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Dangote Refinery: Pride to the Nation and Beacon of Hope
Dangote Refinery: Pride to the Nation and Beacon of Hope
By Prof M.K. Othman
A business mogul the size of Aliko Dangote is assumed to say less outside his business engagements. Yet, as a guest speaker at the 38th ABU convocation lecture on Friday, January 29, 2016, he held an unusual audience: the elites, industrialists, technocrats, academia, and teeming youths, spellbound to breath-taking silence, listening to his soft-spoken golden voice deliver his lecture. Perhaps the silence was not unconnected to the audience’s desire to learn how Aliko Dangote built his empire from the horse’s mouth, hoping to replicate the “how” for other Dangotes. The lecture titled “The Role Entrepreneurship in National Development: The Story of Dangote Group.” The message was educative, thought-provoking, inspiring, and a beacon of hope for the teeming unemployed youth, instilling a sense of optimism and encouragement. It was a fleeting moment with a profound sense of pride and fulfillment to host that giant entrepreneur and accomplished financial guru. Dangote could ostensibly be a distinguished professor of applied business advice and management interested in human and financial resources, including capital formation, savings, and investment. The event was my motivational propeller of nominating Dangote for the conferment of an Honorary Doctorate Degree on the floor of ABU Zaria senate, which was unanimously accepted and done at the 36th Convocation in 2018.
The name “Dangote” resonates in virtually every household in Nigeria and millions of other households in the rest of Africa. In Nigeria, no household can escape the daily use of a series of household essential commodities from the Dangote group: salt, sugar, rice, fruit drinks, vegetable oil, seasoning pasta, and other products such as cement, flour, etc, among others. This widespread influence of the Dangote Group creates a sense of connection and community among the audience, as they realize that Dangote touches the lives of several million people in Africa and beyond through direct employment, job and wealth creation, businesses, and philanthropic activities. The Dangote group is visibly present in about twenty other African countries besides Nigeria.
Although Dangote’s business grew exponentially, patriotism and entrepreneurial acumen made Dangote realize that importation stimulates economic growth in exporting countries while transferring inflation and job losses to importing countries. This realization and Dangote’s trip to Brazil in 1997 marked a turning point for the Dangote group. Dangote said, “I was shocked when I visited Brazil in 1997 and discovered that another third-world country similar to Nigeria had huge manufacturing complexes that provided jobs for its citizens and developed its economy. If they could do it in Brazil, I realized we could replicate it in Nigeria.” Apparently, this patriotic zeal was the sole motivation to address Nigeria’s seemingly unending energy crisis – the importation of petroleum products into the country despite being Africa’s highest crude oil producer.
The petroleum crisis is a multifaceted, hydra-grave problem that has killed the Nigerian refineries and drained Nigerian foreign exchange through massive fraudulent importation of refined petroleum products. The refineries have been gulping enormous financial resources in the last three decades without refining a single drop of crude oil. The government has been paying vast amounts of unaccountable money to subsidize the import of petrol into the country without respite. It is like pouring water into a bottomless bucket with no apparent solution from the legislative and executive arms of government. When the current government withdrew the unsustainable subsidy without comprehending the issue, the cost of transportation tripled, overshooting hyperinflation with consequent hardship. Yet, the refineries are still dysfunctional. With this scenario, Nigerians eagerly waited and prayed for the completion of the 20 billion USD Dangote refinery to take the country out of the woods. With its potential to end decades of Nigeria’s energy crisis, the Dangote Refinery is a beacon of hope and optimism for the future despite the dark forces working against it.
First, the NNPCL, the supposed 20% shareholder of the Dangote Refinery, refused to sell crude oil to the refinery, claiming that Nigerian crude oil was sold in advance and that Dangote should wait for years before the supply started. However, Dangote overcame the problem by purchasing crude oil from as far as America and Brazil.
