The Department of State Service (DSS) has withdrawn Adegboyega Fasasi as Chief Security Officer to the President, Bola Tinubu. Effectively, another DSS officer, Rasheed Atanda Lawal, a Deputy Director, has been appointed as replacement for the outgone Fasasi.
Although details of the development were still sketchy on Sunday evening when the news came to fore, it was gathered that Fasasi, who has served as CSO since Tinubu became President, was replaced because he has to proceed on a professional course abroad.
According to sources privy to the development, the Director-General of the DSS, Tosin Ajayi, had requested President Tinubu to approve the release of Fasasi from serving as CSO so he could proceed on the strategic training course.
However, a source who craved anonymity, said Fasasi’s removal and replacement was a routine development, as the outgone officer ought to have anticipated it because it is a routine practice in the Service.
According to the source, whenever a new DG comes to office at the DSS, he is most likely to embark on reorganization in various areas of the Service, especially around the President.
“Yes, I heard he has been replaced with another officer because he is being sent on a professional training course. At least there’s is reason for his removal and you can’t really premise that on any particular scandal, though you can entirely rule it out that there might have been a misgiving somewhere, it happens.
“The angle I want us to actually look at it from is the fact that such exercise as this ‘change of guards’ usually happens when the DSS gets a new DG. You know they deal strictly with intelligence and operate in secrecy, the new DG will always prefer to have his own trusted men on critical beats, the Presidency and the office of the SCO to the President being number one on that list,” the source said.
As at press time, there was yet to be any official confirmation from the Presidency concerning the movements in the CSO’s office.
