President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday in Abuja met, for the first time, with the newly appointed Director-General of the Department of State Services, Yusuf Magaji Bichi, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

When Bichi was ushered into the president’s office by protocol officials, he was asked by the president if they had met before.

The new DG, however, `confessed’ that he was seeing (President Buhari) face to face for the first time in his life.

The meeting of the president and the DSS boss went into a closed-door session.

It would be recalled that President Buhari had on Sept. 13 appointed Yusuf Bichi, as new Director-General of the Department of State Service (DSS).

Malam Garba Shehu, the President’s Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, who confirmed this in a statement issued in Abuja, said the appointment was with immediate effect.

Bichi, who replaced Lawal Daura, the former DG of the DSS, is a core Secret Service operative.

He attended Danbatta Secondary School, the Kano State College of Advanced Studies and the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, where he graduated with a degree in Political Science.

The new Director-General began his career in the security division of the Cabinet Office in Kano, from where he joined the defunct Nigerian Security Organisation (NSO), the precursor of the present DSS.

Bichi had undergone training in intelligence processing analysis, agent handling recruitment and intelligence processing in the UK, as well as strategic training at the National Defence College.

The new DSS boss comes to the job with skills in intelligence gathering, research analysis, conflict management, general investigation, risk and vulnerability operations, counterintelligence and protective operation and human resources management.

In the course of his career, Bichi has worked as the State Director of Security in Jigawa, Niger, Sokoto and Abia States.

He was at various times the Director, National Assembly Liaison, (National War College), Director at National Headquarters in the Directorate of Security Enforcement, Directorate of Operations, Directorate of Intelligence, Directorate of Inspection and Directorate of Administration and Finance.

Bichi also served as Director at State Service Academy.

(NAN)