By Our Reporter
Africa’s richest man and President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has accused the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Farouk Ahmed, of allegedly spending about $5 million on the secondary school education of his four children in Switzerland.
Dangote made the allegation on Sunday during a press briefing at the Dangote Petroleum Refinery in Lekki, Lagos, where he called for a full-scale investigation and a public explanation from the petroleum regulator.
According to Dangote, Ahmed should be made to appear before the Code of Conduct Tribunal to explain how a public servant allegedly funded such an enormous sum for school fees, describing the matter as economic sabotage.
Dangote said the allegation was brought to his attention by concerned individuals and warned that failure to properly address it could further erode public trust and damage investor confidence in Nigeria.
“I’ve actually had people making complaints about a regulator who has actually put his children in secondary school,” Dangote said. “And that secondary school education, which is six years, four of them cost Nigeria $5 million. You cannot imagine somebody paying $5 million for educating four children.”
He questioned how such expenditure could be reconciled with the known income of a public officer, stressing that in normal circumstances such spending would trigger scrutiny from tax and regulatory authorities.
“When you look at his income, his income does not match paying this kind of fee,” he said. “And even if it’s me paying $5 million for six years for my four children, the taxman has to look at my taxes and how much I pay.”
Dangote expressed deep concern over the contrast between the alleged spending and the hardship faced by ordinary Nigerians struggling to pay modest school fees.
“From Sokoto, where he comes from, people are struggling to pay ₦100,000 for school fees. Many children are at home and not going to school because of ₦100,000. I cannot understand why somebody who has worked all his life in government would pay $5 million to educate four children,” he added.
He also disclosed that his own children did not attend secondary schools abroad, noting that they were educated in Nigeria.
“Even my own children didn’t go to those schools. My children attended Nigerian secondary schools. They didn’t go outside Nigeria for secondary education,” Dangote said.
While stressing that he was not calling for Ahmed’s removal, Dangote insisted that the matter must be properly investigated and the official compelled to account for the source of the funds.
“I am not calling for his removal, but for a proper investigation. He should demonstrate that he has not compromised his position to the detriment of Nigerians. What is happening amounts to economic sabotage,” he said.
He added that the Code of Conduct Bureau or any other appropriate government agency should investigate the matter, warning that if Ahmed denies the allegation, he would publish details of the alleged tuition payments and take legal steps to compel the Swiss schools involved to disclose the records.
Dangote also raised broader concerns about the downstream petroleum sector, alleging that powerful interests continue to benefit from fuel imports at the expense of Nigeria’s development.
“There are powerful interests in the oil sector. It is troubling that African countries continue to import refined products despite long-standing calls for value addition and domestic refining. The volume of imports being allowed into the country is unethical and does a disservice to Nigeria,” he said.
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