………As DG orders free lifetime medicare

By Tony Ezimakor, Abuja

The Department of State Services (DSS) has paid N20 million in compensation to a Sokoto-based businessman who was mistakenly shot during a 2016 operation in Jos, Plateau State.

The payment follows a 2018 ruling by a Federal High Court which ordered the security agency to pay N10 million in damages for the incident. Until now, the judgment had remained unenforced.

However, it was confirmed that not only has the DSS complied with the court order, but the agency has also gone beyond the ruling by paying double the mandated amount which is N20 million, as a goodwill gesture to compensate for the long delay.

According to a reliable source familiar with the development, the Director General of the DSS, Mr. Tosin Ajayi, personally approved the compensation and directed that the businessman be integrated into the DSS Medicare system for free, lifelong medical care.

“In line with the DG’s instructions, the businessman has been admitted at the DSS hospital in Abuja,” the source disclosed. “He arrived a few days ago and has since been receiving free medical treatment and tests administered by some of our best doctors.”

The source further revealed that the businessman was lodged in the hospital’s VIP ward, where he is receiving round-the-clock medical care, including physiotherapy and meals—all at no cost.

“True to the DG’s directive, the victim has been treated with dignity and utmost care. This reflects a rare expression of institutional humanity. I even understand the DG insisted he be fed at the agency’s expense,” the source added.

The incident occurred during a pre-dawn DSS raid in Jos in 2016 to apprehend a suspected gunrunner. In a case of mistaken identity, operatives shot and wounded the businessman, who happened to share the same name as the target. The real suspect was later apprehended.

In 2018, through his counsel Idris Akibu, the injured man sued the DSS. Justice Muhammed Shittu Abubakar of the Federal High Court, Bauchi, in suit number FHC/J/CS/18/2018, ruled in the businessman’s favor, awarding N10 million in damages.

“This is the third DG since the incident happened. So you can imagine our joy when the new DG not only authorized the payment but doubled the compensation,” the source said. “It shows that security institutions can be lawful—and humane.”

The DSS’s gesture has been widely seen as a significant step in promoting accountability within security agencies and restoring public trust in the system.