President and Chief Executive of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, has accused the Managing Director of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, NMDPRA, Farouk Ahmed, of corruption, citing bogus school fees for his children.
Africa’s richest man made the claim on Sunday while speaking at a press conference at the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, where he addressed challenges facing Nigeria’s oil and gas sector as regards his attempt to run a successful refinery.
He said Ahmed reportedly educated four of his children in Switzerland at a cost of about $5 million (7 billion naira) for secondary school alone, raising concerns about whether such expenses align with his known income.
Dangote argued that such payments should attract scrutiny from tax authorities, adding that public officials’ lifestyles must match their declared earnings.
He contrasted the alleged spending with conditions in Ahmed’s home state of Sokoto, where many families struggle to pay school fees as low as N100,000, leaving children out of school.
Dangote called for an investigation into the NMDPRA chief, describing corruption in the oil and gas sector as widespread and more complex than in criminal drug networks.
He also alleged sabotage at the Dangote Refinery, saying the company has lost about $82 million due to stolen items linked to industry corruption.
He made similar allegations for the Port Harcourt refinery which the government has struggled to make function, stating that sabotage was part of the hindrance.
Dangote said his $20 billion refinery investment faces persistent resistance, but insisted he would not abandon the project despite financial losses and pressure from fuel importers.
The businessman has had a longstanding conflict with industry players since operations at his refinery began. It remains to be seen how a peaceful resolution will benefit Nigerians.
Recall the Dangote refinery slashed fuel prices again to N699 naira after initial price slashes across the year.
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Whatever the ES did is according to Govt guidelines and the law! It’s better for him to offend an individual than the whole of Nigeria. Bringing matters of school fees is rather more like blackmail.