“He is Playing Emotional Blackmail, Nigerians Are Swallowing It” – Financial Expert Slams Dangote

Financial analyst Tosin Adeoti has raised concerns about the recent actions of Dangote Refinery, accusing its Chairman, Aliko Dangote, of employing emotional blackmail to sway public opinion.

This comes after Dangote Refinery announced that it might have to export 95-97% of its Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) due to a lack of local patronage by Nigerian fuel marketers. According to Edwin Devakumar, Vice President of Oil and Gas at Dangote Industries Limited, only 3-5% of marketers have shown interest in purchasing petrol from the refinery.

Adeoti, however, challenged this narrative, claiming that Dangote’s strategy appears to be an attempt to secure government intervention by portraying fuel marketers as sabotaging the refinery. He likened this tactic to previous instances where Dangote allegedly sought bans on competing products.

In a post shared on his Facebook page on Friday, Adeoti urged Dangote to disclose the price of his refinery’s petrol, suggesting that fuel marketers might not be buying from Dangote simply because the refinery’s product might be more expensive than imported fuel, which has a landing cost of N1,117 per litre.

“Marketers won’t refuse to buy from Dangote if he is selling a cheaper product. It doesn’t make business sense,” Adeoti wrote.

He further argued that marketers are currently struggling to offload old stock purchased at higher prices, questioning why they should be compelled to exclusively buy from Dangote.

Adeoti also suggested alternatives for Dangote Refinery, including opening its own petrol stations or forming partnerships with existing major petrol stations to sell directly to consumers.

“Importation is the only competition Dangote has that could push for greater efficiency. But instead, the strategy seems to be appealing to Nigerians about so-called cabals sabotaging the refinery, hoping this will lead to protective bans like in the past,” he stated.

Adeoti concluded by warning Nigerians to be cautious of emotionally charged rhetoric, urging them to consider their own best interests when evaluating the situation.