The Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Farouk Ahmed, has resigned from office, barely 24 hours after corruption allegations were made against him by President and Chief Executive of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote.
Also stepping down is the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Gbenga Komolafe.
The resignations were confirmed on Wednesday by the President’s spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, who disclosed that President Bola Tinubu has already forwarded the names of their proposed replacements to the Senate for confirmation.
According to Onanuga, the President has requested the Senate’s expedited approval of Oritsemeyiwa Amanorisewo Eyesan as the new Chief Executive Officer of the NUPRC, and Engineer Saidu Aliyu Mohammed as the new Chief Executive Officer of the NMDPRA.
“To fill these positions, President Tinubu has written to the Senate, requesting expedited confirmation of Oritsemeyiwa Amanorisewo Eyesan as CEO of NUPRC and Engineer Saidu Aliyu Mohammed as CEO of NMDPRA,” the statement read.
Onanuga described the nominees as seasoned professionals with extensive experience in the oil and gas industry.
The development comes amid heightened public scrutiny of Nigeria’s petroleum sector following Dangote’s recent allegations against regulatory authorities, which have sparked widespread debate within the industry.