At least 27 Dangote Cement Plc workers were shot at when armed thugs suspected to be acting on the orders of Kogi state government invaded its Obajana cement plant.
The company’s Group Managing Director, Michel Pucheros, in a statement, said that the invasion was carried out by armed vigilantes, led by some officials of the state government acting on the resolution of the Kogi state House of Assembly on controversial tax claims.
“In the process of forcefully evicting workers to enforce the shutdown, the vigilantes shot at 27 of our workers and also destroyed some of the company’s property at the plant,” he said.
Stressing that the Obajana cement plant is 100% owned by Dangote Cement Plc, Pucheros said steps have been taken to arrest the vigilantes who carried out the invasion.
The National Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA) have also reacted to the invasion by the Kogi State government and the closure of Obajana Plant, describing it as ‘shocking and disappointing’.
The Lagos and Abuja branches of the Chamber in separate press statements said the action of Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi was needless, noting that, millions of naira will be lost for everyday the factory is shut.
NACCIMA expressed regret that the issues between the company and the state over tax dispute ought not to have led to sealing of the company but should have been resolved in a conciliatory and amicable atmosphere.
The body, in a statement signed by its Director-General, Olusola Obadimu and issued in Lagos, said the state government should have trodden a path of caution, and called for the immediate reopening of the factory for normal production activities to resume.
Obadimu stated that NACCIMA’s position was based on some key considerations bordering on the impact of the factory’s closure on the economy and thousands of people whose means of livelihood depend on the production activities of the factory.
“It is vital to note that it is a huge production plant that supplies key domestic input (cement) into the economy and employs hundreds of thousands of Nigerians, directly and indirectly. This is aside from its substantial budget for corporate social responsibility outside of taxes.
“Shutting off the factory does not necessarily help the controversial issue of compliance on tax remittable to Kogi state government. Rather a continuous operation of the plant would more likely facilitate a faster resolution of the dispute,” he said.
Similarly, the LCCI, in its statement signed by its Director General, Dr. Chinyere Almona said the attack on the cement factory reflected the poor handling of investment protection issues in the country.
The Chamber said it believed there are more decent ways to handle regulatory and legislative matters concerning businesses in Nigeria than resorting to violence. According to the Chamber, the invasion of the Dangote Cement Factory by youths that led to the shooting of factory workers is unfortunate and avoidable.
“We advocate a win-win situation for businesses and the government. We will therefore call on all parties to exercise caution and be protective of jobs, assets of production, and government revenues from corporate organisations like Dangote Cement Factory,” she added.
The LCCI boss noted that the Federal Government and Kogi State Government had hitherto benefited from business revenues and social investments, and added that, “It is therefore expected that the government would be interested in creating an enabling business environment that can attract both local and foreign investors. And where there are infractions, handling such should be in accordance with best practices and the rule of law that protect investors’ rights and human lives.”
