Dangote

[Jibrin Ibrahim]

Why I Remain a Dangote Fan

Jibrin Ibrahim, Deepening Democracy, Daily Trust, 7th November 2025

Last Sunday, I participated in the Toyin Falola Interview Series, the
topic of which was: “Dangote, Oil and Power in Nigeria.” It is a
widely followed intellectual debate forum streamed on zoom, Facebook,
YouTube, X and a number of radio stations. The Panel had Professors
Victor Oguejiofor Okafor, Mobolaji Ebenezer Aluko, Ehiedu Goodluck
Iweriebor, Jibrin Ibrahim as well as governance scholar John Onyeukwu,
and labour veteran Comrade Owei Lakemfa. The chief host, Professor
Toyin Falola had convened the forum in recognition of Dangote Refinery
well-deserved praise for this historic intervention that completely
changed Nigeria’s industrial destiny. It is for this reason that I
became a fan of the impact Dangote industries are having on Nigeria’s
industrial landscape.

I have not always been a Dangote fan. I actually found him to be an
unscrupulous player when he became a major commodities importer and
distributor in the 1980s. It was a time when public corruption was
organised around import licenses for what were called essential
commodities. Then came the structural adjustment programme (SAP) and
the libertarian of imports. Dangote became the winner of the new
process by rapidly outplaying his rivals in the importation of these
essential commodities – sugar, salt, wheat flour, rice and cement. He
followed a well-known strategy of lowering his prices to destroy the
opposition and raising prices unfairly when he achieved the position
of the monopoly player. He therefore came into the narrative of
Nigerian business as a ruthless player determined to eliminate all
competition so that he could exploit the masses with reckless abandon.
I cannot vouch for the accuracy of this narrative but that was the
street credibility he had at that time. I therefore had a very
negative view of his business operations.

I have heard former president Obasanjo take credit for transforming
Dangote from an importer into a producer that developed a vast
industrial complex in Nigeria and subsequently in Africa. He said he
posed the question to Dangote on what it would take to transform from
an importer to a captain of industry and the response was a no
brainer. It can only happen if he receives state support to make
production in Nigeria as profitable as the import option through
incentives and protectionist measures. Obasanjo says he provided that
support. There is no surprise therefore that the public perception of
Dangote was for a long time as someone who built his empire by
exploiting state resources. It would be very useful for our research
community to probe the evolution of Dangote’s ascent as a captain of
industry.

The important thing he has done for the country however is to bring
back into reality the ambition of the Second National Development Plan
of import substitution industrialization of Nigeria. From the scandal
of the cement import armada of the 1970s when hundreds of ships loaded
with cement were imported at the height of the oil boom and the
government discovered that our ports could not unload them leading to
a pile up that cost the country huge losses. Since then, we have moved
to self-sufficiency in cement production in addition to a significant
level of exports to neighbouring countries. I have travelled to Benin
and Niger Republics by road and felt a sense of pride on seeing long
queues of Dangote trucks exporting our cement.

The establishment of the Dangote refinery, one of the largest in the
world with capacity for processing 650,000 barrels of crude daily is a
huge turning point for Nigeria, indeed for the continent. Already,
some European refineries are closing down as Dangote is taking over
their business. It is a historic intervention in Nigeria’s industrial
destiny as we move from one of the world’s biggest importers to an
exporter ending decades of structural dependence with the associated
crisis of supply disruptions and fuel queues. The complete range of
product delivery from petrol, diesel and aviation fuel to plastics and
fertilisers is creating a huge industrial base for the country. The
icing on the cake is that already, these products are being exported
to the United States, Brazil and even Saudi Arabia building up our
exports and dollar reserve. With Dangote, the African renaissance is
clearly in motion. There is no surprise that the image of Dangote in
Nigeria today is very positive and even the sceptical me has become a
fan.

Dangote himself has said that the refinery project has not been easy
and he has confronted blockages and sabotage at every twist and turn.
I remember the famous de-marketing press conference by the bosses of
the National Petroleum Company under Mele Kyari declaring that the new
refinery was producing sub-standard products only to find out later
that their standards were among the highest in the world. They have
had to import crude from other countries because NNPCL would not sell
to them what they need. At the same time, the profiteers of oil
importation in the country have gone to great lengths to place
obstacles between the refinery and the Nigerian market. Dangote has
shown himself to be a resilient fighter and has been addressing the
numerous challenges as they come along.

One of the most serious challenges he faced was the nationwide strike
declared by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of
Nigeria (PENGASSAN). The labour union grounded operations at key oil
and gas regulatory facilities, including the NNPC, the NUPRC and the
NMDPRA, in response to the sacking of 800 workers by Dangote Petroleum
Refinery and Petrochemicals after they joined PENGASSAN. The
refinery’s management had accused the sacked workers of sabotage.
PENGASSAN accused the refinery’s management of violating Nigerian
labour laws and ILO conventions, alleging that the dismissed staff
were replaced with Indian nationals. Dangote is indeed deeply
anti-union in his operations and I hope he has learnt that trade
unionism is a constitutional right that no industry should be allowed
to violate. For its part, the union should not have attempted to
sabotage an industry that is so important to Nigeria’s development
prospects not just because it is not lawful, but even more because it
would do great harm to the whole country.

After a long period of hostility, the Tinubu Administration appears to
be warming up to Dangote with the recent presidential directive to
place a 15% tariff on imported fuel. I do hope that it is an attempt
to provide some protection for this vital industry that is so
important to our economy. Dear Dangote, I believe that you are right
in your attitude that the struggle continues.



Professor Jibrin Ibrahim
Senior Fellow
Centre for Democracy and Development, Abuja
Follow me on twitter @jibrinibrahim17