Mr Ahmed Rufai Abubakar has said his decision to resign as the Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency was due to personal reasons.
The former NIA DG who spoke to journalists after he submitted his resignation letter to President Bola Tinubu however declined to elaborate on his decision to quit office
further, as it would be a breach of protocol.
He expressed gratitude to the President for the opportunity to serve Nigeria for an extended period of 15 months, a rare privilege.
“I had the honour of serving two Presidents consecutively. I thanked him for the opportunity afforded me,” he said.
He stated that the National Security Adviser (NSA) and the President would disclose the reasons for his resignation if necessary.
Abubakar expressed his appreciation for the President’s leadership, encouragement, and confidence in his service.
“There are quite a number of reasons one will do that, some personal family issues, but nothing very serious, actually, and the friendship will continue.
“I discussed with Mr. President, he understood very well and I promise to remain with issues and the security situations of the country,” he said.
He added that he has mentored many capable officers well-prepared and competent to lead the intelligence agency.
He added that President Tinubu graciously approved and accepted his resignation.
“After the briefing today, actually I tendered my resignation and Mr. President graciously approved and accepted the resignation.
“I thanked him for giving me the opportunity to serve Nigeria under his transformational leadership for a period, for an extended period of 15 months, which is very rare, by the way, to serve, to have the opportunity to serve two Presidents at a stretch, at a go,” he said.
Abubakar was first appointed as NIA DG in 2018 by former President Muhammadu Buhari
