By Ayomide Otitoju
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has said it will continue its investigation of a former Managing Director of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Ahmed Farouk, despite the withdrawal of a petition filed against him by billionaire industrialist Aliko Dangote.
The anti-graft agency disclosed that it had received a notice of withdrawal of the petition from Dangote’s legal counsel but stressed that ongoing investigations would not be halted.
In a statement issued by its spokesperson, J. Okor Odey, the commission said it received a letter dated January 5, 2026, titled “Notice of Withdrawal of Petition against Engineer Farouk Ahmed,” submitted by Dr. O.J. Onoja, SAN, on behalf of Dangote.
According to the statement, the letter indicated that the petitioner had withdrawn, in its entirety, the petition dated December 16, 2025, against Farouk, the immediate past Authority Chief Executive/Chief Executive Officer of the NMDPRA, adding that another law enforcement agency had taken over the matter.
However, the ICPC said that in line with Sections 3(14) and 27(3) of its enabling Act, investigations had already commenced and would continue in the interest of transparency, accountability, and the fight against corruption.
“The ICPC wishes to state categorically that investigations in the interest of the Nigerian people and the Nigerian state have already commenced and are presently ongoing,” the statement said.
Dangote, the Chairman of Dangote Group, had in December 2025 petitioned the ICPC, accusing Farouk of corruption and financial impropriety. He had called for the arrest, investigation, and prosecution of the former NMDPRA boss, alleging that he lived far above his means as a public servant.
In the petition addressed to the Chairman of the ICPC, Musa Aliyu (SAN), Dangote alleged that Farouk spent over $7 million, without evidence of lawful income, on the education of his four children in Switzerland over a six-year period. He reportedly provided details of the children, their schools, and the amounts paid to support his claims.
Dangote further alleged that Farouk used his position at the NMDPRA to embezzle and divert public funds for personal benefit, actions he claimed sparked public outrage and protests by various groups. He argued that Farouk’s lifetime earnings as a public servant could not reasonably account for such expenditure.
Farouk, however, denied the allegations, describing them as “wild and spurious.”
The dispute between Dangote and the former NMDPRA chief dates back to July 2024, when Farouk publicly stated that products refined locally, including those from the Dangote Refinery, were inferior to imported petroleum products.
