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Akinwumi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB), has stated that the Nigerian government stands to lose from the ongoing criticism directed at billionaire businessman Aliko Dangote and his refinery.
He issued a stark warning, stating that such criticism could immediately deter foreign investors from considering Nigeria as a viable investment destination.
A dispute has arisen between Dangote and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and Nigerian petroleum regulatory authorities, centred on allegations of substandard diesel production by the Dangote Refinery, among other issues.
Adesina expressed his surprise at the controversy, noting that it casts Nigeria in a negative light internationally and dismissed accusations of Dangote monopolising the country's manufacturing sector.
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Business mogul Femi Otedola posted a statement on X on Tuesday, July 23, sharing his comments.
The statement read in part, "Monopoly often exists where there are high barriers to entry or high capital costs. How many individuals or companies can do railways? How many can do refineries of the scale of Dangote Refineries? In a nation that has been importing refined petroleum products for several decades, the abnormal simply became very normal.
"No smart investor would make a $19.5 billion investment and want it to be undermined by importers. To manufacture is extremely expensive and risky. This is even more so in Nigeria, given the very challenging business and economic environment, fraught with policy uncertainties and policy reversals, and where the self-defeating default mode of 'simply import it' is always so easily rationalised and chorused to solve any problem.
"…This whole disparaging of Dangote is uncalled for. It is self-defeating. And it is very bad for Nigeria. Who will want to come and invest in a country that disparages and undermines its own largest investor? Investing is tough. Pettiness is easy. It sadly sends a signal that the price for sacrificing for Nigeria is to get sacrificed."