How Dangote Rebuffed Sultan, Northern Elders’ Mediation In Farouk Rift

Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest man and chairman of Dangote Refinery, rebuffed efforts by the Sultan of Sokoto and other northern elders to mediate his dispute with the former Authority Chief Executive of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Farouk Ahmed.

A source familiar with the matter told THE WHISTLER that the Sultan, Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar III, had intervened in the crisis and urged both men to “sheath their swords” in the interest of the north’s unity.

The source said Dangote not only rejected the mediation but also deliberately made himself unreachable to prevent further appeals.

“Dangote rebuffed all attempts by northern elders to intervene in the matter and stop him from destroying Farouk,” the source disclosed.

“He deliberately diverted his phone calls so that none of the respected northern elders could reach him.

“Apparently, after the Sultan spoke to him about it, he started diverting the Sultan’s calls. Once the initial intervention happened, Dangote shut the door completely. Nobody could tell him anything again,” the source added.

Both Dangote and Ahmed are prominent northerners from Kano and Sokoto States, respectively. Their rift dates back to July 2024, when Ahmed described products from Dangote Refinery as inferior. The NMDPRA ex-boss publicly claimed that Dangote’s petrol had higher sulphur content than imported fuels.

The comment angered Dangote who accused the regulator of undermining local refining.

At the peak of their rift last week, Dangote accused the NMDPRA of issuing “reckless” import licences despite his refinery having sufficient capacity and storage.

Dangote accused Ahmed of approving licences for the importation of about 7.5 billion litres of petroleum products for the first quarter of 2026. He also alleged plans by the regulator to approve about N250bn in payouts to oil marketers.

He claimed that such approvals sabotaged domestic refining, weakened energy security and entrenched dependence on imports.

Ahmed, on his part, insisted that Nigeria could not rely on a single refinery. He had previously argued that the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) of 2021 empowers the NMDPRA to issue licences to refiners or producers of crude oil who meet the requirements.

During a briefing at the Dangote Refinery on December 15, Dangote took the matter personal when he alleged that Ahmed paid about $5m for his four children’s six-year secondary education in Switzerland.

On December 16, the billionaire petitioned the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to investigate the former NMDPRA boss.

But Ahmed dismissed the allegations as “wild and spurious” and pledged to submit himself for formal investigation rather than engage in public exchanges.

The standoff eventually led to Ahmed’s resignation on December 17 following a meeting with President Bola Tinubu.

The State House announced that President Tinubu forwarded the names of Engineer Saidu Aliyu Mohammed as the new CEO of the NMDPRA and Oritsemeyiwa Amanorisewo Eyesan as CEO of the NUPRC to the Senate for confirmation.