The National Association of Polytechnic Students (NAPS) has honoured the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Adeola Oluwatosin Ajayi, with its National Merit Award for his contributions to peace, security, and stability in Nigeria.
The award, titled “Icon of Peace, Safety and Progress in Nigeria,” was presented to the DSS Director-General at the Service Headquarters, Abuja, through one of his directors, Benjamin Bulus, alongside the students’ desk officer, Jayson Moses, and other senior officers.
The award presentation was originally scheduled for the NAPS Wrap-Up National Polytechnic Students Summit on July 23, 2026, at the John Odigie-Oyegun Public Service Academy (JOOPSA), Benin City, but was rescheduled after the DSS Director-General’s unavoidable absence.
According to NAPS, the award recognised Ajayi’s leadership and the DSS’s contributions to safeguarding lives and property, as well as maintaining national peace and security.
The association, in a statement by its Immediate Past President, Comr. Eshiofune Paul Oghayan, particularly commended the DSS for what it described as the prompt, accurate, and proactive gathering, assessment, and dissemination of security intelligence to relevant security agencies.
It said effective intelligence gathering and inter-agency cooperation remained critical to identifying potential threats, preventing security breaches, and responding appropriately to emerging security challenges across the country.
NAPS said the importance of a secure environment could not be overstated for students, stressing that peace and security were fundamental to academic excellence, personal development, and young Nigerians’ ability to contribute meaningfully to national development.
The association also acknowledged the “unseen work” of security personnel in monitoring developments, identifying potential threats, and providing the intelligence required for appropriate action, noting that the DSS contributed significantly to making its National Convention peaceful, credible, and crisis-free.
The visit also gave the outgoing NAPS administration an opportunity to formally introduce the association’s new leadership and appeal for continued support, guidance, and collaboration between the students’ body and the DSS.
Oghayan urged the new NAPS leadership to sustain the relationship, anchored on loyalty, mutual respect, patriotism, constructive engagement, and a shared commitment to the peace and progress of Nigeria.
The association subsequently passed a vote of confidence in Ajayi’s leadership of the DSS, commending his efforts in intelligence gathering, national security coordination, protection of lives and property, threat prevention, and provision of actionable intelligence to relevant security agencies.
NAPS also commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration for its interventions in the education sector, particularly the establishment and strengthening of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), saying investments in education remained critical to removing barriers to learning and empowering Nigerian youths to contribute to the country’s development.
COURTESY: The Nation Nigeria
