Kogi and Dangote fight over Obajana cement factory

Okechukwu Nnodim and Alexander Okere

October 8, 2022

• We will take legal action, firm promises• You are misrepresenting the facts, says the government

The crisis over the ownership of the Obajan cement plant in Kogi State escalated on Friday as the state government and Dangote Cement Plc continued to lay claim to the facility.< /p>

The company's management has also pledged to take legal action following the recent invasion of the factory and the murder of its employees by armed vigilantes allegedly on the orders of the government.

There was pandemonium on Wednesday when Kogi state government officials reportedly decided to seal off the cement factory which they claimed was state-owned.

Although the government said one person was shot during the ensuing chaos, the cement company said 27 of its workers were shot dead by militiamen acting on the orders of the state government.

Governor Yahaya Bello had said on Thursday that the state government would be ready to negotiate with Dangote Group once the company was ready to admit the plant was state-owned.< /p>

Speaking when he presented documents from the report of the Specialized Technical Committee on the assessment of the legality of the alleged acquisition of Obajana Cement Company Plc by Dangote Cement Company Limited to support the state claim to ownership of the plant, Yahaya said the decision to seal the plant followed several petitions from local community members regarding marginalization by the company.

"We have received several petitions from the general public on this particular subject. Over the past five to six years, all efforts to sit down with the owners of the Dangote conglomerate have failed," said he said.

But Dangote Cement Plc, in a statement titled "Illegal Shutdown of Dangote Cement, Obajana Plant", and signed by its group chief executive, Michel Puchercos, said the armed invaders acted pursuant to a State House of Assembly resolution on controversial tax claims, which he added the Governor contradicted when he said the shutdown was due to an alleged invalid acquisition of the company by Dangote Industries Limited.

"During the process of forcibly evicting workers to enforce the shutdown, vigilantes shot 27 of our workers and also destroyed some of the company's property at the plant. We have taken steps to ensure the thugs are apprehended by law enforcement, and we will ensure that full legal proceedings are taken against them.

"As we reaffirm that the Obajana Cement Plant is 100% owned by Dangote Cement PLC, we remain committed to transforming Africa, while creating lasting value for our people , our communities, our investors and our customers,” the state states. partially read.

However, the state government accused the cement company of misrepresenting the facts and pledged to recover all the dividends accrued from the profits made over the years by the Dangote Group , including accrued interest thereon.

Information Commissioner Kinglsey Fanwo in a statement on Friday titled 'Dangote misrepresents facts - government' said the state has all relevant documents to prove that the alleged acquisition of Obajana (cement plant) by Dangote was null and void.

"We want to assure the good people of Kogi State that with God on our side, what belongs to the state will be recovered, including all dividends and interest on profits since the beginning until today. The Dangote group is just twisting the facts to save face,” Fanwo added.

Meanwhile, the National Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mining and Agriculture, condemned the closure of the cement plant, adding that the action does not help necessarily the controversial issue of compliance on the tax to be paid to state governments.

"Rather, continued operation of the plant would more likely facilitate faster resolution of the dispute," added its managing director, Olusola Obadimu.

Similarly, the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry has warned that poor anti-property management or unprofessional approaches to resolutions could send negative signals to potential foreign investors. .

While condemning what he described as an "attack on the Dangote Cement factory located in Obajana" and offering his condolences to the families of the injured, he said the situation was the reflection of poor management of investment protection problems in the country.

The LCCI, in a statement by its Executive Director, Dr. Chinyere Almona, "We recommend a meeting...