Activists Drag Buhari To Court over Appointment of NIA DG

The controversy over appointment of a new director general of Nigeria’s
external security organisation, the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) has
moved to the courts.
On Friday, an activist and the convener of the Concerned Nigerians group,
Deji Adeyanju, asked a federal high court to reverse the appointment.
The activist challenged the propriety of the appointment of Ahmed Abubakar
as the head of the elite security organisation by President Muhammadu
Buhari.
In a writ of summon by the Federal High Court, Abuja, President Buhari, DG
of the NIA and the Attorney General of the Federation are to appear as the
first, second and third defendants.
The court asked the dependents to appear within 30 days of the service of
the summon.
Mr. Adeyanju is asking court to determine whether the first defendant can
appoint the second defendant (Mr. Abubakar), who is from Katsina state, as
director general of the NIA when the DG of the State Security Services,
Lawal Musa Daura is also from Katsina state.
The plaintiff also challenged whether, by the provision of section 2(3) of
the National Security Agency Act, the second defendant is ”a fit and
proper person” to be appointed as DG of the NIA.
Mr. Adeyanju therefore prayed the court to order the removal of the second
defendant as the DG of the NIA
He also prayed for a perpetual order restraining the first defendant from
further appointing the second defendant as head of the agency.