President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has accused the Chief Executive of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Mr Farouk Ahmed, of allegedly spending about $5 million on secondary school education for 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 investigation and public explanation over the source of the funds.

He urged relevant authorities, including the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal, to probe the matter, describing the alleged expenditure as economic sabotage if left unexplained.

According to Dangote, the cost of educating four children in secondary schools abroad for six years could not be easily reconciled with earnings from public service.

> “I’ve actually had people making complaints about a regulator who has put his children in secondary school. That secondary school education, which is six years, four of them cost Nigeria $5m. You cannot imagine somebody paying $5m for educating four children,” he said.

Dangote stressed that the allegation, if not addressed, would continue to undermine public trust and investor confidence in Nigeria’s regulatory institutions.

He said the alleged spending would ordinarily attract scrutiny from tax authorities, noting that public servants are expected to justify their income and lifestyle.

> “When you look at his income, his income does not match paying this kind of fee. And even if it’s me paying $5m for six years for my four children, the taxman has to look at my taxes and how much I pay,” Dangote stated.

The billionaire industrialist expressed concern over the contrast between the alleged expenditure and the hardship faced by ordinary Nigerians, especially in the area of education.

> “From Sokoto, where he comes from, people are struggling to pay ₦100,000 for school fees. A lot of children are at home because of ₦100,000. I cannot understand why somebody who has worked all his life in government has four children whose school fees he has paid $5m for,” he added.

Dangote also disclosed that his own children did not attend secondary schools abroad.

> “Even my own children did not go to those schools. My children went to a Nigerian secondary school. They didn’t go outside Nigeria to attend secondary school,” he said.

He clarified that he was not calling for Ahmed’s removal but insisted on accountability and transparency.

> “I am not calling for his removal, but for a proper investigation. He should be required to account for his actions and demonstrate that he has not compromised his position to the detriment of Nigerians,” Dangote said.

He warned that if the allegation was denied, he would take further steps to substantiate his claims.

> “If he denies it, I will not only publish what he paid as tuition in those secondary schools, but I will also take legal steps to compel the schools to disclose the payments made by Farouk,” he said.

Dangote further lamented the state of the downstream petroleum sector, alleging that entrenched interests continued to benefit from fuel imports at the expense of national development.

He described the continued importation of refined petroleum products into African countries as unethical, stressing that it undermines value addition and domestic refining.

> “There are powerful interests in the oil sector. It is troubling that African countries continue to import refined products despite long-standing calls for domestic refining. The volume of imports being allowed into the country is unethical and does a disservice to Nigeria,” he added.