Dangote petitions ICPC against MD Federal Agency, over alleged corrupt practices

Dangote petitions ICPC against MD Federal Agency, over alleged corrupt practices

Aliko Dangote, Chairman of Dangote Group, has filed a formal petition against Ahmed Farouk, Managing Director of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), with the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), alleging corruption and financial misconduct.

The petition, submitted on December 16, calls for the arrest, investigation, and prosecution of Farouk over claims that he lived beyond his means while serving as a public official.

According to the petition, received by the office of ICPC Chairman Musa Adamu Aliyu (SAN), Dangote accused Farouk of spending over $7 million on the education of his four children in Swiss schools over six years without any verifiable lawful income.

The petition included the names of the children, the schools they attended, and the amounts allegedly paid for each to enable the anti-graft agency to verify the claims.

Dangote further alleged that Farouk exploited his position at NMDPRA to divert public funds for personal benefit, a practice he said had sparked public protests and outrage.

The entrepreneur emphasised that, given Farouk’s entire career in the Nigerian public sector, his legitimate earnings could not reasonably account for the expenditure, which he claims was siphoned from public coffers to finance the education of his children abroad.

“It is without doubt that the above facts in relation to abuse of office, breach of Code of Conduct for public officers, Corrupt enrichment, embezzlement are gross Act of corrupt practices for which your Commission (ICPC) is statutorily empowered under section 19, of the ICPC Act to investigate and prosecute,” Dangote said.

“Upon a successful prosecution of such a person, under section 19, of the ICPC Act, the person is liable to imprisonment for five years without an option of fine.
“We make bold to state that the ICPC is strategically positioned along the 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.

“In view of the above, we call on the Commission under your leadership to investigate the complain of abuse of office and corruption against Engr Farouk Ahmed and to accordingly, prosecute him if found wanting.

“We have no reservation that being a matter that is in the public domain, the Commission will not close its eyes to it but act decisively to ensure that justice is done and the good image of the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, is protected.”

Dangote vowed to be on ground to proffer evidence in proof of his allegations of corrupt enrichment, abuse of office, against Ahmed.

The Kano-born businessman first made the allegations against Ahmed during an interview on Sunday, questioning the latter’s source of wealth.

“I’ve had people actually complaining about a regulator who put his children in secondary school, and that secondary school education, which is six years, four of them cost Nigeria five million dollars,” he said at a press conference at the Dangote Refinery in the Ibekku-Lekki area of Lagos State.

“My children went to secondary school in Nigeria. They did not go outside Nigeria to attend secondary school.”

“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 alleged that the agency has hindered efforts to boost local refining by continuing to issue import licenses.

Meanwhile, the House of Representatives has stepped into the dispute between Dangote and Ahmed, summoning both parties to appear before it. The House’s Joint Committees on Petroleum Resources (Downstream and Midstream) have also instructed them to refrain from making public statements.

Lawmakers said the directive aims to prevent tensions that could destabilise Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector.

As of this report, neither Ahmed nor the NMDPRA has issued any response to Dangote’s allegations.