The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr. Niyi Adebayo in an interview over the weekend, said the action of the Kogi State Government could rubbish the Federal Government’s programme on promoting ease of doing business in Nigeria.
In the ongoing imbroglio between the Kogi State Government and Dangote Industries Limited, the Federal Government has described the manner the Kogi State Government went about the fight as capable of eroding investor’s confidence in Nigerian economy.
The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr. Niyi Adebayo in an interview over the weekend, said the action of the Kogi State Government could rubbish the Federal Government’s programme on promoting ease of doing business in Nigeria.
Adebayo said: “You are aware that we do not like situation like this because it makes a mockery of the ease of doing business programme of the federal government. I have no doubt that His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari, will reach out to the governor of Kogi State with the view of talking to him.
“The view of the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment (FMITI) is basically that if there is a dispute between a state government and any industry within the state, we have the courts of law to deal with the issue. We believe that it is very wrong for the state governments to take laws into their own hands to address such situations. The courts are there.
“I understand that there is an original agreement between the state government and the Dangote Industries that called for arbitration in the event of a dispute. I believe that all these legal steps should have been taken rather than a state government taking the laws into its own hands. It does not portray Nigeria in good light for sub-nationals to be creating problems for people who have invested money in Nigeria.”
The minister also said the manner the KGSG was addressing its relationship with the Dangote Group was a contradiction of the noble efforts of the Buhari’s government to attract investments into the country.
He said: “You are aware Mr. President just returned from the United States of America where he went to address the United Nations General Assembly. And on the sidelines of that visit to America there was a business summit where Mr. President reached out to foreign investors and was inviting them to come and invest in Nigeria.
“These foreign investors follow the news on events that are happening in Nigeria and if they see that in Nigeria that a sub-national government is treating one of our biggest investors within Nigeria the way that they have done to Dangote Cement in Obajana, it will not portend well for us as a country.”
Adebayo cautioned that, “nobody will be interested in coming to invest in Nigeria in such situation. It is incumbent on us as Nigerians, and as government within Nigeria, especially the sub-nationals to do things in accordance with the law as opposed to just resorting to self-help in troubled times.”
