Billionaire businessman Femi Otedola has flatly rejected circulating claims that he bankrolled the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, slamming the allegations as deliberate misinformation engineered to stir conflict among Nigeria’s top business figures.
In a strongly-worded statement issued Monday, Otedola said he has not put a single kobo into the refinery project. If anything, he noted, the reverse is closer to the truth — he has been lobbying for a special allocation to buy into the refinery’s upcoming public offer.
“Reports claiming that Femi Otedola funded the Dangote Petroleum Refinery are completely and utterly false,” the statement read. “The real story, which those peddling these lies conveniently ignore, is that Mr. Otedola has actually been requesting a special allocation to participate in the refinery’s forthcoming public offer.”
No Approach From Dangote, Otedola Insists
Otedola also pushed back on a related claim that Aliko Dangote personally approached him and fellow billionaires Tony Elumelu and Mike Adenuga seeking financial backing for the refinery.
He maintained that the Dangote Group is a sophisticated corporate entity fully capable of raising structured capital on its own terms — and that no such conversation ever took place.
“I can categorically state that at no point did Alhaji Dangote request financing from Mr. Elumelu, Mr. Adenuga and myself,” Otedola said.
A Shot Across the Bow at Social Media Rumour Mongers
Beyond simply denying the reports, Otedola appeared visibly irritated by what he described as a targeted smear campaign against Nigeria’s private sector elite. He argued that men who have spent decades building companies, generating employment and driving economic growth deserve better than to be reduced to characters in a social media fabrication.
“This is calculated mischief and a deliberate attempt to create rifts and sow discord within Nigeria’s closely knit and respected private sector leadership,” he said.
He closed with a blunt warning to whoever is behind the reports: “Desist immediately. Social media is not a tool for manufactured drama. Nigeria deserves truth, not lies dressed up as insider information.”
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