DSS Director-General Oluwatosin Ajayi has directed operatives not to arrest anyone over civil matters, saying such disputes should be resolved through the courts.

The Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Oluwatosin Adeola Ajayi, has directed operatives of the agency not to arrest anyone over civil matters, part of a broader push to strengthen the rule of law and improve the service’s human rights record.

Ajayi issued the directive during an interview with selected media executives on Thursday, saying the DSS would now rely on the courts rather than arrests to resolve disputes that are civil, rather than criminal, in nature.

“You cannot apply the use of force in civil matters. Even some criminal matters don’t require force,” Ajayi said.

Reforms Across Five Areas

The DSS boss said that since assuming office, he has introduced reforms spanning five broad areas: law enforcement, inter-agency synergy, accountability, respect for human rights, and infrastructural and administrative improvements aimed at boosting operational efficiency.

According to Ajayi, those reforms have also sharpened the line between civil and criminal matters within the agency, a distinction he said had often been blurred in the past. He attributed the historical conflation to his own career experience within the service, without elaborating further.

The Pat Utomi Case

To illustrate the shift, Ajayi pointed to the DSS’s handling of allegations against political economist Pat Utomi over an alleged attempt to establish a “shadow government.” Rather than move to arrest Utomi, the agency instead sought judicial interpretation of the matter.

“Rather than arrest him, we sought judicial interpretation,” Ajayi said. “And the court ruled that his adventure was unconstitutional, illegal, and a threat to national security.”

The SERAP Case

Ajayi also cited the agency’s dealings with the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), which had gone to court alleging that two DSS operatives invaded its premises. Rather than making arrests, the DSS allowed the matter to run its course through the judiciary.

The case concluded in May 2026, when a court awarded more than ₦100 million in damages to the two DSS operatives in connection with the dispute. SERAP has since filed an appeal against the ruling.

No Arrests — Including for Journalists

Asked directly whether the DSS now defaults to the courts in civil matters, Ajayi confirmed the policy in unambiguous terms.

“I have told my people that there should be no arrest in any civil case,” he said.

He added that the same standard now extends to cases involving journalists, whom he described as “professional colleagues” of the DSS. The only distinction, he said, lies in audience: journalists inform the public, while the DSS informs the government, and its information remains classified until officially declassified