DSS DG advocates mandatory recruitment of first-class graduates for national security

To improve national security, Oluwatosin Ajayi, the director-general of the Department of State Services (DSS), has advocated for a national policy that requires the hiring of top-tier graduates for the intelligence service.While giving the 2025 Distinguished Personality Lecture at the University of Ilorin's Centre for Peace and Strategic Studies in Kwara State, Ajayi made this plea.

Speaking on the theme, “The Roles of the DSS in Security, Peacekeeping, and National Integration,” Ajayi, who was represented by DSS Deputy Director Mr. Patrick Ikenweiwe, emphasised the need for a paradigm shift in recruitment policies to ensure only the best intellectual minds are enlisted into security agencies.

Drawing comparisons to Israel’s education and security system, Ajayi proposed a structured selection process where top academic performers are directly drafted into national intelligence services.

“Tell me how would a ‘Dundee’ (dullard) be able to keep security in a criminal gang that is constituted of first-class people? You know, it takes intellect to track criminality,” he stated.

Ajayi further argued that Nigeria’s academia should supply intelligence agencies with details of exceptional graduates to ensure they contribute to national service.

“So, if I have my way in this country, and we keep praying that we do the right thing, the academia should be able to supply us, sincerely, the details of students who have excelled in their various fields of study so that they would be forced to serve this great nation,” he said.

Ajayi also stressed the need to shift public perception of security agencies, noting that viewing them as adversaries rather than allies negatively impacts intelligence gathering and peacebuilding efforts.

Addressing Nigeria’s evolving security landscape, he highlighted that traditional threats such as sabotage, subversion, and espionage have transformed into complex challenges, including terrorism, insurgency, cybercrime and economic sabotage. He reaffirmed the DSS’s commitment to tackling these threats through strategic collaborations and continuous engagement with stakeholders.

He outlined the DSS’s legal framework, referencing the NSA Act CAP N74 LFN, 2024, and SSS Instrument No. 1 of 1999, which mandate the service to prevent crimes against Nigeria’s internal security and provide timely security advice to the government.

Meanwhile, in a related development, First Lady Oluremi Tinubu on Wednesday received a delegation from the DSS, led by Deputy Director-General Mrs. Afolashade Adekayaoja, at the State House, Abuja.

Tinubu commended the DSS for appointing a woman to a high-ranking position, stating, “Women who have proven themselves in their careers deserve recognition and leadership roles.”