The 16th Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, has come to the defence of Alhaji Aliko Dangote amid criticisms regarding the purchase of dollars at lower rates during the construction of his refinery.
In a statement shared via SOP Chat Group, Sanusi emphasised that Dangote should not be blamed for the exchange rates he received, as they were determined by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and available to all at the time.
Sanusi began by acknowledging his hesitation to comment but felt compelled to address the misconceptions. “I honestly do not think it is a good idea for me to make comments on these issues, but some comments surprise me, and I just have to say something,” he stated.
He explained that Dangote did not influence the CBN’s dollar pricing and that the rates were uniform for all buyers on the same day. “Aliko Dangote did not fix the price at which the CBN sold dollars. Everyone who got dollars from the CBN got dollars at the same rate if they bought on the same day. So we cannot blame him for buying dollars at a rate the CBN itself decided to sell to its customers,” Sanusi clarified.
Sanusi posed a critical question regarding the allocation of forex, suggesting that prioritizing a project like Dangote’s refinery was logical. He highlighted the significant impact of the refinery on reducing the country’s forex expenditure on petroleum imports and curbing losses from subsidy theft.
“By the way, how much forex did Dangote buy from the CBN at this subsidized rate? How much forex did NNPC take from the federation account in the same year in the name of running and turning around its dead refineries? What are we benchmarking against?” he queried.
The Emir supported the CBN’s decision to back the refinery, considering its potential economic benefits. He stated, “If any Nigerian came to me as a Central Bank Governor with a project like this refinery, I would recognize immediately its potential impact on the economy and give it all the support needed.”
Addressing concerns from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) about energy security, Sanusi argued that local refineries are more secure than relying on imports. He criticized NNPC’s historical inefficiency and the ongoing subsidy issues, stating, “It is a very rich argument from an entity that had taken billions of dollars in the name of turnaround maintenance and not produced a drop of product from four refineries because it is more profitable to continue extracting rent in the name of subsidy.”
Sanusi called for gratitude towards Dangote for his contributions to Nigeria’s economic transformation. He urged the nation to support, rather than criticise, Dangote’s efforts. “Instead of killing Dangote, we should try and make more like him. Nigeria always kills its heroes and its best because of envy and pettiness,” he concluded.
