The Department of State Security has absolved itself of any wrong doing in the clash between its operatives and officials of the Nigerian Correctional on Tuesday at the premises of Federal High Court, Ikoyi, where Mr. Godwin Emefiele, suspended CBN governor was charged to court for possession of firearms and ammunitions.

Trouble started after the Court had granted Mr. Emefiele bail with the sum of N20 million and ordered that he be remanded in Correctional Service centre pending the perfection of his bail condition but the DSS operatives, who brought him to court wanted him to return to their custody as he was said to have other matters to attend to. This led to the two agencies of government struggling to hold Mr. Emefiele. The DSS immediately re-arrested him and in an attempt to take him away engaged in fisticuffs with officials of the Correctional Center, tearing the uniform of one of them into shreds.

The DSS had brought Mr. Emefiele to court spending six weeks in custody without being charged. The suspended CBN governor was arraigned before Justice Nicholas Oweibo’s Federal High Court in Ikoyi on a two-count charge of illegally possessing firearms and was granted bail. The court also ruled that Mr Emefiele should be kept in the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Service pending the perfection of his bail conditions.

Displeased with the ruling, some of the operatives of the secret services covering their faces forced their way into the court premises to re-arrest Mr Emefiele. In an effort to uphold the court’s decision, the prison officers resisted the DSS, which resulted in a tug-of-war between the two security organisations and the manhandling of some of the prison officers.

The DSS broke its silence on the incident after twenty-four hours. In a statement released on Wednesday, Peter Afunanya, Public Relations Officer, Department of State Services, defended the agency’s action by claiming that during the confrontation, its agents behaved professionally and within the ambit of the law. He also claimed that there was “a sinister plot to discredit its leadership.”

“For emphasis, the DSS has not broken any laws in handling the Emefiele Case despite efforts by some elements to skew the narratives to the contrary. The Service had since alerted the public of sinister plots to discredit its leadership. In pursuit of its assignments, it will strive to remain professional, maintain ethical standards and high sense of discipline”, Mr Afunanya insisted.

He further stated that the service remains focused on the national security mandate, indicating that its operatives do not operate for heroism and fame chasing. ‘The Service will ensure that it will not be used for clout and fame chasing or delusional heroism. It will, however, remain focused on its national security mandate and, therefore, enjoin well-meaning Nigerians to support it in achieving the desired security goals for the nation. It is imperative to note that we have no other country but Nigeria. We should join hands, with love and tolerance, to build it”.

Denouncing the confrontation between the two security agencies, the Spokesperson of the DSS described it as an unfortunate incident that should not be encouraged, and noted that the service has initiated investigations into the matter for disciplinary actions against the overzealous officers.

“The incident was unfortunate and does not in any way reflect the professional disposition of the DSS. The Service did not and would never encourage the incident under reference;

“While noting that the personnel from both Agencies exhibited undue overzealousness, the Service has further initiated detailed investigations into the matter. This is with a view to identifying the role played by specific persons as well as undertaking disciplinary actions if necessary and drawing some lessons going forward”

He added that the DSS has always had positive relationships with all of the other security agencies in the nation and that it has a great deal of respect for the judiciary and would never try to undermine it.

“The Service has tremendous respect for the Judiciary as an Arm and Institution of Government and will not go out of its way to undermine it. The DSS recognises the Judiciary as a critical component in nation building, national development and security management. Also, the Service has robust working relationship with sister Security and Law Enforcement agencies including the NCoS”