- …Over charges of unprofessional conduct
From Umar Dankano,Yola
The Department of State Services (DSS) might have finally relieved Ahmad Umar, the former Chief Detail to the Adamawa state Governor, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri of his service over allegations of professional misconduct.
A source who preferred to be anonymous told our correspondent exclusively that the former Chief Detail (Ahmad Umar) was believably relieved of his service by the DSS headquarters in Abuja through the state command (Adamawa) on Tuesday 28th November 2023, informing him that his service with the Department had been allegedly withdrawn.
Umar has been under suspension since his arrest in April 2023 over alleged molestation of a national electoral official as well as the Deputy Director of the DSS, Halilu Sulaiman who doubled as the head of operations in the Adamawa state command then.
When contacted at his office in the state command Yola Wednesday, the state Director, Mr. Adeleke Hassan declined to comment on the relief, saying he is new in the command and did not even know the fellow in question, let alone his said misconduct.
Hassan added that when the incident happened, he wasn’t in the command, and referred our correspondent to the Public Affairs Department of the service at the headquarters in Abuja for any details.
It could be recalled that the embattled detail had allegedly led a mob that bulldozed into Green City Hotel in Yola and dragged some INEC national officials from their rooms following controversial declaration of the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate for Adamawa State, Senator Aishatu Dahiru Binani, as governor-elect by the suspended Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Barrister Hudu Yunusa Ari.
Recall also that a video had gone viral on social media showing an individual many suspected to be the former Chief Detail, Umar physically assaulting and humiliating an aged man identified as Professor Abdullahi Zuru, one of the two national commissioners of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) deployed to oversee the April 15 supplementary governorship election in the state.
Umar was also accused of personally assaulting his senior officer, identified as Mal. Halilu Suleiman who was already at the hotel when the Chief Detail was said to have arrived in company of some policemen attached to the government house Yola alongside a group of PDP political thugs before whisking Zuru to another location.
The unfortunate action of the suspected Chief Detail, received as barbaric by the public, attracted wide condemnation in the state. This might have embarrassed the DSS, thereby resulting in the said relief.
Believably, this action might have infuriated the DSS forcing the service to summon the former detail and three supporters of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) including the former chairman of Madagali Local Government area, Yusuf Mohammed Alias O.C, Zira John, and Solomon Abafras at different locations in the state for alleged involvement in the attacks.
Approached for his response on the development, the former Chief Detail also declined to comment, stating that the headquarters is in a better position to talk on the matter.
Efforts to get official confirmation from the DSS spokesman, Dr Peter Afunanya at the headquarters in Abuja was not successful as calls put to his mobile phone line were not answered or returned, and he did not reply to the text message sent to him via his verified WhatsApp account up to the time of filing in this report.
“Compliments of the season Doc Afunanya. Sir, trying to ascertain the charges against your embattled officer in Adamawa Command.i.e Former Chief Detail to Governor Fintiri by name Ahmad Umar. Thank you”, the text message read.
A separate call to Afunanya from our office in Abuja was also returned with a note that he was in a meeting and could not speak, with a request for a text message instead.
Accordingly, a text message sent to him seeking an official comment on the said withdrawal of service was yet to be responded to at press time.
