Farouk Ahmed has resigned as the Managing Director of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) amid corruption allegations levelled against him by the Chairman of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote.
The development was disclosed on Wednesday by the Presidential spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, who also confirmed that Gbenga Komolafe has stepped down from his position as Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC).
Onanuga said President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has forwarded the names of two nominees to the Senate for confirmation as replacements for the outgoing officials. The President requested the lawmakers to expedite the confirmation of Oritsemeyiwa Amanorisewo Eyesan as Chief Executive Officer of the NUPRC and Engineer Saidu Aliyu Mohammedas Chief Executive Officer of the NMDPRA.
The nominations follow the exit of Farouk Ahmed and Komolafe, who were both appointed in 2021 by former President Muhammadu Buhari after the establishment of the agencies under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
According to the statement, President Tinubu described the nominees as seasoned professionals with decades of experience in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.
Eyesan is an Economics graduate of the University of Benin and spent nearly 33 years with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and its subsidiaries. She retired in 2024 as Executive Vice President, Upstream, and previously served as Group General Manager, Corporate Planning and Strategy between 2019 and 2023.
Engineer Saidu Aliyu Mohammed, born in 1957 in Gombe State, holds a Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineeringfrom Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. He was recently announced as an independent non-executive director at Seplat Energy.
His professional career includes serving as Managing Director of the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company and the Nigerian Gas Company, as well as chairman of the boards of the West African Gas Pipeline Company, Nigeria LNG subsidiaries, and NNPC Retail.
Mohammed also served as Group Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer of the Gas and Power Directorate, where he provided strategic leadership for major gas projects and policy frameworks, including the Gas Masterplan, Gas Network Code, and contributions to the Petroleum Industry Act.
He played key roles in landmark projects such as the Escravos–Lagos Pipeline Expansion, the Ajaokuta–Kaduna–Kano (AKK) Gas Pipeline, and several Nigeria LNG Train projects.
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