Aliko Dangote
Picnews
Dangote Group’s founder, Aliko Dangote, held a press conference at his Lekki refinery on Monday, where he publicly accused Farouk Ahmed, the chief executive of the Nigerian Mid‑stream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), of corruption. Dangote alleged that Ahmed spent about $5 million over six years on tuition for four of his children at private schools in Switzerland, a sum he said far exceeds what a civil‑servant’s salary can reasonably cover.
The billionaire businessman linked the alleged financial impropriety to broader concerns about the regulatory environment for Nigeria’s oil sector. He claimed that under Ahmed’s watch, the NMDPRA has issued an excessive number of import licences for refined petroleum products, a practice that he says undermines the competitiveness of domestic refineries like his own.
Dangote contrasted his own family’s education choices with Ahmed’s, noting that his children attend schools in Nigeria while the regulator’s children are being educated abroad at great expense. He argued that such disparity erodes public trust and constitutes “economic sabotage” that harms ordinary Nigerians who struggle to afford basic school fees.
The accusation also includes a demand for an investigation by the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) and other anti‑corruption agencies. Dangote said he is prepared to release detailed tuition records and, if necessary, pursue legal action against the Swiss institutions that facilitated the payments to compel disclosure.
NMDPRA has not issued a detailed response at the time of reporting, but previous statements from the agency have denied similar allegations, describing them as part of a “smear campaign.” The regulator’s silence leaves the matter open for further scrutiny by independent bodies.
The episode adds to the ongoing tension between Nigeria’s largest private oil producer and the state regulator, highlighting issues of transparency, regulatory capture, and the broader debate over import licences versus local refining capacity. Whether the CCB will launch a formal probe remains to be seen, but the allegations have already intensified public interest in the governance of the country’s petroleum sector.
