Kogi State chapter of Concerned Nigerian Citizens (CNC), has called for the investigation of Alhaji Aliko Dangote, some past Governors and other stakeholders of Kogi State, for what it described as “questionable takeover of Obajana Cement Company PLC” by Dangote Industries Limited/Dangote Groups and economic sabotage of Kogi people and Nigerians.
This was contained in a petition dated 12th October, 2022 and addressed to the Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr. Abdulrasheed Bawa. The letter was signed by the State Cordinator, Ojonugwa O. Samuel and Secretary, Usman Audu.
The anti-graft agency has also acknowledged the receipt of the petition, in a letter dated 12th October, 2022 and signed on its official letter head paper by the receiving officer.
“We crave your Commission’s intervention to investigate the issues around the illegal takeover of Obajana Cement Company by Dangote Group especially against the criminal acts exposed by the report of the Specialized Technical Committee on the Evaluation of the Legality of the Alleged Acquisition of Obajana Cement Company Plc by Dangote Cement Company Limited”, the group told EFCC Chairman.
The petitioners stressed further that, in the findings of the technical committee, “the purported agreements transferring Obajana Cement Company plc from the Kogi State Government to Dangote Industries Limited were found to be invalid and null and void because of absence of consideration for the Kogi State Government. This suggests that there have been forgeries committed to steal the company from the state government.
“In the number of years that Dangote Industries Limited illegally operated Obajana Cement Company plc, it never remitted dividends to the Kogi State Government, which suggests that revenue belonging to the people of Kogi State was stolen from 2003 till date.
“The curious and illegal assumption of tax holiday from the Kogi State Government when this was beyond the remit of the state as it is a matter for the Federal Government. We are afraid that Dangote Industries Limited has shortchanged the Federal Government of vital revenue under the pretext that it got tax waiver/holiday when in reality this was never the case. This is a loss of revenue for Nigerians.
“Dangote Industries Limited, after having used the three Certificates of Occupancy (Cs of O) issued to it to raise an N63 billion loan, attempted to obtain a single C of O that would have covered the ones it had assigned to its creditors. This is a flagrant attempt to defraud the state government and the entities it obtained the loan from. Meanwhile due process was not followed in Dangote Industries Limited’s merging of the three Cs of O.”
The group alluded that, Dangote Industries Limited committed these acts in collusion with certain former state officials, including former governors of Kogi State who must now be held to account. Though no name of past Governors was mentioned in the petition.
According to the petition, “after the Kogi State Government took steps to remedy the defects that led to the illegal acquisition of Obajana Cement Company Plc, Dangote Industries have gone on the offensive to intimidate state officials from recovering the company for the people of Kogi state. An audio recording of a meeting of officials of Dangote Industries Limited exposed how they have forged documents to defend their tenuous claim to Obajana Cement Company plc.
“Their plot also includes taking steps to sabotage the Nigerian economy in their bid to shut down Kogi state by obstructing traffic flow in strategic areas. Implementing this dangerous plot would bring hardship to the people of Kogi state but will hurt the Nigerian economy worse than it would inflict pain on the state.
“These officials have also reportedly offered bribes to certain key persons to sway decisions on the cement plant in favour of Dangote Industries Limited. This is amounts to inducement of public office holders, which has no place in our democracy”.
The group therefore, urged the EFCC to “investigate Dangote Industries Limited, Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, past and present senior officials of Dangote Industries Limited with links to the questionable deal, former Kogi State officials and former governors with links to the transactions”.
In view of the potential revenue loss for the Federal Government, the petitioners also urged the EFCC to extend the investigation to all states where the Dangote Group has operations, “as we have cause to suspect that this company has used other state governments to grant itself federal tax waivers, thereby leading to revenue loss”.