Shettima urges protection for Dangote’s $20bn refinery

….The $20 billion Dangote Refinery is a national asset.

Vice President Kashim Shettima has called on Nigerians to protect and respect the investments of Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, describing the $20 billion Dangote Refinery as a national asset critical to Nigeria’s economic stability and global relevance.

Speaking at the opening of the 2025 Nigerian Economic Summit in Abuja, Shettima said safeguarding such strategic ventures was vital for the country’s long-term prosperity, especially amid ongoing labour disputes at the refinery.

He stressed that the $20 billion Dangote Refinery, with its 650,000-barrel-per-day capacity, was a national asset vital to Nigeria’s growth and global competitiveness.

The vice president made the remarks against the backdrop of last week’s industrial action by oil workers under the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria over the alleged sack of about 800 unionised employees at the refinery.

The strike was later suspended following the intervention of the Minister of Labour and Employment, Muhammad Dingyadi, and the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu.

Shettima said the billionaire industrialist deserved collective support for choosing to invest heavily in Nigeria rather than abroad.

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He said, “Aliko Dangote, he’s not an individual, he’s an institution, and he’s a leading light in Nigeria’s economic parliament. And how we treat this gentleman will determine how outsiders will judge us. If he had invested $10 billion in Microsoft, in Amazon, or in Google, he probably might be worth $70 to $80 billion by now.

“But he opted to invest in his country, and we owe it to future generations to jealously protect, promote, preserve, and protect the interests of this great Nigeria.”

The Vice President also appealed to both labour unions and the organised private sector to show restraint and patriotism in resolving industrial disputes, warning that reckless actions could undermine national progress.

“I wish to call for caution, retrospection, and a deeper sense of patriotism from both labour and the organised private sector in defining and improving the relationship between labour and industry in the interest of maintaining our steadily improving economic fortunes. It’s not about holding the whole nation to ransom because of a minor labour dispute.

“Nigeria is greater than PENGASSAN. Nigeria is greater than each and every one of us. I’m not coming to you as a partisan,” he added.

Source: Agency.