NMDPRA CEO Farouk Ahmed Resigns After Meeting With Tinubu

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has received the resignation of Farouk Ahmed as chief executive officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority following a meeting at the Presidential Villa in Abuja amid mounting controversy surrounding the regulator’s leadership.

Farouk Ahmed stepped down on Wednesday after being summoned by Tinubu, a development confirmed by the Presidency’s spokesman, Bayo Onanuga.

The resignation came amid public allegations of corruption and economic sabotage levelled against Ahmed by industrialist Aliko Dangote, who had accused the NMDPRA boss of actions that undermined local refining capacity and called for formal investigation by anti-graft authorities. Prior to the resignation, Ahmed had met with Tinubu against the backdrop of those allegations, which had intensified scrutiny of regulatory oversight in the downstream petroleum sector.

Onanuga also disclosed that the president had taken steps to address leadership gaps created by the development, noting that nominations for replacement positions had been forwarded to the National Assembly for consideration.

He stated, “President Tinubu forwarded the nomination of Saidu Aliyu Mohammed as the new CEO of the NMDPRA and Oritsemeyiwa Amanorisewo Eyesan as the new head of the NUPRC, describing both nominees as experienced professionals in the oil and gas industry.”