Taiwo Popoola
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Aliko Dangote, president of Dangote Refinery and chairman of Dangote Group, has released details of the alleged foreign education tuition allegation against the chief executive officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, Farouk Ahmed.In a document circulating publicly on Tuesday and personally signed by Dangote, the billionaire investor, it was stressed that Ahmed spent $5 million on the secondary and tertiary education of his four children abroad, particularly in Switzerland and the United States.This comes barely 24 hours after Dangote called for the probe of Ahmed for allegedly living above his income.According to the now viral document, Dangote alleged that Ahmed’s children are said to have attended some of the world’s most expensive schools, including Montreux School, Aiglon College, Institut Le Rosey, and La Garenne International School, each reportedly spending about six years at their respective institutions.The breakdown provided in the document estimates annual tuition, upkeep, air travel, and living expenses at about $200,000 per child, amounting to $800,000 annually for four children. Accordingly, over six years, the total cost was estimated at $4.8 million, with the overall secondary education expenses put at approximately $5 million.Dangote’s document further alleged that one of Ahmed’s children, identified as Faisal Farouk, recently completed an MBA program at Harvard University, with tuition reportedly costing $150,000, alongside an additional $60,000 for upkeep and other expenses, bringing the total to about $210,000 in 2025.As of the time of filing this report, Engr. Farouk Ahmed has not publicly responded to the allegations, and no official statement has been issued by the NMDPRA. However, earlier, when the claim surfaced months ago, the regulator had dismissed it as false.coalition of civil society organisations under Lawyers in Defence of Good Governance, who first made the allegation against Ahmed, had retracted their claim, describing it as misinformation.The House Committee on Petroleum Resources and Downstream had earlier called for both Dangote and Ahmed to cease further public attacks.
