Disagreement between Dangote, NMDPRA boss not ordinary, FG must probe bribery says Adeyanju

Human Right Lawyer and Activist, Barrister Deji Adeyanju has urged the Federal Government to conduct a holistic investigation into the ongoing dispute between Aliko Dangote and the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Farouk Ahmed to examine not only allegations against the regulator, but also whether bribes were offered and refused.

Adeyanju who offered this advise on Wednesday in Abuja regretted that the development raises questions about the integrity of the Oil Sector in Nigeria, insisting that the disagreement between both parties is not sudden.”I must state again that the disagreement between these two men is not sudden. They have been engaged in a running battle for some time, and at this point, the Federal Government ought to conduct a holistic investigation into the entire controversy to examine not only allegations against the regulator, but also whether bribes were offered and refused.”

He called on all the anti-corruption agencies in Nigeria to urgently investigate the allegation that the CEO of the NMDPRA, Farouk Ahmed, allegedly expended approximately $5,000,000 on his children’s secondary school education in Switzerland. “If true, there is no credible explanation as to how such an expense could be lawfully sustained on earnings from public service. “I must quickly point out that the controversy before us is not evidence that Aliko Dangote has suddenly become a social crusader who is acting in the interest of the nation.

“This dispute is about market control and monopoly. Dangote’s real grievance is not regulation per se, but regulation that prevents him from dominating the oil sector he has only recently entered. “The Federal Government must therefore resist the temptation to collapse state authority under the weight of public sentiment or economic blackmail. The government must stand firmly behind its regulators, provided they act within the law.”

Nigeria’s petroleum sector is governed by the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), which was deliberately designed to promote a willing buyer–willing seller regime and a competitive free market, not private sector absolutism. “Dangote’s posture, unfortunately, appears hostile to this. If Dangote genuinely desires that the importation of fuel should reduce and expects Nigerians to patronize locally refined products, he should lower his prices.

“It makes no sense that petroleum products refined in Ibeju-Lekki are more expensive than fuel imported from as far away as Argentina or Brazil! It is even more concerning, although contestable, that multiple users have alleged that his petroleum products are sub-standard. “No one compelled Dangote to build a single-line refinery of this scale. Investment decisions carry risk, and the burden of those risks cannot be transferred to Nigerians through higher prices or reduced choice simply because investors must be paid. Patriotism does not mean Nigerians should buy less and pay more for products produced locally.”