Lessons from Kogi’s Hardline Posture on Dangote’s Obajana Cement Factory Although the federal government on Friday ordered the immediate reopening of the Obajana Cement factory shut on the order of the Kogi State Gove
Although the federal government on Friday ordered the immediate reopening of the Obajana Cement factory shut on the order of the Kogi State Government, the spat between the state government and Dangote Industries has underscored the urgency of a review of Nigeria’s investment policy and an affirmation of the role of courts in conflict resolution, writesMembers of the Nigerian investment community heaved a sigh of relief on Friday when the nation’s Security Council mediated in the lingering...
He said: “An agreement has been reached between the Kogi State government and the Dangote Cement in Kogi on the need to re-open the factory and ensure that there is peace in the state. The government is committed to the provision of employment to its citizens rather than closing factories that will make people unemployed. We do hope that the parties involved will respect this agreement and come to terms with the memorandum of understanding signed by the parties involved,” he added.
Analysts were also shocked that a state like Kogi with its extremely low capacity to generate adequate employment for its teeming youths could put the jobs of those already engaged by the cement firm at risk. This is perhaps why investment analysts said there is an urgent need for all the stakeholders in the nation’s economy to wade into the current dispute between the state government and Dangote Industries Limited for a quick resolution in the interest of the thousands of direct and indirect staff of the company.
The state government had asked Dangote Industries to focus on “proving its ‘total ownership’ of Obajana Cement Company rather than chasing shadows”. According to the clarifications which were contained in a statement issued on Tuesday, the management of Dangote Industries explained that “the land on which the Obajana cement plant is built was acquired solely by Dangote Industries Limited in 2003, well after it had acquired the shares in Obajana Cement Company in 2002, following the legally binding agreement it entered into with KSG to invest in Kogi State.