Nigeria’s President Bola Ahmed Tinubu (PBAT) has asked the Senate to confirm the nomination of Mr. Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan as Chief Executive Officer of the NUPRC and Mr. Saidu Mohammed as Chief Executive Officer of the NMDPRA, as the faceoff between Alhaji Aliko Dangote, President of Dangote Group and Mr. Farouk Ahmed, Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), deepens.
The nomination of the two candidates followed the president’s meeting with Mr Farouk at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, amid escalating allegations against Alh. Dangote.
Mr Farouk and Mr Komolafe were appointed in 2021 by the late President Muhammadu Buhari to lead the twin regulators established under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
In separate letters to the Senate, Tinubu requested the confirmation of Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan as Chief Executive Officer of the NUPRC and Saidu Mohammed as Chief Executive Officer of the NMDPRA, urging the upper chamber to expedite consideration of the nominations.
Dangote and Farouk have been locked in a public dispute in recent days over Nigeria’s downstream petroleum regulations and the future of domestic refining.
Last Sunday, Alh Dangote accused the NMDPRA of economic sabotage, alleging that regulatory actions were undermining local refining capacity in Nigeria.
While briefing journalists at the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, Alh Dangote claimed that the continued issuance of import licences for petroleum products was frustrating domestic refiners and entrenching dependence on imports.
He further alleged that the NMDPRA was colluding with international traders and oil importers to the detriment of local operators, a charge the regulator has yet to address publicly.
Africa’s richest man also raised personal allegations against the NMDPRA chief, claiming that Mr Farouk was living beyond his legitimate means.
According to Alh Dangote, four of Mr Farouk’s children attend secondary schools in Switzerland at a cost running into millions of dollars, arguing that such expenditure raises questions about potential conflicts of interest and the integrity of regulatory oversight in the downstream petroleum sector.
He claimed that about $5 million was spent on secondary education and upkeep over six years, with an additional $2 million on tertiary education, including an alleged $210,000 for a 2025 Harvard MBA programme for one of his children.
The controversy deepened on Tuesday when Dangote, through his lawyer, Ogwu Onoja (SAN), submitted a petition to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), calling for the arrest, investigation, and prosecution of Ahmed.
Alh Dangote’s petition, addressed to ICPC Chairman, Musa Aliyu, alleged that Ahmed “spent without evidence of lawful means of income amounting to over $7 million for the education of his four children” in Switzerland, and reportedly included the names of the children, the schools attended and specific figures for verification.
