Dangote Group speaks on EFCC investigation
By Yusuf Yunus
The management of Dangote Industries Ltd. on Sunday reacted to the raid on its Lagos head office by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The multi-product group, in a statement in Lagos, said it was prepared to assist the government agency in its investigation on foreign exchange allocations when Godwin Emefiele was Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria(CBN).
It confirmed receipt of the anti-graft agency’s letter on Dec. 6, 2023, requesting details of all the foreign exchange allocated to it by the CBN from 2014 till date.
“The EFCC letter was not peculiar to Dangote Group. We understand similar letters were sent to 51 other groups of companies requesting same information spanning the same period.
It said it had sought clarification on the subsidiaries or companies within the Group that the agency was requiring information on.
The conglomerate said it also requested for additional time to compile and properly present the extensive documentation spanning 10 years.
It explained, however, that the EFCC did not provide the clarification sought and did not honour the request for an extension.
“It (EFCC) insisted on receiving the complete set of documents within the limited time frame.
“In spite of 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 Jan. 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.
“While our representatives were still at the EFCC’s office to deliver the documents, a team of their officers came to our offices to demand the same documents in a manner that appeared designed to cause us unwarranted embarrassment.
“Worthy of note is the fact that the officials did not take any documents or files from our head office during their visit as these were already in their office.
“We must emphasise that, to our knowledge, no accusations of wrongdoing have been made against any company within our Group.
“Currently, we are only responding to a request for information to assist the EFCC with their ongoing investigation,” the statement said.
Stating its resolve to continue to play its key role in stimulating the domestic economy, the Dangote Group declared that as a law-abiding and ethical corporate citizen, it was committed to providing the EFCC with all necessary information and cooperation.
“We have already delivered the first batch of documents and are actively working on compiling and submitting the remaining documents, in good time, to aid their investigation.
“Our Group is a key contributor to the national 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 to investment and value creation for both local and foreign investors.
The company called for the understanding and patience of stakeholders and promised to inform them of any further developments.
It would be recalled that the EFCC, on Jan. 4, conducted a search on the head office of Dangote Group in Lagos over alleged forex transactions with the CBN.
It was gathered that the EFCC officials were investigating foreign exchange allocations to the group when Emefiele was CBN Governor.
