Group sues Tinubu, others over Dangote’s corruption allegations against MDPRA chief executive

The group filed the suit at the Federal High Court in Abuja before the news of the MDPRA chief executive’s resignation broke on Wednesday.

A civil society group, Rights for All International (RAI), has sued President Bola Tinubu to force him to suspend Farouk Ahmed, the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), over allegations of corruption and living beyond his legitimate means.

The group filed the suit before the Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday, calling for the investigation and prosecution of Mr Ahmed.

PREMIUM TIMES got wind of the suit after news later broke on Wednesday that Mr Ahmed and Gbenga Komolafe, the chief executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), resigned their positions.

President Tinubu has also named their replacements.

The suit followed recent allegations of corruption and abuse of office levelled against Mr Ahmed by Aliko Dangote, president and chief executive of Dangote Industries Limited.

Speaking at a press conference at the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, on Sunday, Mr Dangote accused Mr Ahmed of economic sabotage, which he said was undermining domestic refining in Nigeria.

He accused the leadership of the NMDPRA of colluding with international traders and oil importers to frustrate local refining through the continued issuance of import licences for petroleum products.

Mr Dangote claimed that Mr Ahmed was living beyond his legitimate means, stating that four of his children attend secondary schools in Switzerland at a cost running into several million dollars. He said such expenditure raised serious questions about potential conflict of interest and the integrity of regulatory oversight in the downstream petroleum sector.

On Monday, he expanded his allegations, accusing Mr Ahmed of corruption and misappropriation of public funds, providing detailed figures for his children’s education abroad.

According to him, Mr Ahmed spent about $5 million on secondary education and upkeep over six years, and an additional $2 million on tertiary education, including $210,000 for Faisal Farouk’s 2025 Harvard MBA.

On Tuesday, Mr Dangote submitted a petition through his lawyer, Ogwu Onoja, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), calling for Mr Ahmed’s arrest, investigation, and prosecution for allegedly living above his means as a public officer. ICPC promptly confirmed the receipt of the petition and vowed to investigate the allegations.

Meanwhile, earlier on Wednesday, Mr Ahmed denied the allegations. He said he was thankful that the person behind the allegations had taken it to a formal investigative institution, adding that he believed that would provide an opportunity to dispassionately distil the issues and clear his name.

RAI’s suit

Buoyed by Mr Dangote ‘s allegations, RAI on Wednesday, filed its suit seeking among others, a declaration that Mr Ahmed allegedly acted corruptly, accepted kickbacks, and operated foreign accounts to fund his children’s education beyond his lawful earnings.

The suit filed by the group’s lawyer, Okere Nnamdi, also sought an order compelling President Tinubu to suspend Mr Ahmed immediately.

Alongside Mr Tinubu, others joined as defendants in the suit include the Attorney General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi; Mr Ahmed himself, the NMDPRA, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), and the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB).

The group asked the court to compel the ICPC, EFCC, and the CCB to investigate and prosecute Mr Ahmed without delay for alleged offences, including breach of the public officers’ code of conduct, bribery, and money laundering.

Additionally, the group requested an order of mandamus directing all relevant agencies to act quickly to investigate and hold Mr Ahmed accountable. It also urged the court to issue any other orders it deems appropriate to safeguard public interest and uphold transparency, accountability, and good governance.

The plaintiff relied on Paragraphs 1, 6, and 8 of the Fifth Schedule, Part 1 of the Nigerian constitution and raised the question for the court to determine if Mr Ahmed had not lived beyond his legitimate earnings as a public officer.

It maintained that Mr Ahmed placed his personal interests above his official duties by allegedly accepting cash and in-kind benefits, described as “kickbacks,” from petroleum importers while issuing import licences.

The group also cited Paragraph 3 of the Fifth Schedule, Part 1 of the 1999 Constitution,” in urging the court to determine the question if Mr Ahmed had not “corruptly operated and maintained foreign bank account(s)” to pay his children’s school fees abroad while serving in various public roles, and whether he has, by doing so, violated the code of conduct for public officers.

The group also asked the court to determine whether Mr Ahmed as a public officer for several years, “can afford to pay his children foreign school fees amounting to over seven million US dollars” from his legitimate earnings, and whether he “corruptly enriched himself with taxpayers’ money” while using his position for personal gain.

RAI also asked whether the court does not have the power to direct anti-corruption agencies to investigate and prosecute Mr Ahmed for alleged bribery, corruption, and money laundering.

‘Suit in public interest’

In an affidavit filed sworn by lawyer Samuel Ekeji Ifeanyi and filed in support of the suit ssaid the case is of public interest. It added that it aims to promote the rule of law, accountability, transparency, and good governance. It also said it instituted the suit in public interest.

The document added that Nigerians continue to suffer the effects of the fuel subsidy removal, which it described as “primarily removed because of corruption that marred the subsidy sags.”

The affidavit referred to the petition by Mr Dangote to the ICPC, in which he claimed that Mr Ahmed is living above his legitimate earnings as a public officer. He said Mr Ahmed “paid his children’s school fees abroad, worth over $7 million, using public funds and money obtained through corrupt practices in issuing petroleum import licences.”

It argued that Section 15(5) of the Nigerian prohibits corruption and called on President Tinubu to immediately suspend Mr Farouk pending investigation and prosecution.

The suit has not been assigned to a judge or scheduled for hearing.