Category: News

Africa’s richest man and Dangote Group chairman, Dr. Aliko Dangote, has formally asked the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to investigate the Managing Director of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Farouk Ahmed, over allegations of corruption and abuse of office. The petition, filed on Tuesday through Dangote’s lawyers led by Dr. Ogwu James Onoja, SAN, calls for Ahmed’s arrest and prosecution, accusing him of maintaining a lifestyle allegedly incompatible with his earnings as a career public servant. Central to the petition is an allegation that Ahmed paid more than $7 million in tuition fees for four of his children enrolled in schools in Switzerland, with payments said to cover six years of education upfront. Dangote reportedly submitted the names of the children and the institutions involved to support the request for an investigation. Dangote argued that such expenditures could not reasonably be explained by Ahmed’s official income, noting that the NMDPRA boss has spent his entire working life in the public sector. He further alleged that public funds were diverted through the regulatory authority to finance these expenses, amounting to a misuse of resources meant for the Nigerian people. “It is without doubt that the above facts in relation to abuse of office, breach of Code of Conduct for public officers, corrupt enrichment, and embezzlement are gross acts of corrupt practices for which your Commission (ICPC) is statutorily empowered under section 19 of the ICPC Act to investigate and prosecute,” Dangote stated in the petition. He also pointed out that the law provides severe penalties for such offences, adding that conviction attracts a five-year prison sentence without the option of a fine. Urging the ICPC to act swiftly, Dangote stressed the commission’s responsibility to confront corruption decisively and preserve confidence in public institutions. “We make bold to state that the ICPC is strategically positioned, along with 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,” the petition read. Dangote also indicated his willingness to personally appear before the commission to back up his claims with evidence if required, while emphasising that accountability in public office is essential to the credibility of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration. Meanwhile, the allegations have drawn sharp opposition from a group of legal practitioners. A coalition of 40 lawyers under the banner of Lawyers in Defence of Democracy and Anti-Corruption rejected the claims, describing them as frivolous and without merit. At a press conference in Abuja on Tuesday, the lawyers warned against what they described as a trial by media, arguing that portraying Ahmed as corrupt without due process undermines democratic values, the rule of law, and investor confidence in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector. The group’s position was presented in a statement jointly addressed and signed by its National Coordinator, Barrister Emeka Okafor, and Secretary, Barrister Mohammed Bello, on behalf of the 40 lawyers.