Disturbed by what it described as “the incessant mediocre attempts” to diminish the image of the current Director General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Ambassador Rufai Abubakar, the Northern Emancipation Network, (NEN) has said that it “is clear to all who care to know that Ambassador Rufai is not by any stretch of imagination incompetent; he has never been.

The National Secretary, NEN, Suleiman Abbah, who stated this in a statement on Thursday noted that the critics of the head of the agency are “interests who would rather see the NIA decay and unprofessional.”

According to the group, “the traducers actively sponsored by a fugitive former staff of the NIA, accuse Rufai of committing every sin under the sun including the sanctioning of an errant Radio Programme by a competent regulatory body.

“In the process, facts are being shamefully and blatantly reviewed, rewritten and falsified to suit certain agendas that tend to portray the Professor as the wrong guy on the job.

“We are equally concerned and extremely worried that in spite of the studied and dignified reserve of Ambaassador Rufai, and refusal to engage in altercations with these self-appointed enemies and antagonists, no stone is being left unturned to see that they unjustifiably brand him unqualified for a job for which he is eminently qualified”,the group stated.

Speaking on verifiable facts about the NIA boss, the “his record of impeccable performance throughout his life from the time he was a student through his various jobs attest to this fact.”

The group added, “Those who wish to confirm can reach out to the authorities of Arabic Teachers College Katsina (now Usman Nagogo College of Arabic Studies), and Bayero University Kano (BUK), for his records as a student.

“In the same vein, his bosses and supervisors in the other places he had worked side the NIA, including BUK, Katsina State Government (KTSG), United Nations (UN), African Union (AU) and the State House could be approached for their impression and assessment of his competence.

“While his record of service as an officer of the Agency for over two decades remain confidential, we make bold to say that he was a successful intelligence officer who earned the confidence and admiration of his superiors thus his recognition as a suitable officer to be seconded to the continental and global multilateral institutions where only the best from all countries are accepted.”

The organization concluded that “In view of the above verifiable observations, the Northern Emancipation Network has inadvertently arrived at the following inevitable conclusions and inferences:

“That it is insane, abuse of ordinary rules of decency and insult to the collective sensibilities of Nigerians to ascribe incompetence to such a highly successful international civil servant.

“That Rufai’s accusers are a band of blackmailers and extortionists masquerading as journalists.

“That these fringe publications are being sponsored by others known to the authorities, including a fugitive from justice in the efforts to bring Rufai down.

“That the aim of these detractors and their collaborators is to distract the NIA as an institution, and undermine national security”, the statement read.