FrieslandCampina WAMCO has appointed former Guinness Nigeria Commercial Director, Olusanya Adesanya, as its new Group Director of Sales, marking a significant talent shift in Nigeria’s fast-moving consumer goods sector.

Adesanya announced the move on his LinkedIn page, stating, “I’m happy to share that I’m starting a new position as Director of Group Sales at FrieslandCampina.”

Adesanya, regarded as one of the country’s foremost commercial strategists, has been instrumental in Guinness Nigeria’s resurgence.

His exit was confirmed in a statement signed by the company’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Girish Sharma, who hailed his “twelve remarkable years of positive impact and growth.”

According to Guinness Nigeria, Adesanya joined the company in 2013 as a sales representative and rose through the ranks across the South-East, Lagos and South-West regions, ultimately becoming commercial director in 2023.

Over the years, he led retail expansion initiatives, including the launch of Project REAP, which transformed retail execution and broadened the company’s distribution footprint.

Under his leadership, Guinness recorded double-digit topline growth, improved margins, enhanced trade spend efficiency and strengthened distributor profitability.

His performance earned him several awards, including the African President Awards (2021) and MAD Awards (2014 and 2015).

The Senate has approved the sum of N54.46trillion as the federal government’s aggregate expenditure for the 2026 fiscal year.

This followed the passage of the 2026–2028 Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper (MTEF/FSP) during plenary yesterday.

The Senate also approved the sum of US$64.85 per barrel as the oil benchmark, projected aggregate revenue of N34.33 trillion, Fiscal Deficit of N20.13 trillion, borrowings of N17.88 trillion, Debt Service of N15.52 trillion, and Pensions, gratuities, and retirees’ benefits of N1.376 trillion.

The approval of the fiscal document followed the presentation and consideration of the report of the Senate Committees on Finance during plenary.

The report was presented by the Chairman of the Committee, Senator Mohammed Sani Musa (APC – Niger East).

Engr. Farouk Ahmed, Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), on Tuesday issued a robust defense against allegations leveled by billionaire businessman Aliko Dangote, denying claims of corruption and inviting full investigations into his finances and tenure.

In a detailed statement titled “A Question of Integrity,” Ahmed described the accusations—centered on the alleged $5 million spent on his children’s secondary education in Switzerland—as misleading and timed to coincide with NMDPRA’s enforcement of stricter quality standards and transparent practices in the petroleum sector.

Ahmed recounted his 34-year career in Nigeria’s petroleum industry, starting as a junior engineer in 1991 and rising through merit to his current role in 2021, with a mandate to implement reforms under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).

He emphasized that his decisions have always prioritized national interest, even when creating friction with powerful stakeholders resistant to transparency in licensing, pricing, and supply chains.

Addressing the core allegation directly, Ahmed stated that three of his four children received merit-based scholarships covering 40-65% of tuition costs, while additional support came from education trust funds established by his late father—a Northern Nigerian businessman—before his passing in 2018.

Combined with his legitimate savings from decades of civil service, cooperative investments available to public servants, and his publicly disclosed annual compensation of approximately ₦48 million (including allowances), Ahmed asserted that the expenses were fully consistent with his means and required no illicit funds.

He noted that foreign schools only accept legitimately earned payments, and authorized all attended institutions to release financial records to authorized Nigerian investigators.

Ahmed linked the timing of the claims to recent NMDPRA actions, including revealing substandard products in the market and approving import licenses for Q1 2026 to ensure supply security and prevent scarcity, as mandated by Section 7 of the PIA.

He rejected characterizations of these approvals as “economic sabotage,” arguing that relying on a single-source supply—regardless of ownership—poses vulnerabilities, and that diversified imports protect consumers.

The NMDPRA chief made no apologies for upholding regulatory independence, stating: “I will not be intimidated into abandoning statutory duties or granting preferential treatment to any entity, regardless of their economic power or media reach.”

In a direct challenge, Ahmed formally requested probes by the Code of Conduct Bureau (reviewing his asset declarations since 1991), the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (examining all transactions), and the National Assembly (oversight on regulatory allegations).

He pledged full cooperation, including providing documentation and testifying under oath, stipulating only that investigations be professional and free from commercial influence.Concluding, Ahmed reaffirmed his commitment to reforms—transparency in licensing, quality assurance, and supply integrity—despite the “price of principle,” expressing confidence that thorough scrutiny would vindicate his record.

The statement comes amid escalating tensions between Dangote Refinery and NMDPRA over import licenses, with Dangote accusing the regulator of undermining local refining by allowing imports despite domestic capacity.

Dangote has detailed the education allegations in paid advertisements and petitions to anti-corruption agencies, questioning how a public servant could afford such expenditures.

Civil society groups have split, with some defending Ahmed’s independence and others calling for his suspension pending investigation.

The House of Representatives has summoned both parties to address the rift and its implications for Nigeria’s downstream sector.