Dangote expands allegation against NMDPRA’s chief executive

President and Chief Executive of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, has expanded his allegations against the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Farouk Ahmed, accusing him of spending millions of dollars on his children’s foreign education.

On Sunday, Mr Dangote accused Mr Ahmed of economic sabotage, which he said is undermining domestic refining in Nigeria.

Speaking at a press conference at the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, he accused the leadership of the NMDPRA of colluding with international traders and oil importers to frustrate local refining through the continued issuance of import licences for petroleum products.

Mr Dangote claimed that Mr Ahmed was living beyond his legitimate means, claiming that four of his children attend secondary schools in Switzerland at costs running into several million of dollars. He said such expenditure raised serious questions about potential conflict of interest and the integrity of regulatory oversight in the downstream petroleum sector.

In a statement signed on Monday, Mr Dangote further alleged that Mr Ahmed spent over five million dollars in tuition fees for his children’s secondary education in Switzerland.

Mr Dangote listed the children and their schools to include Faisal Farouk, Montreux School; Farouk Jr., Aiglon College; Ashraf Farouk, Institute Le Rosey; and Farhana Farouk, La Garenne International School. He noted that the four children spent 6 years each in the school.

According to him, the estimated secondary education, the annual tuition, air tickets, and upkeep per child cost $200,000, totaling $800,000 for four children. He added that the total living expenses per child for 6 years is estimated at $1,200,000, amounting to $4,800,000 for four children.

“The approximate total fees for tuition and upkeep is $5,000,000,” he claimed.

Additionally, Mr Dangote alleged that Mr Ahmed spent $2,000,000 on tertiary education for four years for his four children, adding that $210,000 was spent on Faisal’s 2025 Harvard MBA.

“Tuition, upkeep, air tickets and other expenses for tertiary education is approximately $125,000 per annum by 4 years $500,000 x 4 children = $2,000,000. Faisal just finished the 2025 Harvard MBA at $150,000 and $60,000 for upkeep, tickets and other incidentals. Total = $210,000 spent in 2025 for Faisal’s MBA.”

Mr Dangote questioned the source of these funds, citing economic hardship in Mr Ahmed’s home state, where many parents struggle to pay N10,000 school fees.

“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 added.

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Mr Ahmed could not be reached as of the time of filing this report Monday night.

Earlier, the House of Representatives‘ Joint Committees on Petroleum Resources (Downstream and Midstream) summoned both parties and directed an immediate halt to public altercations.

The committees said the intervention was aimed at preventing an escalation of tensions capable of destabilising Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector, which they noted had only recently begun to experience relative stability.