Next, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), a subsidiary of NNPCL, condemned the Dangote Refinery. NMDPRA accused the refinery of being a monopoly selling inferior-quality diesel while it was yet to be licensed to commence operations.
The sabotage against the Dangote Refinery has only reinforced Aliko Dangote’s resilience. He refuted the poor-quality claim before the joined House of Representatives committee and accused the NNPCL officials of importing petroleum products from their refineries abroad. He said, “Some Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited officials and oil traders have blending plants in Malta, an island country in Southern Europe, where they import substandard products. We all know these areas. We know what they are doing”. Dangote associated vehicle problems in Nigeria with substandard imported fuel, noting that diesel produced locally is better quality than imported fuel.
He appealed to the House of Representatives leadership to establish an independent committee to verify the quality of petrol available in Nigeria, particularly those sold at filling stations. “I want you to set up a committee that will bring every representative headed by your chosen honorable member to take samples from filling stations. I must tell you today that all the test certificates that people are busy floating around—where are the labs? Even if they have the labs, I can tell you they are fake certificates.” Despite the challenges, Dangote remains steadfast in supporting the refinery, a testament to his unwavering commitment to national development. His resilience in the face of adversity is inspiring and instills hope for a brighter future.
The internal sabotage attracted unprecedented support for the Dangote refinery from well-meaning Nigerians while condemning the attitude of NNPCL for the apparent lack of support for the refinery. Some of the prominent Nigerians who demonstrated their support were Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina, the President of AfDB; his Royal Highness Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, the Emir of Kano; a multibillionaire businessman; Mr. Femi Otedola, Labour Party presidential candidate, Dr. Peter Obi, the former Bauchi State Commissioner of Education; and Ace Columnist, Dr. Aliyu Tilde, among others.
The officials of the NNPC should have been ashamed of themselves for failing the nation and draining billions of hard-earned USD in the name of refinery maintenance and huge salaries without refining a single drop of crude oil. Instead of supporting the Dangote refinery to acquire easy sailing to see the limelight, but NNPCL created huddles and sabotage, distracting the refinery for smooth take up. Earlier, Nigerians were made to believe NNPCL has 20% shares in the Dangote refinery, but the recent revelation indicates the actual shares of NNPC to be less than 10%. How can someone cripple the business he has shares in?
By its unpleasant behavior toward Dangote’s refinery, NNPCL has dug its grave; the National Assembly must unearth its activities and find reasons why Nigerian refineries have failed to deliver over the years. Why has the habitual turnaround maintenance yielded no result? Who benefits from oil subsidies and oil imports? Who owns the Malta blending plants? Etc. The issues raised by Senator Adams Oshiomhole on the floor of the Senate must be addressed; otherwise, Nigeria will remain economically captive by the unpatriotic people within and without.
The Dangote Refinery, one of the largest in the world, is a source of great pride for Nigeria and, indeed, all of Africa. It marks the end of Nigeria’s petroleum imports and the start of a new economic era that will usher in a prosperous nation with a bright future for our grandchildren. May it happen sooner than later. Amen, and welcome aboard our journey of hope.
Dangote Refinery: Pride to the Nation and Beacon of Hope
Simon Bako Lalong: Where Are The 400 Deutz Fahr Tractors? (1)
By: Balami Lazarus
As young schoolboys in Zaria, we were privileged to spend our time interacting with our peers within and around the academic environment of Ahmadu Bello University (A.B.U.) main campus at Samaru. This period gave my peers and me a wide range of exposure to various facilities, faculties, departments, schools, colleges, and units of the university. Being boys full of life, adventures, and events, we were not bored with their academic programs but more interested in their social and practical activities.
Institute of Agricultural Research (I.A.R.), Division of Agricultural Colleges (D.A.C.), and the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences and other related units are where we were more attracted to because of their implements/tools and equipment. The tractors and their components, like harrows, ploughshares, and harvesters, have awakened the aspirations of some of us to be agricultural experts, farmers, and university dons in agricultural sciences, and others as researchers.
