Dangote demands probe of NMDPRA CE, Farouk Ahmed
Orisemeke Benjamin
The President and Chief Executive Officer of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, has called for an investigation and prosecution of the management of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) for economic sabotage.
At a press conference at the Dangote Petroleum Refinery Sunday, in Lagos, Dangote accused the NMDPRA of colluding with international traders and oil importers to frustrate local refining through the continued issuance of licences for importation of petroleum products.
He alleged that the Chief Executive of the NMDPRA of living beyond his legitimate means, claiming that he has four children attending secondary schools in Switzerland where he paid $5 million.
“How does a public servant earning a government salary afford such fees?”
He said such expenditure raised serious questions about potential conflicts of interest and the integrity of regulatory oversight in the downstream petroleum sector.
The Dangote Group chairman assured Nigerians that the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) would fall further, stating that petrol would sell at no more than N740 per litre from Tuesday, beginning in Lagos, because of his refinery’s reduction of gantry price to N699 per litre. He said MRS filling stations would be the first to reflect the new pricing.
Expressing concern over the state of the downstream sector, Dangote said Nigeria’s continued reliance on fuel imports was harming local production and discouraging investment in domestic refining. He disclosed that import licences covering approximately 7.5 billion litres of PMS had reportedly been issued for the first quarter of 2026, despite the availability of significant domestic refining capacity.
“In the last two months, billions of liters have been imported into Nigeria. It’s Nigeria that is losing, not me, Dangote,” he said.
“I live a simple life and actually don’t need the money. If it was about being rich, I would have invested in Google and Microsoft.
“I would have been richer. Maybe today people might not appreciate us, but maybe in the next 50 years, when we are not around, people will remember what we have done.”
“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 added.
He described the downstream petroleum sector as being under severe strain, alleging the presence of entrenched interests that profit from fuel imports at the expense of national development.
