The Director General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) has resigned.

Ahmed Rufai Abubakar tendered his resignation to President Bola Tinubu on Saturday shortly after meeting with the President, saying he discussed with Tinubu who understood with him.

On his visit to the Presidential Villa, Abubakar said he came to visit Tinubu to “brief Mr President on issues and today is no exception.”

He said he also used the opportunity to thank Tinubu “for giving me the opportunity to serve Nigeria under his transformational leadership for an extended period of 15 months – which is very rare – to have the opportunity to serve two presidents at a stretch.”

Despite his resignation, Abubakar promised to remain professionally dedicated to Nigeria.

When asked why he took the rare decision to resign, the former NIA boss said there was nothing serious to worry about.

Though he blamed his decision on some personal and family issues, he, however, did not disclose the main reason.

“I discussed with Mr. President, he understood very well, and I promised to remain steadfast with issues and the security situations of the country,” he stated.

He was appointed as NIA boss in 2018 by former President Muhammadu Buhari, who extended his stay in office in December 2021.

Abubakar, a 71-year-old retired career foreign service officer from Katsina State, joined the security department of the Nigerian Foreign Service in 1993. In 2015, he was appointed senior special assistant to the president (SSAP) on international relations and foreign affairs.

He attended Bayero University in Kano, where he bagged bachelor’s and master’s degrees in French. He also speaks English and Arabic.