...Allege abuse of office, misuse of public funds for children's education abroad
A group of lawyers and civil society organisations (CSOs) protested in Abuja today, demanding the immediate resignation of Engineer Farouk Ahmed, the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).
The group known as Concerned Lawyers and Civil Society in Defence of Public Trust alleged that Ahmed had abused his office by using public funds to educate his children in expensive schools abroad, including European University in Montreux, Switzerland, Aiglon College Boarding School in Switzerland, Institut Le Rosey in Rolle, Switzerland, and La Garenne International School in the Swiss Alps.
The protesters, who gathered at the NMDPRA headquarters, claimed that Ahmed's actions were a clear case of corruption and abuse of power. They alleged that the funds used to pay for the children's education were diverted from public coffers and that Ahmed's actions were a betrayal of the public trust.
According to Barr. Martins Adaji, Faisal Ahmed, Farouk's son, was sponsored with public funds to study at European University in Montreux, Switzerland, and later secured a lucrative position in sales at Oando, a company with ties to the oil and gas sector.
Another son, Farouk Ahmed Farouk (Jr.), it claimed, was sent to Aiglon College Boarding School in Switzerland, where the annual tuition and board fees are estimated to be over N300 million.
They also called for Ahmed's prosecution under the Public Procurement Act and the Code of Conduct Bureau guidelines.
The protesters further demanded that any recovered funds be channelled to rehabilitate schools in Nigeria's most disadvantaged oil-producing communities.
They warned that if their demands are ignored, they will return stronger, louder, and more resolute, occupying every relevant space to demand justice and accountability.
"This protest is about justice. It is about drawing the line in the sand and saying, 'NO MORE!," Adaji said. "NO MORE abuse of public trust.
"NO MORE luxury for the few while the many wallow in deprivation. NO MORE wasting of public funds while Nigerian university students are stuck at home due to strikes, poor infrastructure, and lack of funding.
"To the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency Bola Ahmed Tinubu, we ask you: will you watch this continue under your administration? Or will you act, and show that your government is serious about transparency and equity?
"Today’s protest is not the end. If these demands are ignored, we will return stronger, louder, and more resolute. Nigerian youths, mothers, and civil society will occupy every relevant space to say: enough is enough.
"We are done clapping for thieves. We are done bowing to men who see Nigeria as their inheritance. Let it be known: Engr. Farouk Ahmed must step down NOW. Not tomorrow. Not next week.
"Not after consultations. He must resign TODAY. He must return every kobo spent on his children’s foreign education. And he must face the full weight of the law. That is the only way the Nigerian people will believe that justice still lives in this land."
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