DSS Vows to Deal with Terrorists, Bandits in Nigeria

Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja

The Department of State Security (DSS) yesterday vowed to deal ruthlessly with terrorists, bandits and other enemies of state threatening the peace of Nigeria.

It warned those planning to “mess up the country” to desist from doing so, saying “enough is enough, as any group that attacks personnel of the agency would not be spared.

The Director-General of DSS, Yusuf Bichi, issued the warning at the weekend at the graduation ceremony held in honour of participants of the Executive Intelligence Management Course (EIMC15) at the National Institute for Security Studies (NISS) Abuja.

A total of 78 participants of the directorate/executive cadre drawn from Nigeria, the Gambia, Ghana, as well as Niger Republic participated in the 2022 course.

In his address, Bichi warned against attempts by subversive elements to undermine the authority, unity and corporate existence of the country.

He called for concerted efforts of all and sundry, stating that security is a whole-of-society-approach, hence the need for members of the public to support and cooperate with the military and other security agencies in the country.

According to him, “Our destiny is in our handsm and it is time to say enough is enough!

“My service will not allow anybody to mess up this country. If you attack our structures, we will attack you.

“If you attack our men, we will attack you. It is a tit-for-for-tat. The way God created Nigeria, nobody can dismantle it.”

The DG maintained that it was better to unite than to “scatter. Let us not allow ourselves to be instigated to see ourselves as enemies.”

On inter-agency synergy, he said: “Let me assure you that the DSS has come of age, and we will continue to partner the military and other sister agencies to tackle the insecurity in the country.”,

While declaring that Nigeria will surmount the challenges of insecurity occasioned by terrorists and bandits, Bichi affirmed that “Nigeria is not a failed state-Nigeria has all the indices of a great nation.”

Earlier, the Commandant of the NISS, Alhaji A S Adeleke, assured attendees that after spending ten months, the institute had succeeded in training  the graduands to be “highly-motivated and committed managers of security.”