Kogi State residents have come out en masse to protest over exploitation by the Dangote group over the ownership of Obajana cement. The citizens of the state occupied all mining sites across the state to express their plight over the alleged exploitation of the Dangote Group.
This comes just hours after it was reported that the state governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, and the Chairman of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, were meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari to discuss the matter.
The conflict between the Kogi State government and the Dangote Group over the ownership of Obajana cement took a new turn in the early hours of Tuesday, when citizens of the state occupied all mining sites across the state to express their plight over the alleged exploitation of the Dangote Group.
Massive crowds gathered with various placard inscriptions urging the state and federal governments to press Dangote Group for justice. Despite the fact that the protesters are not violent, trading activities in various areas have been halted.
The protest is happening at Obajana, Ankpa and other areas of Kogi State.
They are urging the state not to back out until the state recovers Obajana Cement, the largest cement plant in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Another group of Nigerians have hit the roads in Abuja in protest against Dangote’s claim of 100% ownership of Kogi Cement without the approval of state assembly.
Reports showed that the state government sealed off the cement factory last week, claiming ownership of the company due to breech of contract agreements and non involvement of the state assembly. Meanwhile, Dangote Group has responded that it owns the entire company.
According to the report of a committee of inquiry set up by the state government, documents show that the agreements entered into between Group and the previous government in 2002/2003 are invalid. According to the government, the State Assembly was not involved in the negotiations.
The government’s statement noted that Dangote Group has even failed to meet the terms of the agreement. It was stated that 90% of the shares were transferred to Dangote Group, with the remaining 10% reserved for the government and citizens.