By Our Reporter
THE management of Dangote Coal Mines Ltd has debunked the allegation by Ad’Okpokwu, Chief James Okefe, the second-class traditional ruler in Okpokwu LGA of Benue State, who alleged that the company has hands in the recent killing of 14 persons in a village under his custody.
Chief Okefe had specifically alleged that Mr Eluja brought into the host community foreigners to intimidate the people of the area. He made the allegation while reacting to claims by Mr Nuhu Eluja, the General Manager (Special Duties) of Dangote Mines Ltd, who had spoken on issues of compensation, Community Development Agreement (CDA) and insecurity in the area at a stakeholders’ meeting held at Government House, Makurdi, between the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), the Benue State chapter of the Miners Association of Nigeria and relevant stakeholders in the state.
Chief Okefe had noted that when suspected Fulani bandits attacked and killed several people in Edumoga District of Okpokwu LGA, Mr Eluja did not as much as showed any concern by sending condolence message to him or the people of Edumoga District.
“I told him [Eluja] that all those people you are bringing, you cannot use foreigners to intimidate my people; it is not possible. When anything happens these days, they will say traditional ruler. Ask him [Eluja], when Fulani came and machete 14 people in Okpokwu, even sorry, no message from Dangote, just common sorry on phone, Eluja is here. Then, he will come and say all those things about Okpokwu?” Chief Okefe stated.
Allegation Completely Unfounded – Eluja
But Mr Eluja, in his response to Chief Okefe as contained in our report, told National Record in a telephone interview that “there is no element of truth” in the allegation and that it “is completely unfounded.”
He said he did not respond to the allegation on the floor of the meeting at Government House Makurdi in deference to the traditional stool Chief Okefe occupies as it will in accordance with his [Eluja] people’s culture and tradition amount to disrespect to the people of the host community.
“You see, in my place, we have great respect for traditional rulers and the way he presented those issues, if I want to challenge or respond on that floor, it will amount to disregarding a traditional ruler. So, I just decided to keep my cool,” Mr Eluja told National record when asked why he did not respond to the allegations on the floor of the stakeholders meeting.
Mr Eluja said he is debunking the “the allegations because there is no element of truth in them. One, he alleged that we are behind, and even specifically mentioned me, Mr Eluja, of being behind the Fulani attack on one of his communities sometime a go that led to the death of 14 of the villagers. I don’t see how he can link that incident with activities of Dangote and even with me in particular.”
Mr Eluja pointed out that Chief Okefe, in talking about bringing into the local government area foreigners, may be inferring to the military brought by the management to secure personnel and the company’s equipment.
“I don’t know, I have never interacted with any Fulani, or none of our workers or even the expatriates, we have never interacted with them [Fulani], not to talk of bringing them to attack our host local government. So, that allegation is completely unfounded.
“He [Chief Okefe] said I brought foreigners into the community and that they are the ones who are the cause of all these attacks. Those we brought that he may be referring to; no doubt, we brought in the military to secure our property and the lives of the personnel, especially at one time when there was attack in Ajaokuta, this ceramic industry in Kogi State. That sent fears into the minds of management and they now said we can ask for the military to come in so that they can secure the lives of our personnel, especially the expatriates and our equipment.
“From time to time, we used to experience sporadic gunshots especially from those guys that come in the night to steal our diesel. Stealing of diesel has become a business for many of these host communities and all the diesel they are trading in are from Dangote site. So, we had to bring in the military, and even as I am talking to you now, arrangements are also on to bring in the civil defence to complement the efforts of the soldiers.
“So, in all these things, they are not happy, they said why can’t we engage the local vigilantes but we don’t trust them, and they don’t have the relevant equipment that can protect our personnel and equipment. So, we didn’t bring any foreigner to come and attack them,” Mr Eluja stated.
Eluja expressed surprised that Chief Okefe could link him to the killings and that he sees the allegation as a very serious matter. He asked National Record to independently verify from the security agencies those investigated to have been behind the attack that killed several people in Igama Village of Edumoga District in Okpokwu LGA of the state.
“I said what link, how will I know? That is a very serious matter, and I think this man is just trying to tarnish my image. Of what link does the company has with Fulanis; we don’t know any of them. So, I even want to ask if he is sure of what he is saying or it is just a figment of his imagination.
“You can contact the SSS, the security agents in Okpokwu LGA. Since that incident, they too have carried out their investigation, the DPO, Okpokwu local government is there; the DPO Okpoga is there; the Area Commander of police in charge of Ogbadibo and Okpokwu are there, I can give you their phone numbers, you can contact them; the President General of Ugbokolo, Chief Robert Ameh, is there; the youth leaders of Ugbokolo as a whole, Mr John Audu Agboji, is there. This is the first time we are hearing that Dangote is linked to that attack by Fulanis. I just don’t know whether he just wanted to make name or he just want to tarnish our image that he came openly to make that kind of allegation? Eluja said.
