Former DSS DG, ex-Spy Chief, one-time NSA: Meet newly appointed ambassadors

The newly announced set of ambassadors by the federal government features a list of some of the country’s most familiar names in security and foreign affairs.

From a former Director General of the State Security Service to a onetime head of the National Intelligence Agency and an experienced career diplomat, the nominees bring long years of service from different government departments in their new positions.

Their new appointments mark a return to public duty for men whose careers have shaped national security, intelligence operations and Nigeria’s relations with other countries.

LATEEF KAYODE ARE

Born in 1955, Lateef Kayode Are, brings into his appointment one of the strongest pedigrees in Nigeria’s intelligence circle. The security czar graduated with a First Class degree in Psychology from the University of Ibadan in 1980, emerging as the best student and winning several academic prizes in the process.

He later completed a master’s degree in International Law and Diplomacy at the University of Lagos in 1987.

Are’s military journey began much earlier at the Nigerian Defence Academy, where he was part of the Regular Combatant Course 12 and ranked among the top cadets. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant in December 1974 and went on to serve as an intelligence officer in the Directorate of Military Intelligence. He rose to the rank of colonel before his compulsory retirement in 1993, marking the end of his uniformed career but not his service to the country.

His most prominent national assignment came in May 1999 when he was appointed Director General of the State Security Service. He remained in the position for eight consecutive years, making him the longest serving DG in the history of the SSS. His tenure spanned the administrations of Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, covering the early and sensitive years of Nigeria’s return to democratic governance. In 2010, he became Deputy National Security Adviser and later served briefly as Acting National Security Adviser following the resignation of General Aliyu Mohammed Gusau.

AMIN MUHAMMAD DALHATU

Amin Muhammad Dalhatu also comes with a solid professional background. A career diplomat from Jigawa State, Dalhatu spent decades in the Nigerian Foreign Service before becoming Nigeria’s Ambassador to the Republic of Korea, a position he held from around 2017 to 2023.

During that period, he oversaw Nigeria’s relations with South Korea, handled consular responsibilities and promoted cooperation in trade, technology, culture and investment. His earlier work within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, though not all publicly detailed, helped shape his understanding of Nigeria’s foreign policy and international partnerships. His new posting places a seasoned diplomat back in frontline representation.

AYO OKE

Another name on the list is Ayo Oke, the former Director General of the National Intelligence Agency. Before his appointment as NIA DG in 2013, Oke had served as Nigeria’s representative to the Commonwealth Secretariat in London and later became Director for Regions at the NIA headquarters. His time at the agency, however, became controversial in 2017 when investigators discovered more than $43 million in an apartment in Ikoyi. The development led to his suspension and eventual removal from office.

In 2023, the legal case against him was discontinued by the Federal Government on grounds of national security, and the Federal High Court struck it out after a request from the prosecution. His return to public service as an ambassador places him once again in the national spotlight.

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