The Dangote Group has expressed readiness to assist the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in its investigations, following the visit of the officers of the anti-graft agency to the company’s head office in Lagos.

It would be recalled that the EFCC operatives, on January 4, 2024, embarked on a search mission to the head office of Dangote Group in Lagos.

The search followed the probe of 52 companies by the EFCC over forex transactions in the last 10 years.

The anti-graft agency is investigating forex allocations to these companies during the tenure of Godwin Emefiele as the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Speaking on the development, Dangote Group, in a statement issued by its Group Chief, Branding and Communication, Anthony Chiejina, on Sunday, January 7, doused the concerns of stakeholders and called for their patience and understanding, promising to inform them of any further developments.

The company disclosed that it received a letter from the EFCC on December 6, 2023, requesting the details of every foreign exchange allocated to it by the CBN from 2014 till date.

It described the request from the anti-graft agency as not peculiar to Dangote Group, noting that similar letters were sent to 51 other companies requesting the same information spanning the same period.

Dangote Group said it responded to the EFCC to acknowledge receipt of the letter seeking clarification on the subsidiaries or companies within the group that they require information on.

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It stated that the company also requested additional time to compile and properly present the extensive documentation spanning 10 years.

The company said: “However, the EFCC did not provide the clarification sought and also did not honour the request for an extension and insisted on receiving the complete set of documents within the limited timeframe.

“In spite of this constraint, we assured the EFCC of our commitment to providing the information and pledged to share documents in batches as we complete the compilation.

“On January 4, our team delivered the first batch of documents to the EFCC. However, officers of the EFCC did not accept the documents, insisting on visiting our offices to collect the same set of documents directly.

“Whilst our representatives were still at the EFCC’s office to deliver the documents, a team of their officers proceeded to visit our offices to demand for the same documents in a manner that appeared designed to cause us unwarranted embarrassment.”

Dangote Group emphasised that to its knowledge, no accusations of wrongdoing had been made against any company within its group.

The company stated that as a law-abiding and ethical corporate citizen, it remained committed to providing the EFCC with all necessary information and cooperation, while it continued to play its key role in stimulating the domestic economy.

It added: “We have already delivered the first batch of documents and are actively working to compile and submit the remaining documents in good time, to aid their investigation.

“Our Group is a key contributor to the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) the largest employer in the private sector, one of the largest groups listed on the Nigerian Exchange and one of the highest taxpayers in the country.

“We remain steadfast in our belief in Nigeria’s commitment to the rule of law and its dedication to fostering an environment conducive for investment and value creation for both local and foreign investors.”

The Star