The President of the Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote has again levelled allegation of fraudulent practice against the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, Farouk Ahmed.
Aliko had earlier in July disclosed that the NMDPRA CEO allegey paid $5m, approximately N7.2bn as his children’s school fees in secondary school in Switzerland.
The African richest man then said by reason of Ahmed’s position as a government official with an emoluments not commensurate with such spending he should be investigated for corruptly enriching himself.
He made this charge again on Sunday during a press briefing at the Dangote Petroleum Refinery in Lekki, Lagos saying, “I’ve actually had people making complaints about a regulator who has actually put his children in secondary school.
“And that secondary school education, which is six years, four of them cost Nigeria $5m. I mean, you cannot imagine somebody paying $5m for educating four children.”
Dangote continued: “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.
“Even my own children, they didn’t go to those schools. My children went to a Nigerian secondary school. They didn’t go outside Nigeria to attend secondary school.
“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. What is happening amounts to economic sabotage.
“The Code of Conduct Bureau, or any other body deemed appropriate by the government, can investigate the matter. 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.
“From Sokoto, where he comes from, people are struggling to pay N100,000 for school fees. A lot of children are at home, not going to school, because of N100,000. I cannot understand why somebody who has worked all his life in government, and he has four children whose school fees he has paid $5m for.”
The allegation which NMDPRA boss back in July denied stemmed from conflict of interests between both parties.
