High Street

Billionaire Aliko Dangote recently hosted controversial King of Iwo, Osun state Abdulrasheed Akanbi. The meeting held at the invitation of the chairman of Dangote Group. The venue was the Lagos abode of one of Africa’s richest. Checks by societynow.ng revealed that the self-styled Emperor of Iwo actually publicized the "meeting" claiming need to develop his town. Further digs by societynow.ng revealed that though this is certainly not far from the truth, the major reason for the meeting is actually Dangote telling the Iwo monarch to "stem" his divisive antics in the southwest region. One of Africa’s richest has upped his investment portfolio in the southwest – with moves to increase it – and this has made him a major stakeholder in the region. "Dangote is thinking far ahead, quickly taking away the possibility to those with ulterior motives in the region making Oba Akanbi their mask with his controversial moves" a source stated. After goin...

The raging crisis over ownership of Obuh mines between cement manufacturers BUA and Dangote is far from over. BUA in a fresh revelations claim it is in possession of evidences detailing calculated attempts by Dangote to sabotage it’s operations. The statement which detailed the revelations read We are increasingly appalled by a new set of publications, actions and tactics by Dangote Plc and its staff which have been falsely attributed to the Federal Government, seeking to achieve what they couldn’t get through legal means or their “connections in Government”. These relate to the ongoing mining dispute between BUA and Dangote. We therefore wish to draw the attention of the general public, investing public and other stakeholders to these new set of malicious and misleading information which are in fact, being cooked up in the offices of Dangote Plc. These publications have, at various times, been falsely attributed to pronouncements made by the Federal Government represented by the Mi...

Dangote has churned out what BUA as labelled "bigger lies"" in the raging mines dispute between the two cement manufacturers. But BUA is insisting it's competitor should let the courts decide the ownership tussle. BUA restated it's position in response to fresh communication from Dangote in this statement Our attention has been drawn again to a new publication by Dangote group seeking to further its cycle of misinformation over the mining dispute between BUA and Dangote through falsehoods and bigger lies. BUA views with disdain, further attempts by the Dangote Group to play to the gallery in the dispute over our Mining Areas covered by Mining Leases ML18912 and ML18913. BUA wishes to restate without equivocation that it has never laid claim to ML2541 as our operations covered by ML18912 and ML18913 are in Obu, Okpella, Edo State and not Okene, Kogi State where Dangote’s license 2541 is sited. As Dangote has asserted, BUA’s licenses for ML18912 ...

Dangote has agreed that BUA continues it operations at Obu mines while the ownership dispute between the two manufacturers is resolved in court. This revelation is contained in this statement BUA International Limited, owners of BUA Cement, heartily welcomes the resolve by Dangote Cement Plc to await the outcome of the courts in their corporate disclosure published on the Nigerian Stock Exchange website dated 20 December, 2017 and titled, “DANGOTE CEMENT – RESPONSE TO BUA ALLEGATIONS”. This is in line with what BUA has always insisted and we appreciate the decision to wait for a judicial outcome rather than resorting to self-help and/or using influence and certain agencies of government in disrupting operations at some of BUA’s mining areas covered by ML18912 and ML18913 in Obu, Okpella, Edo State. With respect to the statement by the Ministry of Mines published in Punch Newspapers of December 8, 2017 and alluded to by Dangote Cement Plc in its statement...

Leaders of Okpella, the Community where the mines at the centre of a raging ownership dispute between cement manufacturers Dangote and BUA is located have spoken out on the lingering crisis. They disclosed the entire community is not happy with how Dangote instigated the shut down of the Mines being operated by BUA. The community leaders claim the mines have directly and indirectly provided 10,000 jobs for people of the community in Estako East local government of Edo. The jobs are currently under threats and the leaders fear the shutdown would spiral into an increase in the crime rates of the area. Community leaders made known their feelings on the on going development in a chat with thenation. They spoke through a representative who is a former council chairman of the area, Godwin Isichei. He asserted that the way Dangote "is going about the whole process, the entire community is not happy". Godwin who revealed that several meetings on boundary dispute he...

Our attention has once again been drawn to a new statement by the Management of Dangote Group which is being syndicated to various new publications related to the ownership and operations of BUA’s mining sites in Obu, Okpella, Edo State. This latest statement by Dangote Group stinks of desperation in its continued attempt to disregard the judicial process and scheme a viable competitor out of business as has been their legendary antecedent. We thus wish to reiterate once again that whilst we do not want to join issues with anyone on this matter as it is currently before a court of competent jurisdiction, we are however compelled to use the opportunity presented by Edwin Devakumar’s reckless statements to clarify the cycle of misinformation being proliferated. In specific response to Edwin Devakumar of Dangote Group’s claim of BUA operating on ML2541 in Okene, Kogi State, we wish to restate that BUA does not have any operations whatsoever in Okene, Kogi State where t...

The ruling Atta Omadivi Family of Okene in Kogi State has described the publication of the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development bequeathing the contentious Mining Lease ML 2541 to Dangote Group as a ‘reflection of desperate, reckless, irresponsible and partisan conduct of the ministry’ which has continued to flout all court injunctions related to the contentious lease. It would be recalled that the Executive Chairman/CEO of BUA Group, Abdulsamad Rabiu had petitioned President Muhammadu Buhari on December 4, 2017 in a letter titled “A Cry for Help: Wanton Abuse of Power by a Serving Minister Geared at Sabotaging Operations of BUA Cement,” affirming that the Ministry was taking sides with Dangote Group to claim ownership of the mining site ML2541 in Okpella, Edo State. The Ministry had replied in a statement signed by its Permanent Secretary, Mohammed Abass stating that Mining Lease ML 2541 in Okene, Kogi State belongs to Dangote Industries Limited and that BUA has been il...

A Federal High Court sitting in Lokoja, Kogi State Capital has ordered Dangote Group, Dangote Cement Plc, Obajana Cement Plc, Dangote Industries and their subsidiaries in a judgement against them, to pay the sum of N2,697,125,000 billion in a mining dispute brought against Dangote by a mining firm, Quest Two Enterprises ltd. In his judgment, the trial judge Justice Ayua of the Federal High Court, Lokoja averred that the Dangote General Manager, Mr. Victor Mohan, who was also the sole witness admitted under cross-examination that his employers, Dangote Group, effectively shut down operations of the company by dismantling power lines belonging to the company and disrupting their operations. Despite agreeing to pay compensation for these acts to the plaintiffs, the judge also noted that the defendants failed to live up to the terms of the agreement to pay any compensation to the plaintiffs. The court also dismissed Dangote’s counter-claims that the actions of the plaintiff amounted to ...