You must appear in person – ICPC rejects Dangote’s request to send a representative in corruption petition

You must appear in person – ICPC rejects Dangote’s request to send a representative in corruption petition

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has insisted that Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, must personally appear before the agency to formally adopt his petition alleging corruption against a former top petroleum regulator.
Dangote had petitioned the anti-graft body over alleged fraudulent conduct by the former Chief Executive of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Alhaji Farouk Ahmed.
However, the commission maintained that criminal complaints cannot be handled through proxy representation, stressing that the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000, requires the direct involvement of the complainant.
Consequently, the ICPC directed Dangote to present himself at its headquarters on December 29 to validate his allegations.
This position was communicated in a letter dated December 24 and addressed to Dangote’s counsel, Dr. Ogwu Onoja (SAN), after the lawyer had appeared at the commission on December 22 to adopt the petition on his client’s behalf.
In the letter signed by the Chief of Staff to the ICPC Chairman, Rouqayya Ibrahim, the commission made it clear that Dangote’s personal appearance was unavoidable.

The correspondence, exclusively obtained by The Nation, stated in part:
“The commission acknowledges the appearance of your good self…, wherein you adopted the petition in respect of the allegations made against Engr. Farouk Ahmed on behalf of your client, Alhaji Aliko Dangote.
“While the commission appreciates your representation, we are constrained to draw your attention to the fact that the matter under investigation is criminal in nature, being conducted pursuant to the provisions of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.
“As you are aware, criminal investigations may culminate in criminal proceedings before a court of competent jurisdiction.
“In such circumstances, the statement and personal adoption of the petition by the complainant may be required to be tendered in court as part of the evidentiary process.
“It is therefore essential, for purposes of procedural integrity and admissibility, that Alhaji Aliko Dangote personally adopts his petition before the commission.
“Accordingly, we respectfully request that you kindly facilitate the appearance of Alhaji Aliko Dangote at the Commission’s Headquarters on 29th December 2025 at 10am, for the purpose of formally adopting his petition. Thank you for your anticipated cooperation.”
In his petition, Dangote accused Ahmed of allegedly expending more than $7 million in public funds to pay for the education of his four children at prestigious schools in Switzerland, with tuition reportedly settled upfront for as long as six years.
The petition comes against the backdrop of a long-running dispute between Dangote and the petroleum regulator, which had earlier culminated in a N100 billion lawsuit.
Specifically, Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals FZE had approached the Federal High Court in Abuja to challenge import licences issued by the NMDPRA and other agencies, including the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL).
The refinery argued that the regulator erred by approving licences for the importation of refined petroleum products despite existing domestic refining capacity. It further claimed that the approvals breached provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act.
The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1324/2024, was later withdrawn in July after Dangote’s legal team discontinued the action.
Meanwhile, the ICPC reaffirmed its stance that anyone with reasonable grounds can petition the commission over suspected corruption, in line with its established guidelines, which state:
“Any person anywhere in the world may make a complaint against any other person (corporate or non-corporate) in Nigeria, where reasonable grounds exist for suspecting that such a person has conspired to commit or attempted to commit or has committed an offence under the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act 2000.”