The Chief Executive of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Engineer Farouk Ahmed, has resigned from office following recent allegations raised by billionaire industrialist Aliko Dangote.
This was disclosed in a press statement signed by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, on Wednesday evening.
Recall Dockaysworld reported that Dangote accused Ahmed of corruption, claiming he spent about $5 million (₦7 billion) educating four of his children in Switzerland, and called for an investigation into the matter amid concerns over public officials’ lifestyles versus their declared incomes.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has forwarded the names of new chief executives for the NMDPRA and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) to the Senate for confirmation.
The nominations follow the resignation of Ahmed and that of Gbenga Komolafe, Chief Executive of the NUPRC. Both officials were appointed in 2021 under the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari.
In a letter to the Senate, President Tinubu requested expedited confirmation of Engineer Saidu Aliyu Mohammed as the new CEO of the NMDPRA and Oritsemeyiwa Amanorisewo Eyesan as CEO of the NUPRC.
Eyesan is a seasoned oil and gas professional with nearly 33 years’ experience at the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) and its subsidiaries. She most recently served as Executive Vice President, Upstream, before retiring in 2024.
Engineer Mohammed, a Chemical Engineering graduate of Ahmadu Bello University, previously held senior leadership roles at the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company and the Nigerian Gas Company.
He has also served as Group Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer for Gas and Power at NNPC, where he played key roles in major gas infrastructure projects and policy frameworks under the Petroleum Industry Act.
