Billionaire industrialist and President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has petitioned the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), calling for the arrest, investigation and prosecution of the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Farouk Ahmed, over alleged corruption and financial impropriety.
In the petition dated December 16 and addressed to the ICPC Chairman, Musa Adamu Aliyu (SAN), Dangote accused the NMDPRA boss of living far above his lawful income as a public officer, alleging that Ahmed spent more than $7m on the education of his four children in Switzerland over a six-year period.
Dangote, who named the children and the schools they reportedly attended, urged the anti-graft agency to verify the payments, insisting that the expenditure could not be justified by Ahmed’s earnings from decades of public service.
According to the petition, the funds were allegedly diverted from public coffers through abuse of office, with Dangote claiming that the NMDPRA chief used his position to pursue private interests to the detriment of Nigerians.
“It is without doubt that the above facts in relation to abuse of office, breach of the Code of Conduct for public officers, corrupt enrichment and embezzlement constitute gross corrupt practices,” Dangote said.
He noted that such offences are punishable under Section 19 of the ICPC Act with up to five years’ imprisonment without an option of fine.
He urged the commission to “act decisively” in probing the allegations, stressing that public confidence in the petroleum sector regulator and the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu must be protected.
Dangote also pledged to make himself available to present evidence to substantiate the claims.
The controversy gained public attention after Dangote, during a recent interaction at the Dangote Refinery in Lekki, Lagos, questioned the source of funds used by a regulator to sponsor four children through six years of secondary education abroad, reportedly at a cost of about $5m.
“My children went to secondary school in Nigeria,” he said, adding that Nigerians deserve transparency from those entrusted with public resources, particularly at a time when many parents struggle to pay modest school fees.
He further accused the NMDPRA of frustrating efforts to boost local refining capacity, alleging that the continued issuance of import licences undermines domestic investment.
Meanwhile, the House of Representatives has stepped into the dispute, summoning both Dangote and Ahmed.
The Joint Committees on Petroleum Resources (Midstream and Downstream) also asked the parties to refrain from further public comments, warning that the standoff could heighten tensions in the downstream petroleum sector.
A leader of the committees, Ikenga Ugochinyere, said the intervention was aimed at identifying the root causes of the allegations and counter-allegations to ensure stability in the sector.
As of the time of filing this report, neither Ahmed nor the NMDPRA had issued an official response to the allegations.
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