Eluja also spoke on the allegation by Chief Okefe that Mr Eluja deliberated ignored him and was dealing with the first-class traditional, Chief George Edeh, explaining that his meeting with the traditional ruler was on the instruction of HRM, the Och’Idoma.
“He [Chief Okefe] also alleged that I boycotted him and was dealing with the first-class chief, that is former head of service, chief George Edeh. Chief George Edeh called me one day when we had problem with Abache Community and they stopped our work for several days. So, I complained to Och’Idoma, His Royal Majesty, because we are very close to him; anytime we have problem, we discuss with him, and he said okay. Chief Edeh called me, that Och’Idoma referred our case with Abache Community to him and that he would want me to meet him at Makurdi, because he is still resident at Makurdi?
“He invited me, he invited Chief Robert Ameh, the President General of Ugbokolo and he invited the representative of Abache Community, though he didn’t come that day, the rep of Abache didn’t come because he said he was in Abuja, so Chief Robert and two other officials of Ugbokolo Community were there at Makurdi and they told us that His Royal Majesty, Och’Idoma, referred the matter to him to handle. So, I did not boycott Chief Okefe to go to the first-class chief. The matter was referred to Chief George Edeh by His Royal Majesty and it is not we that went directly to him. Previously, there were other cases that His Royal Majesty referred Okefe and he couldn’t handle them. So, I don’t know, may be, that is what informed his decision this time around to refer the matter to the first-class chief to handle. So, that is one of the allegations against me that I boycott him and go to Chief Edeh.
Mr Eluja, in his explanation, also accused Chief Okefe of being behind an attack on the company workers by thugs with some of them threatening to damage the company’s equipment. He said the company was to later discover that Chief Okefe plotted the attack because of some grievances he nurtured against the company.
“Let me give you some oral clue to the whole issue. You know he was appointed in February 2021 as second-class chief of Okpokwu, and by November 2021, he led some group of thugs to our site to attack our workers and even some of them threaten to damage our equipment. We went into the matter; what was the reason? We later discovered that he was the brain behind the whole something because finally he summoned us to his house for a meeting at Okpoga.
“At the meeting, we asked him what were his real grievances. What he put before us were; one, that since he became a traditional ruler, Dangote had not paid any courtesy visit to him, not to talk of recognising him as a traditional ruler, the custodian of the land in the local government. To that we apologised and we said whatever mistake we had made, we will correct it, and he now said, okay, and we need to carry him along in whatever we are doing; we said okay, no problem.”
Eluja also spoke on the issues of CDAs, stating that it was not true that Chief Okefe had not seen the CDA. According to him, he and another colleague from the company visited the traditional ruler and made available to him a copy of the draft CDA.
“When Chief Okefe came in and he requested for the CDA, I said yes, we have sent it to the Federal Ministry [of Mines and Steel Development] for vetting but we have the draft. He requested for it and I packaged it; with my colleague, we went to him at Okpoga in his house and delivered it to him. So, even if the Federal Ministry [of Mines and Steel Development] is going to change anything, the major content will not be changed, it may just be some technicalities. So, even if he said he doesn’t have the signed one, he has the draft. He acknowledged that he went through it and that the content is not bad. For him to come openly now and deny that he doesn’t even see the CDA, and so on and so forth; he even said he doesn’t know what they paid to the communities as compensation that day we were making presentation. Ask him, he has a copy of the CDA,” Eluja asserted.
Meanwhile, Chief Okefe, when contacted and told of the response of Mr Eluja in which he counter-accused him [Chief Okefe] of leading thugs to attack the company and subsequently collecting a range of allowances from the company, Chief Okefe said he does not want to join issues with either the company or Mr Eluja.
He said both the company and Mr Eluja are his subjects and as a result, he is not interested in any public or media engagement with them.
“What is bringing all these issues is, if you go to Abache now, you will not see any clinic, you will not see any primary school, you will not see any of my people who are employed by the company. Any time you raise issues with them, they will tell you CDA [Community Development Agreement]. This CDA that they talk about, nobody, none of us have sighted it. We should join hands together to ensure that our people benefit from the company’s activities.
“If I had not petitioned against the company to the DSS, the road and the bridge linking the village to the main road would not have been rehabilitated. For me, as Dangote is operating on our land, they are my subjects; should we be engaging each other in public or in the media? I don’t think that is the essence.
“I think the most important thing, number one, is to embrace Dangote and tell them what they are supposed to do for the host communities. If the company grows, one or two persons, either indigene of non-indigene, as far as they are Nigerians, they will benefit. To begin to publish and air everything we say, for me, is not important, it has no economic value to us,” Chief Okefe said among other things.
