Dear Dangote, Before Asking Nigerians to Invest, Make Things Cheaper

By Daniel Othegbemeh

Dear Aliko Dangote,

Before asking Nigerians to invest in your refinery, why not make things cheaper?

I am not writing this as an attack on Dangote Refinery, nor am I questioning your success as a businessman. Your achievements are undeniable. You have built businesses across cement, sugar, salt and oil, and your refinery has become one of Africa’s most important industrial projects.

But as a Nigerian watching the excitement surrounding the Dangote Refinery Initial Public Offering, I cannot help but ask a simple question: what exactly are we being asked to invest in, and what are ordinary Nigerians expected to gain from it?

The IPO offers 4.1 billion shares at ₦525 each, meaning an investor can start with 10 shares for ₦5,250. The company hopes to raise about ₦2.15 trillion, with the money intended to support its expansion.

Advertisement

On paper, it sounds like an opportunity for Nigerians to own a piece of a major Nigerian business.

And that is where I begin to have questions.

Nigeria is currently a country where millions of people are struggling with the basics. Food is expensive. Transportation is expensive. Energy is expensive. Many families are simply trying to survive from one day to the next.

Yet, in the middle of this hardship, Nigerians are being encouraged to put their money into an investment that is fundamentally about future returns.

Everyone who invests wants to make money. Nobody puts their hard-earned ₦10,000 into an investment hoping to lose it. That is why I believe Nigerians should ask serious questions before joining the rush simply because the Dangote IPO is the biggest financial story in town.

Personally, I would not invest money in something I do not understand.

Advertisement

And I don’t think Nigerians should be ashamed of saying the same thing.

Being a successful businessman does not mean every decision involving your businesses should be accepted without questions. Being wealthy or influential does not make someone automatically right. If anything, the greater the influence, the greater the need for public scrutiny.

There is also something about the hype surrounding this IPO that concerns me.

When something becomes a national trend, people can begin investing because everyone else is doing it. Someone hears that Dangote shares are available, sees people discussing it online, receives a promotional message and thinks, “I don’t want to miss out.”

But investing should not be driven by fear of missing out.

It should be driven by understanding.

Advertisement

What happens if the company does not perform as expected? What happens to the share price? What happens if dividends are lower than investors anticipate?

These are not imaginary questions. The IPO itself comes with investment risks, and dividends are not guaranteed.

I also understand the argument on the other side.

Dangote is not simply asking Nigerians to hand him money. He is offering them shares in a real operating business. If the company grows and performs well, shareholders could benefit through dividends or an increase in the value of their shares.

That is a legitimate investment proposition.

But my question remains: why must the ordinary Nigerian wait for the long term benefits of ownership when the same Nigerian is struggling with immediate economic realities?

Advertisement

If the refinery succeeds, expands and becomes more profitable, shareholders may benefit. But what about the Nigerian who cannot comfortably afford food today?

This is why I keep coming back to the question of prices.

I know Dangote is not the Nigerian government. I know one businessman cannot solve all of Nigeria’s problems. I also understand that the price of a commodity is influenced by many factors beyond the control of a single company.

But Dangote is not an ordinary businessman either.

His companies have an enormous presence in the Nigerian economy. In his own little way, he has the capacity to influence people’s lives.

So before asking Nigerians to invest in the promise of tomorrow, I would rather see Nigerians experience some benefit today.

Advertisement

Make things cheaper where you can.

Create more opportunities where you can.

Give Nigerians something tangible to feel.

Then tell them to invest.

Because there is a difference between telling people that they can become owners and making people feel that the business they are being invited to own is already improving their lives.

I am also not suggesting that Nigerians should hope for the refinery to fail. Quite the opposite. I want Nigerian businesses to succeed. I want the refinery to expand. I want Nigeria to refine its own crude and become less dependent on imported petroleum products.

Advertisement

But I don’t think Nigerians should be expected to blindly celebrate an investment simply because it carries the name Dangote.

As a journalist, I believe the public has a right to ask questions.

Who benefits?

How much risk is involved?

What exactly are we buying?

What determines whether our investment grows?

Advertisement

And perhaps most importantly what does the ordinary Nigerian gain beyond the promise that their money might be worth more someday?

The Dangote IPO may turn out to be an excellent investment. It may create wealth for thousands or even millions of Nigerians. I genuinely hope it does.

But I won’t buy simply because everyone else is buying.

I won’t invest money I don’t understand.

And I won’t stop asking questions simply because the person behind the investment is one of Africa’s most successful businessmen.

So, Mr Dangote, this is not an attack.

Advertisement

It is a question from one Nigerian to another:

Before asking Nigerians to invest in the future of your refinery, can you also show them how that refinery can make their present a little easier?

Because Nigerians don’t only need the promise of wealth tomorrow.

Many of them need relief today.