The Director General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Tosin Ajayi, has dismissed Adegboyega Fasasi from his role as Chief Security Officer (CSO) to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

According to Daily Nigerian, sources confirmed that Mr. Fasasi’s removal was finalized over the weekend.

He has been succeeded by Rasheed Atanda Lawal, a deputy director of the SSS, currently attending a fellowship program at the National Institute for Security Studies, sources revealed.

The source further stated that President Tinubu authorized Mr. Fasasi’s removal at the recommendation of the DSS Director-General (DG), who cited the need for him to attend a “strategic course”—a standard reason given when reshuffling top security aides close to the president.

Additionally, insiders disclosed that Mr. Lawal was eligible for promotion to the rank of Director in July 2023. However, his advancement was delayed under the previous DSS leadership, reportedly due to lack of favor from the former DG.

“It is now a norm within the service for a new DG to assign a CSO that he feels comfortable working with.

“The CSO’s role is highly sensitive, requiring someone the DG can fully trust in such a critical position,” the source explained.

Back in March 2019, then-President Muhammadu Buhari approved the reassignment of his Chief Security Officer, Bashir Abubakar, appointing Idris Ahmed as his successor.

The then-DG of the SSS, Yusuf Bichi, reportedly convinced the president that Mr. Bashir needed to enroll in a “strategic course” at a university in Buenos Aires, Argentina, resulting in his replacement.