Agricultural tractors have been one of the most important machines in the cultivation of commercial and mechanized farmland, providing food/cash crops and agro-allied raw materials for industries and factories, hence the economic development of Nigeria.
Therefore, tractors like Massey Ferguson, John Deere, Ford, Fiat, and Styre were common sights for us.
When I decided to do some investigations on the whereabouts, or to say disappearances, of the 400 Deutz Fahr tractors belonging to the state government and the people of Plateau State. It was really not easy for me because individuals who were in the stream of affairs, past and present, are not willing to speak on this matter. And I began to suspect there was connivance/conspiracy in the disappearances of these tractors by some collective individuals.
Questions are being asked over and over by the citizens of Plateau State about the 400 Duetz Fahr model tractors made in Germany, which were procured by the state government during the administration of former Governor Simon Bako Lalong (2015-2023), whose tenure was nothing to write home about except for his poor performance in governance. Unlike the beginning of the good governance of the present administration of Governor Caleb Manasseh Mutfwang.
In the course of my investigations and findings, I was told that the one and only person who had asked questions severally and was still speaking on the matter was one Ehis Akugnonu of JFM 101.9 FM. Jos (aka Osama), whom I met on this matter, our discussions lacked adjectives to qualify the disappearance of the 400 Deutz Fahr tractors on the Plateau, a state blessed with fertile land for farming and production of food and cash crops in all seasons.
Agricultural programs have always been the priority of the government, both state and federal. Institutions of learning—universities, institutes, and other research centers—are not left out of the scheme of agricultural activities. Individual and organized private sectors are also playing significant roles in the development of the nation’s agricultural economy, adding value to the agricultural food chain.
Former Governor Simon Bako Lalong of Plateau State procured the 400 Deutz Fahr tractors to boost agriculture to enable farmers to cultivate more farmland through the utilization of these tractors. Surprisingly, they were never distributed to farmers in the 17 local government areas. Sources within Government House Little Rayfield Jos told this writer that “there was a clandestine arrangement that played out in the disappearance of the 400 Duetz Fahr’. In simple arithmetic, if and only if these tractors were distributed to the 17 local government areas, each would have gotten 23, leaving 9 tractors for other purposes, but the disappearance has dampened the spirit of the state farmers. “No single individual is happy about this matter.”. We will continue to ask questions until these tractors are brought back to us’. Said a concerned citizen.
Recently, the Executive Governor of the State, Barr. Caleb Manasseh Mutfwang, in his good governance programs, procured 200 new tractors of the Massey Ferguson model that were immediately, without delay, distributed to organized farmers’ groups across the 17 local government areas. This gave hope, wiping away tears on the faces of small and medium-scale farmers on the Plateau.
In tidying up this write-up, I was informed that the disappearance of the 400 Deutz Fahr tractors paved
way that saw the carting away in a thievery manner and the gleaning of government house items at Little Rayfield Jos. While fingers are pointing to Senator Simon Bako Lalong on the whereabouts of the 400 Deutz Fahr tractors worth hundreds of millions of naira, which could have changed the agricultural landscape of Plateau State.
Balami, a Publisher/Columnist
08036779290
Simon Bako Lalong: Where Are The 400 Deutz Fahr Tractors? (1)
Simon Bako Lalong: Where Are The 400 Deutz Fahr Tractors? (1)
By: Balami Lazarus
As young schoolboys in Zaria, we were privileged to spend our time interacting with our peers within and around the academic environment of Ahmadu Bello University (A.B.U.) main campus at Samaru. This period gave my peers and me a wide range of exposure to various facilities, faculties, departments, schools, colleges, and units of the university. Being boys full of life, adventures, and events, we were not bored with their academic programs but more interested in their social and practical activities.
