THE chairman of Dangote Industries Limited (DIL), Aliko Dangote, has accused the Managing Director of the Midstream Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Farouk Ahmed, of corruption.
The billionaire businessman has also called for the NMDPRA boss’ probe by anti-graft agencies.
Dangote, during a press briefing on Sunday, December 14, alleged that Ahmed paid $5 million to Swiss secondary schools for his children.
Dangote said Ahmed paid the said amount for four of his children, covering a period of six years.
Although the Africa richest man did not mention the name of the Swiss schools, he said the NMDPRA’s CEO was living above his means. He challenged the Federal Government to investigate his claim.
He argued that such expenditure raised serious questions about potential conflicts of interest and the integrity of regulatory oversight in the downstream petroleum sector.
Cartels in downstream sector frustrating my refinery business
Similarly, Dangote raised concerns over alleged sabotage in Nigeria’s downstream oil sector.
He recounted multiple ‘sabotage’ incidents at both his facility and public refineries.
He also lamented that organised cartels pose a “bigger threat than drug mafias.”
He cited examples at his refinery in Lekki, including the removal of spare parts from a 400-ton boiler, which he described as the largest ever built.
“If I tell you the sabotages that we went through, including some of the machine manufacturers that were on the verge of going to court, you will know what I’m saying.
“Drug mafias are actually smaller than the people who are in oil and gas. They have robbed so many people in this sector,” he added.
The Kano-born sexagenarian also highlighted the destruction of pipeline infrastructure across the country.
He alleged that depots from Kano to other states had been deliberately sabotaged, not damaged by natural causes.
“You are talking about sabotage, and I’m happy that you are also here in Nigeria. I don’t know if Mele Kyari [former NNPCL GCEO] is still in town, but I think you should go to his house in Maitama and ask him how many sabotages the Port Harcourt refinery repairs went through.
“He told me many times that they have had more than 100 sabotages at the refinery. You can ask him, and he will tell you. Why is it that, for example, all the pipelines built from the military base to date are no longer functioning?
“The one that we have, which is from where I am from, Kano, that depot, we were not using trucks. The depots were only loading the trucks. Everything was piped up to that. 22 depots were built. They are all piped, all 22 depots.
“Actually, even the sediments don’t have it anymore. They have destroyed the pipes, all of them. So, if it is not sabotage, is that an earthquake? It’s not an earthquake, it’s sabotage. Sabotage is sabotage. So, that is what it is,” Dangote stated.
The ICIR reports that Dangote’s dominance as a market leader had exposed poor management and redundancy of Nigerian refineries.
The pioneer chairman of ECOWAS Business Council had on several occasions faced attacks by the petroleum major oil marketers over price war, which has also raised eyebrows whenever he slashes prices or raises questions over his staff’s membership allegiance to the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN)
Dangote on Sunday also announced that petrol would be sold for N739 per litre in many filling stations across the nation.
Harrison Edeh is a journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting, always determined to drive advocacy for good governance through holding public officials and businesses accountable.