The Rationale Behind Mandatory Recruitment of First Class Graduates into DSS-DG

The Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Mr. Oluwatosin Ajayi, has advocated for the mandatory recruitment of first-class graduates into the intelligence agency. Ajayi presented this argument during the 2025 Distinguished Personality Lecture at the Centre for Peace and Strategic Studies, University of Ilorin, Kwara State. In his address, titled “The Roles of the DSS in Security, Peacekeeping, and National Integration,” Ajayi highlighted the necessity for a fundamental change in the recruitment and staffing processes within security agencies to ensure that only the most qualified individuals are selected. Speaking on behalf of the DG, DSS Deputy Director Mr. Patrick Ikenweiwe, emphasized that the recruitment of high-achieving academic individuals into the DSS should be established as a national policy, akin to Israel’s selective university admission system. “In Israel, there is a specific examination that students must take to gain university admission. Achieving a score above 70 mandates their enrollment in a university,” he noted. “How can an individual lacking intellect effectively manage security within a criminal organization comprised of highly intelligent individuals? It requires sharp intellect to effectively combat criminal activities.” “Therefore, if it were up to me, and we continue to hope for the right actions to be taken in this country, the academic institutions should provide us with the names of students who have excelled in their respective fields, ensuring they are compelled to serve this great nation,” he stated.