As young schoolboys in Zaria, we were privileged to spend our time interacting with our peers within and around the academic environment of Ahmadu Bello University (A.B.U.) main campus at Samaru. This period gave my peers and me a wide range of exposure to various facilities, faculties, departments, schools, colleges, and units of the university. Being boys full of life, adventures, and events, we were not bored with their academic programs but more interested in their social and practical activities.
Institute of Agricultural Research (I.A.R.), Division of Agricultural Colleges (D.A.C.), and the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences and other related units are where we were more attracted to because of their implements/tools and equipment. The tractors and their components, like harrows, ploughshares, and harvesters, have awakened the aspirations of some of us to be agricultural experts, farmers, and university dons in agricultural sciences, and others as researchers.
Agricultural tractors have been one of the most important machines in the cultivation of commercial and mechanized farmland, providing food/cash crops and agro-allied raw materials for industries and factories, hence the economic development of Nigeria.
Therefore, tractors like Massey Ferguson, John Deere, Ford, Fiat, and Styre were common sights for us.
When I decided to do some investigations on the whereabouts, or to say disappearances, of the 400 Deutz Fahr tractors belonging to the state government and the people of Plateau State. It was really not easy for me because individuals who were in the stream of affairs, past and present, are not willing to speak on this matter. And I began to suspect there was connivance/conspiracy in the disappearances of these tractors by some collective individuals.
Questions are being asked over and over by the citizens of Plateau State about the 400 Duetz Fahr model tractors made in Germany, which were procured by the state government during the administration of former Governor Simon Bako Lalong (2015-2023), whose tenure was nothing to write home about except for his poor performance in governance. Unlike the beginning of the good governance of the present administration of Governor Caleb Manasseh Mutfwang.
In the course of my investigations and findings, I was told that the one and only person who had asked questions severally and was still speaking on the matter was one Ehis Akugnonu of JFM 101.9 FM. Jos (aka Osama), whom I met on this matter, our discussions lacked adjectives to qualify the disappearance of the 400 Deutz Fahr tractors on the Plateau, a state blessed with fertile land for farming and productionof food and cash crops in all seasons.
Agricultural programs have always been the priority of the government, both state and federal. Institutions of learning—universities, institutes, and other research centers—are not left out of the scheme of agricultural activities. Individual and organized private sectors are also playing significant roles in the development of the nation’s agricultural economy, adding value to the agricultural food chain.
Former Governor Simon Bako Lalong of Plateau State procured the 400 Deutz Fahr tractors to boost agriculture to enable farmers to cultivate more farmland through the utilization of these tractors. Surprisingly, they were never distributed to farmers in the 17 local government areas. Sources within Government House Little Rayfield Jos told this writer that “there was a clandestine arrangement that played out in the disappearance of the 400 Duetz Fahr’. In simple arithmetic, if and only if these tractors were distributed to the 17 local government areas, each would have gotten 23, leaving 9 tractors for other purposes, but the disappearance has dampened the spirit of the state farmers. “No single individual is happy about this matter.”. We will continue to ask questions until these tractors are brought back to us’. Said a concerned citizen.
Recently, the Executive Governor of the State, Barr. Caleb Manasseh Mutfwang, in his good governance programs, procured 200 new tractors of the Massey Ferguson model that were immediately, without delay, distributed to organized farmers’ groups across the 17 local government areas. This gave hope, wiping away tears on the faces of small and medium-scale farmers on the Plateau.
In tidying up this write-up, I was informed that the disappearance of the 400 Deutz Fahr tractors paved
way that saw the carting away in a thievery manner and the gleaning of government house items at Little Rayfield Jos. While fingers are pointing to Senator Simon Bako Lalong on the whereabouts of the 400 Deutz Fahr tractors worth hundreds of millions of naira, which could have changed the agricultural landscape of Plateau State.
