Dangote Petitions EFCC to Probe Former NMDPRA Boss Over Alleged Corruption
By Patience Ikpeme
The Chairman of Dangote Industries Limited (DIL), Aliko Dangote, has filed a formal petition with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) against the former Managing Director of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Engr. Farouk Ahmed.
The petition, submitted at the EFCC headquarters by Lead Counsel Dr. O.J. Onoja, SAN, follows the withdrawal of a similar complaint from the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
According to the legal team, the shift to the EFCC is a strategic move intended to accelerate the investigative and prosecutorial process.
In the document, Dangote called for a thorough investigation into allegations of abuse of office and corrupt enrichment against the former regulator. The petition argues that the anti-graft agency is the most appropriate body to handle the matter.
“We make bold to state that the commission is strategically positioned along with sister agencies to prosecute financial crimes and corruption related offences, and upon establishing a prima facie case, the courts do not hesitate to punish offenders,”
Dr. Onoja stated, citing judicial precedents such as Lawan v. F.R.N (2024) and Shema v. F.R.N. (2018).
The petition further urged the commission’s leadership, under Mr. Olanipekun Olukoyede, to act swiftly. “The commission’s firm resolve in handling this matter with dispatch is not only imperative and expedient but will also serve as a deterrent to other public officers out there with such corrupt proneness and tendencies,” the document added.
This legal escalation follows concerns first raised by Dangote on December 14, 2025, regarding Mr. Ahmed’s financial lifestyle. The industrialist alleged that the former regulator’s expenditures are inconsistent with his legitimate earnings as a public official.
Central to these claims are the costs associated with the education of Mr. Ahmed’s four children—Faisal, Farouk Jr., Ashraf, and Farhana—who attended elite Swiss institutions including Montreux School, Aiglon College, Institut Le Rosey, and La Garenne International School. Dangote estimated that the tuition, travel, and upkeep for the children totaled approximately $5 million for their secondary education alone, with an additional $2 million spent on tertiary studies.
“Nigerians deserve to know the source of these funds, especially when many parents in Mr. Ahmed’s home state of Sokoto struggle to pay as little as N10,000 in school fees,” Dangote stated.
The petition concludes by calling for a comprehensive probe to restore public confidence in the integrity of the regulatory oversight within Nigeria’s downstream petroleum industry.
