The Chairman of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has submitted a petition against the Managing Director of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Ahmed Farouk, to the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), accusing him of corruption and financial impropriety.

In the petition submitted on December 16, through his lawyer, Ogwu Onoja (SAN), Dangote demanded the arrest, investigation and prosecution of Ahmed for allegedly living above his means as a public servant.

According to the petition received by the office of the Chairman of the ICPC, Musa Aliyu (SAN), the Dangote Group Chairman specifically accused the NMDPRA boss of spending, without evidence of lawful means, of income amounting to over $7 million for the education of his four children in different schools in Switzerland for a period of six years upfront.

In the petition, Dangote listed the children and their schools in Switzerland including the amount paid for each of them to establish his allegations and verification by the anti-graft agency.

He alleged that Ahmed was using the instrumentality of the NMDPRA to embezzle and divert public funds for self gains and pursuit of private interest to the detriment of the Nigerian people which orchestrated uproar and protest by different groups recently.

Dangote claimed that the NMDPRA boss throughout his lifetime as an adult worked in the public sector in Nigeria and that the totality of his earnings over the years was nothing close to $7 million.

The entreprenuer said the money was allegedly diverted from the public coffers to pay for the education of his teenage children abroad.

‘Act Decisively’

“It is without doubt that the above facts in relation to abuse of office, breach of Code of Conduct for public officers, Corrupt enrichment, embezzlement are gross Act of corrupt practices for which your Commission (ICPC) is statutorily empowered under section 19, of the ICPC Act to investigate and prosecute,” Dangote said.

“Upon a successful prosecution of such a person, under section 19, of the ICPC Act, the person is liable to imprisonment for five years without an option of fine.

“We make bold to state that the ICPC is strategically positioned along the sister agencies to, prosecute financial crimes and other corruption related offences, and upon establishing a prima facie case, the Courts do not hesitate to punish offenders.

“In view of the above, we call on the Commission under your leadership to investigate the complain of abuse of office and corruption against Engr Farouk Ahmed and to accordingly, prosecute him if found wanting.

“We have no reservation that being a matter that is in the public domain, the Commission will not close its eyes to it but act decisively to ensure that justice is done and the good image of the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, is protected.”

Dangote vowed to be on ground to proffer evidence in proof of his allegations of corrupt enrichment, abuse of office, against Ahmed.

‘Nigerians Deserve to Know’

The Kano-born businessman first made the allegations against Ahmed during an interview on Sunday, questioning the latter’s source of wealth.

“I’ve had people actually complaining about a regulator who put his children in secondary school, and that secondary school education, which is six years, four of them cost Nigeria five million dollars,” he said at a press conference at the Dangote Refinery in the Ibekku-Lekki area of Lagos State.

“My children went to secondary school in Nigeria. They did not go outside Nigeria to attend secondary school.”

On Tuesday, Dangote published details of the allegations in a national daily and hours later formally petitioned the NMDPRA chief.

The Dangote Refinery boss said, “Nigerians deserve to know the source(s) of these sums of money paid by a public officer while many parents in his home state of Sokoto cannot afford to pay N10,000 school fees for their children and wards”.

He accused the agency of frustrating efforts to improve local refining especially with the continued issuance of importing licenses.

Reps Wade Into Brawl, NMDPRA Mum

Meanwhile, the House of Representatives are wading into the brawl between Dangote and Ahmed and have summoned both parties.

Its Joint Committees on Petroleum Resources (Downstream and Midstream) have also asked them to stop public comments. The lawmakers said their move is targeted at stopping tensions which can destabilize the country’s downstream petroleum sector.

“We can only find sustainable solutions when we identify the critical issues leading to this tension.

“That is why the committee resolved to write to Alhaji Aliko Dangote and the NMDPRA chief to meet with us and give insights into what is driving these allegations and counter-allegations,” one of the leaders of the committees, Ikenga Ugochinyere, said.

Year-long Dangote–NMDPRA dispute

The brawl between NMDPRA and the industrialist dates back to last year with the commencement of operations at the Dangote Refinery.

In July of that year, Ahmed claimed that products from local refiners, including Dangote Refinery, were of lower quality compared to imported products.

The NMDPRA chief accused Dangote of seeking to monopolise the supply of energy products in Nigeria, claims the refiner refuted.

Lawmakers at the House of Representatives probed the matter and called for Ahmed’s suspension.

In August 2024, NMDPRA insisted that the Dangote Refinery was still in its pre-commissioning stage and had not been given an operational license. (Channels TV, excluding headline)