Army, Dangote Sugar: No employee was shot dead
The Nigerian Army the management of Dangote Sugar Refinary, Yola have dismissed the rumor that seven protesting employees were shot dead.
This was contained in twlo separate stament issued by the Nigerian Army and the management of Dangote Sugar Refinary.
In the statement signed by Major Haruna Mohammed Sani, Assistant Director Army Public Relations, 23 Brigade Yola, it reads, “The attention of Headquarters 23 Brigade Nigerian Army has been drawn to a mischievous Sahara Reporters story alleging soldiers opened fire on protesting staff of Dangote Sugar Company at Gyawana district under Lafiya Lamurde Local Government Area of Adamawa state.
“In order to give the proper perspective on the libelous narrative, this headquarters wishes to inform the general public that on 15 July 2021 at about 2: 00 pm, the Gyawana community staged a protest against the management of Dangote Sugar Company threatening to shut down the establishment and abduct foreign expatriates for sacking some staff of the company who are members of the host community.”
He noted that the Army came in to manage the situation when efforts to calm the situation by the Nigerian Police and personnel of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence corps proved abortive as the irate youths, wielding cutlasses,machettes and other dangerous weapons, overpowered them.
He said, “When a distress call was made to an Internal Security outfit in Adamawa state Nicknamed Operation Farauta, comprising soldiers and other Para-military Agencies, they swiftly mobilized and moved to reinforce the Police and Civil Defence deployment at the location. In the process, tear gas as well as warning shots were fired as some of the non- violent means of crowd dispersal and to further prevent own troops from being lynched by the mob.
“Consequently, the situation was brought under control. Unfortunately, some soldiers sustained minor injuries from the stones thrown by the mob but no single protester was killed.
“The Sahara Reporters’ story was therefore written in a haste without observing the basic tenets of objectivity and balance in news story writing. It is also a calculated attempt to dent the image of the Nigerian Army which is doing so much to ensure that the good people of Adamawa state live in peace without threat to their lives and property.
On the part of Dangote Sugar, the Managing Director, Mr. Ravindra Singhvi, in a statement, stated that there was no protest by its staff, stressing that no one was shot dead as insinuated in an online report.
The statement reads, “The attention of the management of Dangote Sugar Refinery (DSR) has been drawn to an online report by Sahara Reporters about the deaths of some protesting staff at our Sugar Refinery, in Numan, Adamawa state.
“We would like to state categorically that this report is an absolute falsehood, none of our staff protested and no life was lost. On several occasions, members of the Gyawana Youth Association have shut down the operations of the company while threatening staff on duty to stop work.
“The activities of these hoodlums have been reported to security operatives following which the Adamawa State Commissioner of Police and State Director of Security Services invited the executives of the Association and asked them to desist from interfering and threatening the DSR Numan’s staff and operations.
“To protect our staff from external violence and ensure continuity, DSR Numan also obtained a Restraining Order from the Magistrate Court in Numan against the Gwayana Youth Association; an order they disobeyed, resulting in an arrest warrant issued by court against the Executives of the same Association.”
The MD disclosed that another threat was issued by the Youth Association on Thursday, July 15, 2021, about plans to forcefully enter and destroy the assets of the company and attack any person found within the company premises.
He pointed out that with this threat to life, family and company assets, management requested the assistance of law enforcement agencies in Numan to help protect life and assets of the company.
“In a bid to prevent the protesting youths from forcefully shutting down the company’s operations, the law enforcement officers mounted a barricade at the entrance of the Company during which three people sustained minor injuries and were promptly taken to the hospital for treatment and discharged accordingly.
“We repeat that no single casualty was recorded during the protest as erroneously reported in the online publication. As a responsible corporate organisation, we believe in due process and rule of law and sanctity of human lives and that was why we went to court and also reported the disturbance to the security agencies.
“We also urge Sahara Reporters to always check thoroughly to have all the facts before rushing to the press as to avoid misleading the populace.” He stated.
