Obajana: Kogi, Dangote fight over cement plant messier as students join fray

The battle of ownership of the Obajana Cement Company between the Kogi State Government and Dangote Group has got messier as students of Kogi indigenes have joined the fray.

This comes as the Kogi government has advised Dangote Group against venting its frustration on the state government but instead provide proof of its total ownership of the factory.

The National Association of Kogi State Students (NAKOS) has expressed determination to defend the position of the state government over ownership of the cement company up to the International Court of Justice.

In a statement signed by NAKOS president, Ms Rachael Balogun, the students, in various institutions across Nigeria, said that the Dangote Group had for long carried out devastating economic injustice on the people of the state.

According to them, the state governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, and the state House of Assembly should be commended for insisting on correcting what they described as the age-long economic intimidation and exploitation by the Dangote Group.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the students accused Dangote of allegedly unfairly exploiting the state for years, with many either dying daily from environmental hazards arising from the company’s activities in the area or in the hands of its reckless drivers that have killed many across Nigeria.

According to the students, the failure of the management of Dangote Cement to show evidence of responsible transfer of the shares of the company belonging to Kogi State is a clear pointer to the fact that the group allegedly robbed indigenes of Kogi of their birth rights.

Similarly, in a statement signed by Mr Kingsley Fanwo, the state’s Commissioner for Information and Communications on Monday, the Kogi State Government advised the Dangote Group and its image makers to focus on “proving its ‘total ownership’ of Obajana Cement Company rather than chasing shadows”.

READ: Angry mob burns down Dangote truck in Ogun

Fanwo stated that the group’s latest attempt to malign the state government in its statement titled: “Dangote not involved in Kogi Assembly Fire Outbreak”, was a desperate one, insisting that the state had a “well defined channel of communication that is known to the public”.

He said the current struggle over the ownership of Obajana Cement Company was not that of an individual but a collective agitation by indigenes of the state who had felt short-changed for too long as regards the subject matter.

“We remain resolute in our position on the Obajana Cement Company and that remains the matter to be determined rather than any attempt to drag the state government into any mud fight.

“A few days ago, we released a credible intelligence to the public, of plans by Dangote Group to attack the state and officials of government.

“Among many other measures at stifling the voice of the Kogi government in the ongoing battle for the ownership of the Obajana Cement Company. A few days later, our legislative complex was razed by fire.

“In the official statement of the government of Kogi, we called on security agencies to thoroughly investigate the matter and make their findings public.

“We reiterate that anyone found to be involved in burning down the Kogi Assembly Complex will be prosecuted and made to face the test of justice,” Fanwo stated.

The commissioner noted that only truth could resolve the ongoing ownership tussle, maintaining that the state would “not succumb to any psychological warfare”.

He said: “We are aware of emails and deliberate harassment of the media to concoct unfounded stories around Kogi and Gov. Yahaya Bello.

“But this will do nothing to change the facts around the ownership of Obajana Cement Company, which the Kogi people, and indeed, Nigerians, are interested in.”

He pointed out that the struggle was about the people of Kogi and also the integrity of the nation, adding that the present government in Kogi has created a conducive environment for investments and business growth.