecessary wealth
“which is capable of compromising operational duties”
“There is no way the present leadership would have continued with the
shenanigans that was perpetrated in the last dispensation. Apparently the
leadership wants to return the service to its founding vision which is selfless
service to the nation. It’s obvious that those who cannot fit in would naturally
leave” he said.
It will be recalled that DSS 65 cadet officers of the service who were undergoing
training at the State Services Academy, SSA, in Lagos, including a sibling of the
sacked former spokes person of the service, Marilyn Ogar were asked to leave in
September last year, few weeks to their passing out.
No reason was given for their dismissal which was contained in a letter by the
Director General of the Department of State Service, Lawal Daura.
A senior officer of the service who is familiar with the matter told Vanguard
then that their sack was “inevitable” because their recruitment process was
“flawed.”
He explained that “What happened was that recruitment of most of these
cadets did not follow due process. They were brought into the service by
politicians without meeting the stringent requirements set by the service in
recruiting its personnel. They were dumped on the service by politicians through
the active connivance of the past leadership of the service. We are re-
organising the service so we cannot afford to have partisan political moles in
our midst” the source said.
The source who is a senior operative of the service said the process of
“weeding undesirable elements” who found their way into the service was
ongoing. The present leadership of the service is determined to reposition the
service to its professional roles. There is nothing personal about the decision of
the service. It was a very painful decision in view of the investment made on
them but it was a decision that must be taken” he had said.
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