Balami, a Publisher/Columnist
08036779290
Simon Bako Lalong: Where Are The 400 Deutz Fahr Tractors? (1)
My Binoculars: A tribute to a former Controller of customs Borno state Joshua Angbalaga
By: Sam Kayode
Indeed Angbalaga was a reporter’s delight. Firm yet welcoming. His demise is a sudden blow to some of us who have basked in his warmth and detribalized nature. He was of a different make from the generality of uniformed personnel some of us are used to, sharp witty with a strong ability to interface from one generation to another. He was a trained sociologist from the Ahmadu Bello University Zaria where he graduated in 1984. Taught for sometime at the FCT which gave him the unique ability to understand his generation and all the ones after his.
His training as a customs official since 1988 had taken him to many States including the commercial capital of Nigeria Lagos and many other cities. Controller Joshua Angbalaga was easy going and kept an open door for most of us journalists who came into contact with him through exclusive interviews. He was open minded and was ready to tolerate most of our young colleagues who sometimes displayed slight intolerance for uniforms at news conferences because of the insurgents lurking around.
In Controller Joshua Angbalaga buried today in lafia nasarawa state, I have a personal loss of a man who was an exemplary news maker. He was a public figure who had immense knowledge about the weaknesses and strengths of the gentlemen of the pen. He was a good representative of his controller General. He understood the body languages of most of our intolerant younger colleagues and gave his subordinates in the office then a standing directive that any time any of us comes to see him, we must not be kept waiting unnecessarily if he is free. He was far different from previous controllers who had come and treated reporters like condemned criminals who should never be allowed to come close to the controllers office upstairs.
Some of them in sister agencies especially the ones in the immigration service gave standing orders that journalists should be turned away from the gate as if we were insurgents. This was because some of them were never financially transparent as we learnt from their boys so we understood why they were so vehement at stopping journalists from conducting their constitutional activities. A lot of Angbalaga’s paramilitary colleagues marveled at his dexterity with the gentlemen of the fourth estate.
Our paths met in April 2017 when he reported to Maiduguri as controller and Borno/Yobe area Commander of the Nigerian customs. That was three years after I reported in Maiduguri as correspondent of the nation newspaper.
From then on we continued to work together with him and his entire management team in making expected progresses within the war theatre.
We had several news conferences with him especially on how he had been able to make tremendous progress in turning things around in spite of the insurgency which was at its peak by then. Angbalaga was a rare news maker in uniform because of his belief that none of his officers were too rotten to resist reforms. They were all in sync with his policies to make the state better than he met it. When it was time to go, he left maiduguri on transfer to Abuja where he later retired in 2020. He was involved in stopping a lot of contrabands including hard drugs which is the main fuel keeping insurgents at alert.
On retirement, we kept our communication intact and friendly. Oga Angbalaga was a very studious officer who had already prepared himself for leadership roles by completing his master in public administration in 2000. Feeling a bit bored and not tired in retirement, he went back to school for his PhD program in University of Abuja. He told me recently that he was close to finishing his course work and was kicking to go to the next challenge as God directs. We bantered on the phone while I wondered if he was going back to teaching but he laughed and asked for Gods will to be done. We had a one hour call last year with an invitation to me to visit him during the last yuletide 2024. So with a promise that I would be in lafia to see him for the yuletide, we rounded the call. But due to certain conditions not under my control, that was the last time we would talk as friends. I missed the trip due to I’ll health. Controller Angbalaga is no more as the Lord wills. He has answered the solemn call of nature which sends all mortals back to their creator regardless of age, status, character, race or creed. Death has shown that it’s a leveler of all mankind and my friend oga Angbalaga as I used to call him lived a forthright life before bowing to immortality. May the Lord console his friends at Mount St Gabriel Makurdi, St John Bosco Doma, the entire family of the Nigerian customs service, immediate family and the entire eggon nation where the Lord used him to touch several souls before his passage.
Have a nice sleep oga Angbalaga. From Biodun as you used to call me.
My Binoculars: A tribute to a former Controller of customs Borno state Joshua Angbalaga
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