Coalition demands NMDPRA CEO sack for alleged Dangote Refinery sabotage

Coalition of unemployed youths have demanded the immediate sack of the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, Mr. Farouk Ahmed, over his role in the alleged sabotage of the Dangote Refinery.

The youths, led by Amb Solomon Adodo at a press conference on Thursday in Abuja, wondered why the NMDPRA boss allegedly went out of his way to demarket the products of Dangote Refinery.

The group accused Ahmed of working in cahoots with a powerful and unpatriotic oil and gas cartel that has consistently thwarted attempts to end the corrupt business of petroleum product importation and the associated racketeering.

The group noted: “We are leading this struggle on behalf of the unemployed, who are the most directly endangered by this sinister enterprise. The NMDPRA has demonstrated its disdain for the establishment of local production.

“In doing so, it has overstepped its regulatory bounds, going as far as to undermine the products of Dangote Refinery. This is a blatant act of national economic sabotage that must be defeated. And this is why his immediate sack and investigation have become inevitable. Mr President should act as a matter of urgency.

“In fact, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu must be compelled, through this struggle, to take a stand—either with the people or with these monstrous cartels. We cannot allow a Nigerian investment of over $2 billion to be frustrated while millions of Nigerians are jobless and investors increasingly avoid our nation.

“For clarity, we are not against importation. However, importers must compete with local producers. The idea of frustrating local refineries to allow import cartels to strangle the country cannot continue.

“It is also shocking that after disparaging the capacity and quality of Dangote’s petroleum products, Mr. Ahmed admitted that they have been exporting AGO and DPK, which he claims (without any prior report of pre-shipment inspection) to be inferior. The countries that received these products have not complained.

“It is, therefore, a disgrace that our own regulatory authority’s head is the one making these accusations.
Nigerians should be aware that Farouk Ahmed has been entrenched in the oil industry for a long time. He is part of every instance of corruption that plagued the NNPC.”

The group noted that the Dangote Group, under the visionary leadership of Aliko Dangote, has continually set benchmarks for economic and industrial growth in Nigeria and Africa. Adding with diversified interests spanning cement, sugar, salt, and pasta production, the Group has significantly contributed to job creation, infrastructure development, and national revenue generation.