DSS transfers Marilyn Ogar to Maiduguri

New postings and a series of reversals have taken place in recent times at the Department of State Services (DSS). DSS spokesperson, ‎Marilyn Ogar, who was until recently, DSS deputy director, public relations, has reportedly been transferred to Maiduguri, Borno State. The posting is, however, said to be on hold, following insinuations that it was “punitive.” Ogar, as spokesperson, was responsible for defending the activities of the agency in the media and she is believed to be paying for some of her pronouncements, notably in the face-off with the Bring Back Our Girls movement and the DSS raids on the Lagos office of the All Progressives Congress, APC, last year. Ogar has already lost her promotion, following the nullification of the recent exercise. “Right now, she is just hanging around in Abuja, awaiting the next order,” a source at the DSS told the Cable. President Muhammadu Buhari recently appointed Lawal Musa Daura as the acting DSS director-general, following the resignation of Ita Ekpenyong, who was reportedly asked to go because of the alleged “partisanship” of the agency under former President Goodluck Jonathan. Also, about 45 new state directors who were promoted under Jonathan, have lost their new ranks as their promotions have been reversed. Buhari refused to swear them in last Thursday, a development which signalled that the promotion exercise had been annulled. Daura is also reported to have ordered the sack of fresh graduates who were recently employed after an eight-month training. Daura is reported to have also been mandated to probe the tenure of his predecessor. An official from the office of the secretary to the government of the federation (SGF) has been pencilled down to do the job. The official, from Katsina state, is expected to be appointed as the new director of finance, taking over from an operative from Plateau State, who was only appointed recently. “Daura’s mandate is to probe Ekpenyong, but it is not looking bright because some of the allegations being examined are difficult to prove. It has now been established that the raids on the APC office in Lagos were based on a tip-off by an APC member. This has complicated matters,” the source told the Cable. The DSS had raided the office on the allegation that the voters’ biometric cards were being illegally produced there, a move that generated public outrage. The agency, however, failed to charge any suspect to court.