Aliko Dangote, Chairman of the Dangote Group and one of Africa's most prominent industrialists, has publicly accused Farouk Ahmed, the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), of financial misconduct.
The accusation, released via a detailed paid advertisement in Nigerian newspapers this Tuesday, centres on the alleged expenditure of approximately $5 million on the secondary school education of Ahmed’s four children in exclusive Swiss institutions over a six-year period.
Dangote labelled the spending as "economic sabotage and corruption," challenging the regulatory chief to account for the source of the vast funds given his status as a public servant.
The advertisement, placed by the Dangote Group, outlined granular details regarding the educational costs for the four children: Faisal Farouk, Farouk Jr., Ashraf Farouk, and Farhana Farouk.
The children were named as having attended prestigious schools, including Montreux School, Aiglon College, Institut Le Rosey, and La Garenne International School.
The advertisement meticulously calculated the combined cost of tuition, living expenses, and airfare for the four children at approximately $800,000 annually, estimating about $200,000 for each child.
The claims did not stop at secondary education. The advert further alleged that the costs for the children’s subsequent tertiary education averaged $125,000 per year over four years, culminating in an estimated $2 million.
Specifically, the advert claimed that Faisal Farouk completed his 2025 Harvard Master of Business Administration (MBA) for a total cost of $210,000, comprising $150,000 for tuition and $60,000 for upkeep and other incidentals.
Beyond the sheer numbers, Dangote explicitly introduced a moral dimension to the controversy. The businessman argued that the public deserved to know the source of the public officer’s wealth, especially when countless parents in Ahmed’s home state of Sokoto cannot afford to pay school fees as low as N10,000 for their children.
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), led by CEO Farouk Ahmed, is the vital regulatory body responsible for overseeing the technical and commercial aspects of Nigeria’s oil and gas sectors from the point of refining, processing, and storage, down to distribution and marketing.
Established under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) of 2021, the authority plays a crucial role in the domestic oil market.
Aliko Dangote, through his newly commissioned Dangote Refinery, is now a major private-sector player in the midstream sector, meaning his business operations are directly affected by the policies and oversight of the NMDPRA.
