Dangote Denies Economic Sabotage Allegations
By Patience Ikpeme
Dangote Industries Limited (DIL) has denied allegations that it is involved in economic sabotage, including illegal foreign exchange deals and money laundering.
In a statement issued yesterday, DIL described the allegations as “spurious and a rehash of a similar report peddled out of malice by a competitor masquerading as a concerned Nigerian in 2016.”
DIL said that it sources all foreign exchange for its projects strictly from the Interbank Foreign Exchange market in compliance with Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) approvals. The company explained that it establishes Letters of Credit (LCs) for all of its transactions, which clearly spell out the terms and conditions for payments.
The company said that it has all the relevant shipping documents to prove that it paid its major contractor, Sinoma International Engineering Co Ltd, a Chinese government-owned company, against the presentation of LCs. The company also said that it did not make any payments through any Dubai company owned by it.
DIL explained that it has fully utilized all foreign exchange purchased for its African projects expansion. The company said that these projects are visible for everyone to see and have been commissioned by top-ranking Nigerian government officials.
Dangote Industries Limited said that the funds invested in its expansion projects across African countries are legitimate capital investments in those countries. The company said that it has repatriated $576 million in foreign exchange to Nigeria so far, which has helped to boost foreign exchange earnings and stabilize the foreign exchange market.
It emphasized that it has always funded the construction of its various plants from the Interbank Foreign Exchange Market in line with CBN directives. The company said that it has submitted periodic progress reports to the banks for onward submission to the CBN.
DIL said that the regulations of the host countries in which it operates require that payments to some local vendors, contractors, and suppliers be made locally for regulatory and tax purposes. The company said that it transfers funds for pre-operational expenses and the purchase of other local construction materials to its project accounts in the host countries for payment to vendors in line with the countries’ regulations. DIL said that all of these transactions are well documented and approved.
The company said that it has been able to repatriate foreign exchange into Nigeria as a result of these measures. DIL said that all of the payments made in respect of its various African projects can be further verified, having been audited over the years by its auditors, Messrs Deloitte & Touche and KPMG in the course of their statutory audits.
DIL said that the CBN gave it approvals between 2010 and 2018 to purchase $3.755 billion in foreign exchange from the Interbank market for the funding of its various African projects. The company said that it has only utilized 47.70% of the approvals in the total sum of N1.791 billion.
It called on the public to disregard the allegations against it, saying that they are false and malicious. The company said that it remains committed to its investments in Nigeria and Africa, and to contributing to the economic development of the continent.
