Lateef Kayode Are is a retired Nigerian Army Colonel who was Director General of the Nigerian State Security Service (SSS) from 1999 to 2007 and briefly served as

National Security Adviser A national security advisor serves as the chief advisor to a national government on matters of security. The advisor is not usually a member of the government's cabinet but is usually a member of various military or security councils. National sec ...

in 2010. Are served as an officer in the Directorate of Military Intelligence up until retirement by General

Sani Abacha Sani Abacha (20 September 1943 – 8 June 1998) was a Nigerian military officer and politician who ruled as the military head of state of Nigeria from 1993 until his death in 1998. He seized power on 17 November 1993 in the last successful c ...

. Are was appointed as Director-General of the State Security Service by President

Olusegun Obasanjo Chief Olusegun Matthew Okikiola Ogunboye Aremu Obasanjo, , ( ; yo, Olúṣẹ́gun Ọbásanjọ́ ; born 5 March 1937) is a Nigerian political and military leader who served as Nigeria's head of state from 1976 to 1979 and later as its presid ...

, served in that post throughout President Obasanjo's two terms (1999-2007), and was replaced by Afakiriya Gadzama, who was appointed in August 2007 by President

Umaru Yar'Adua Umaru Musa Yar'Adua (16 August 19515 May 2010) was a Nigerian politician who, was the President of Nigeria from 2007 to 2010. He was declared the winner of the Nigerian presidential election held on 21 April 2007, and was sworn in on 29 May 20 ...

Background and education

Are was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in December 1974 from the

Nigerian Defence Academy The Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) is a military university based in Kaduna, Nigeria that trains officer cadets for commissioning into one of the three services of the Nigerian Armed Forces: the Army, the Navy, and the Air Force. The duration of ...

as part of the NDA Regular Course 12. He graduated among the best ten student officers and was deployed to the Nigerian Army Intelligence Corp following his graduation from the Defence Academy. Are's NDA Regular Course 12 mates included officers such as General

Owoye Andrew Azazi Owoye Andrew Azazi (1 February 1952 – 15 December 2012) was a Nigerian army general who served as National Security Adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan, was Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) of Nigeria, and Chief of Army Staff (COAS). Befo ...

, Colonel

Sambo Dasuki Sambo Dasuki (born 2 December 1954) is a retired Nigerian military officer who served as National Security Adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan and briefly to Muhammadu Buhari. Early life Dasuki was born on December December 2, 1954 in Wusas ...

, and Admiral Ganiyu Adekeye. Are later graduated with a First Class Honours degree in Psychology in 1980 from the

University of Ibadan The University of Ibadan (UI) is a public research university in Ibadan, Nigeria. The university was founded in 1948 as University College Ibadan, one of many colleges within the University of London. It became an independent university in 19 ...

where he won the University Senate prize, Faculty of Social Sciences prize and the Department of Psychology prize for best graduating student. He later obtained a master's degree in International Law and Diplomacy from the

University of Lagos The University of Lagos, popularly known as UNILAG, is a public research university located in Lagos, Nigeria and was founded in 1962. UNILAG is one of the first generation universities in Nigeria and is ranked among the top universities in th ...

in 1987.

Director General of the SSS

Are served with General

Aliyu Gusau Aliyu Mohammed Gusau (born 18 May 1943) is a Nigerian general and statesman. He has held several high level national security, military and intelligence offices, and has participated in several military coups, playing a central role in foundin ...

at the Directorate of Military Intelligence during Are's time in the army. In 1999, Gusau, the newly appointed National Security Adviser, recommended Are to President

, who appointed Are as Director General of the State Security Service. There is some speculation that Are and Obasanjo's Owu kinship played a role in Are's appointment as Director General.

National Security Adviser

In April 2010, Are was appointed as Deputy National Security Adviser by President

Goodluck Jonathan Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan (born 20 November 1957)Lawson Heyford, ''The Source'' (Lagos), 11 December 2006. is a Nigerian politician who served as the President of Nigeria from 2010 to 2015. He lost the 2015 presidential election to fo ...

. This was a newly created position. When Aliyu Gusau resigned as National Security Advisor (NSA), Kayode Are took over as Acting NSA. Jonathan relieved Are as NSA and appointed General

as NSA, effective on 4 October 2010. The announcement of the change said "The President thanked the outgoing NSA for his services, and wished him well in his future endeavours".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Are, Kayode Living people Directors General of the State Security Service (Nigeria) Nigerian security personnel National Security Organization staff Nigerian Defence Academy alumni University of Lagos alumni Yoruba military personnel University of Ibadan alumni Year of birth missing (living people)