- Abubakar, a 71-year-old retired career foreign service officer from Katsina state, was appointed head of the agency by former President Muhammadu Buhari in January 2018.
- His tenure was extended in 2021.
President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of Mohammed Mohammed as the new director of the national intelligence agency (NIA).
In a statement on Monday, Ajuri Ngelale, the presidential spokesperson, said Tinubu also appointed Adeola Oluwatosin Ajayi as the new director general of the Department of State Services, (DSS).
On Saturday, Ahmed Rufai Abubakar, tendered his resignation letter as director-general of NIA
The statement reads: “Ambassador Mohammed has had an illustrious career in the foreign service since joining the NIA in 1995. He had served in various roles, culminating in his promotion to the rank of Director and his subsequent appointment as the head of the Nigerian mission to Libya.
“The 1990 graduate of Bayero University, Kano, had served in North Korea, Pakistan, Sudan, and at the State House, Abuja.
“The new DSS Director-General, Mr. Adeola Ajayi, rose through the ranks to attain his current post of Assistant Director-General of the Service. He had, at various times, served as State Director in Bauchi, Enugu, Bayelsa, Rivers, and Kogi.
“The new appointments follow the resignation of the previous NIA and DSS chiefs.
“President Tinubu expects that the new security chiefs will work assiduously to reposition the two intelligence agencies for better results and charges them to bring their experience to bear in tackling the security challenges bedeviling the country through enhanced collaboration with sister agencies and in surgical alignment with the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).
“The President thanks the outgoing Directors-General of the two pivotal intelligence agencies for their services to the nation while wishing them success in their future endeavours.”