By Solanke Ayomideji Taiwo
Abuja, December 16, 2025 — The Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Engr. Farouk Ahmed, has issued a detailed public response to allegations surrounding the financing of his children’s education, describing the claims as “misleading in substance and opportunistic in timing.”
In a statement released on Monday, Ahmed said the accusations — widely circulated on social media and some online platforms — falsely suggested that he expended up to $5 million on Swiss secondary education for his children, an amount critics argue is incompatible with his official income.
“I welcome scrutiny,” Ahmed said, “but allegations must be grounded in facts, not conjecture. Integrity in public service demands transparency, and I have nothing to hide.”
Three Decades in Public Service
Ahmed traced his professional journey back to 1991, when he joined Nigeria’s petroleum regulatory system through the competitive civil service process. Rejecting claims of political patronage, he emphasized that his rise through the ranks was driven by technical competence and performance.
Over the years, he served in key operational units, including crude oil marketing, gas supply monitoring, and downstream operations — areas he described as demanding “engineering precision rather than political convenience.”
By 2012, Ahmed had become General Manager of the Crude Oil Marketing Division, overseeing Nigeria’s primary revenue stream during a period of extreme volatility in global oil prices. He later assumed the role of Deputy Director in 2015, managing downstream regulation at a time marked by fuel scarcity and pricing disputes.
“These were years when taking principled positions often meant confronting entrenched interests,” he said.
Implementing Reform Under the PIA
Ahmed said his appointment in 2021 as Chief Executive of the NMDPRA came with a clear mandate: to implement the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) reforms transparently and without favoritism.
“Reforming a sector long characterized by opacity and regulatory capture was never going to be comfortable,” he stated. “It was bound to upset those who benefited from the old order.”
According to him, the recent allegations must be viewed against the backdrop of resistance to reform in the petroleum sector.
The Education Allegation: Breaking Down the Facts
Addressing the core of the controversy, Ahmed dismissed the $5 million figure as “grossly inaccurate.”
He explained that three of his four children received merit-based scholarships covering between 40 and 65 percent of tuition costs, documentation for which he said is available to any authorized investigative body.
Additional funding, he noted, came from education trust funds established by his late father, a Northern Nigerian businessman who, before his death in 2018, made provisions for his grandchildren’s education — a practice Ahmed described as consistent with cultural norms of extended family responsibility.
“When scholarships, family support, and my personal savings accumulated over more than 30 years of service are properly considered, the narrative of financial impropriety collapses,” he said.
Income, Assets, and Accountability
Ahmed disclosed that his annual compensation as NMDPRA CEO, including allowances, stands at approximately ₦48 million, a figure he said is reflected in publicly available, audited reports.
He added that this income, combined with long-term savings, cooperative investment schemes accessible to civil servants, and family resources, adequately covered his personal contribution to his children’s education.
“I have submitted asset declarations to the Code of Conduct Bureau every year since I entered public service,” Ahmed stated. “Every major income source and expenditure is documented and open to scrutiny.”
