The Dangote Group yesterday said it was ready to assist the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in its investigations, following the commission’s visit to the company’s head office in Lagos.
The group, however, said the raid on its company’s head office in Lagos last Thursday was an embarrassment.
In a statement yesterday by its Group Chief, Branding and Communication, Mr Anthony Chiejina, Dangote Group said to its knowledge, no accusations of wrongdoing had been made against any company within its group.
The company’s management, therefore, doused the concerns of stakeholders and called for their patience and understanding while promising to inform them of any further developments.
The company disclosed that it received a letter from the EFCC on Dec. 6, 2023, requesting details of every foreign exchange allocated to it by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) from 2014 till date.
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It described the request from the commission as not peculiar to the Dangote Group, noting that similar letters were sent to 51 other groups of companies requesting for same information spanning the same period.
According to the statement, Dangote Group responded to the EFCC to acknowledge receipt of the letter whilst seeking clarification on the subsidiaries or companies within the group that they require information on.
It stated that the company also requested additional time to compile and properly present the extensive documentation spanning 10 years.
“However, the EFCC did not provide the clarification sought and also did not honour the request for an extension, and insisted on receiving the complete set of documents within the limited timeframe.
“Despite this constraint, we assured the EFCC of our commitment to providing the information and pledged to share documents in batches as we complete the compilation.
“On January 4, our team delivered the first batch of documents to the EFCC. However, officers of the EFCC did not accept the documents, insisting on visiting our offices to collect the same set of documents directly.
“Whilst our representatives were still at the EFCC’s office to deliver the documents, a team of their officers proceeded to visit our offices to demand the same documents in a manner that appeared designed to cause us unwarranted embarrassment,” it said.
It stated that as a law-abiding and ethical corporate citizen, Dangote Group remained committed to providing the EFCC with all necessary information and cooperation, while it continued to play its key role in stimulating the domestic economy.
“We have already delivered the first batch of documents and are actively working to compile and submit the remaining documents in good time, to aid their investigation.
“Our Group is a key contributor to the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) the largest employer in the private sector, one of the largest groups listed on the Nigerian Exchange, and one of the highest taxpayers in the country.
“We remain steadfast in our belief in Nigeria’s commitment to the rule of law and its dedication to fostering an environment conducive for investment and value creation for both local and foreign investors,” it said.
EFCC operatives of EFCC had last Thursday, January 4, stormed the headquarters of Dangote Industries Limited in Ikoyi, Lagos, in furtherance of the ongoing investigation into the alleged abuse of the foreign exchange allocations by the immediate past governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele.
The EFCC is probing the alleged preferential allocations of forex to the Dangote Group owned by billionaire Aliko Dangote and 51 other companies under the Emefiele-led CBN.
