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Dangote, Amosun differ over demolition of cement factory in Ogun

The President of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has accused former Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun, of demolishing his cement plant twice during his tenure.
Dangote made the claim on Monday during a meeting with Governor Dapo Abiodun.
But in a swift reaction, Amosun, in a statement by his media office, described Dangote’s allegation, challenging him to “avail the public of the requisite approvals for the construction of the structures he alleged were demolished.
“While we will not give vent to this obvious mischief as it is deliberate, we will advise Alhaji Dangote to furnish the public with details of the land acquisition with relevant planning approvals, and let us engage in a constructive conversation therefrom,” Amosun’s media office said.
Dangote, in a video from the meeting with Abiodun, alleged that the Amosun administration twice pulled down his cement factory while it was under construction.
He said, “I deem it fit to have it on record that the factory we are visiting now in Itori, it’s because of His Excellency that we came back. That factory was demolished twice.
“We started building, then Amosun demolished it. The second time, we started again, he demolished not only the factory but also the fence; so we left.
“But right now, we’re coming back because of His Excellency, my brother, Prince Dapo Abiodun, we’re now back. When we go there, you’ll be very surprised.”
But responding to the allegation, in a statement signed by Lanre Akinwale, Amosun described Dangote’s allegation as deliberate mischief.
The statement read, “We have just seen footage in which the Chairman of the Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, alleged that his cement factory in Itori, Ogun State, was demolished twice while Senator Ibikunle Amosun served as governor.
“We assume that an average person understands how government functions through ministries, departments, and agencies, with each exercising mandates on specific responsibilities, including approvals for physical development.
“It is on this basis that we want to appeal to Alhaji Dangote to avail the public of the requisite approvals for the construction of the structures he alleged were demolished.
“This will, at least, help the public to put the issue in proper context and for us to know what exactly his grouse is.”
While hinting at alleged legal breaches, Amosun’s media office said, “For us, as a government, we believed that there could not be two governments in a state, and Dangote, therefore, could not operate above the law or under a different set of laws.”
The statement said it was ironical that during the commissioning of his Ibese Cement factory, “Dangote praised the Amosun administration to high heavens for its promotion of investments in Ogun State and for facilitating the commencement of the cement factory after eight years of frustration as he then alleged by other administrations.”
Refuting the allegation of frustrating businesses, the media team boasted that Amosun’s administration “attracted over 500 companies to the state and was acknowledged by the World Bank as one of the top three states ensuring Ease-of-Doing-Business in Nigeria.”
“It is also on record that during Senator Amosun’s administration, Ogun State became the ‘Industrial Capital’ of Nigeria. Our state at the time accounted for about 75 per cent of the Foreign Direct Investments, in relation to industry in the country. This is a fact subject to verification.
“This recognition was further given a fillip to by former President, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan when he visited Ogun State to inaugurate multinational projects on five different occasions.
“Thus, while we will not give vent to this obvious mischief as it is deliberate, we will advise Alhaji Dangote to furnish the public with details of the land acquisition with relevant planning approvals, and let us engage in a constructive conversation therefrom.
“However, while we will wait to hear from him, we would like to state that not all Nigerians can be compromised, bullied or blackmailed. The notion that everyone has a price is an expression applicable only to people with weak foundations and questionable upbringing. This is why some of us will continue to uphold high standards in all our undertakings, irrespective of whose ox is gored.”
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Galadima knocks Jandor’s return, says SDP is APC’s branch

By Francesca Hangeior
A chieftain of the New Nigeria Peoples Party, Buba Galadima, has described the Social Democratic Party as a faction of the ruling All Progressives Congress.
Speaking on The Morning Show on Arise Television on Tuesday, Galadima claimed that the SDP was merely an extension of the APC, questioning the party’s independence.
“The SDP is a branch of the APC. It was those APC people that moved to what you now call SDP. How many people from other parties have moved to the SDP?
“That is the question the people or the media should ask. It is not out of place. You are in Lagos, this is the character of Lagos; to decimate opposition,” Galadima said.
His remarks come amid the recent defection of former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, from the APC to the SDP.
El-Rufai has been mobilising politicians to join the party in a bid to challenge President Bola Tinubu in 2027.
Galadima also criticised opposition politicians who rejoined the APC after contesting elections.
He cited the case of former Lagos PDP governorship candidate, Abdul-Azeez Adediran, known as Jandor, who returned to the APC on Monday, citing internal crises in the PDP.
“Look at what Jandor has done. Look at the support the people of Lagos have given Jandor. In fact, I will say that he won the election. It was taken away from him.
“But look at him, he just backpedalled and went back to the APC. How are we going to do opposition? We should do opposition of principles, even if you’re alone, you should stand on your own principles,” Galadima stated.
He, however, insisted that the NNPP would not enter coalitions just to gain power.
He said, “We are a party of ideology. We are a party of principle. We don’t just go into a coalition for the sake of it because we want power at all costs.
“We are content with the platform we have. One day, we can grow this party and win the national election.”
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China, Cambodia hail Trump’s decision to defund US-funded media

By Francesca Hangeior
Beijing on Tuesday said media outlets facing the axe by US President Donald Trump had a “notorious” history of reporting on China, as Cambodia’s autocratic former leader hailed the move for “combating fake news”.
Trump signed an order last week freezing Voice of America, Radio Free Asia, Radio Free Europe and other outlets as part of his sweeping cuts to Federal Government spending.
RFA was created to provide reporting to China, North Korea and other countries in the region with heavily restricted press.
It has reported extensively in recent years on issues highly sensitive to Beijing authorities and other autocratic leaders in Asia.
Asked about Trump’s decision during a daily news briefing, China’s foreign ministry said it did not comment on domestic policies of the US government.
But, said spokeswoman Mao Ning: “I think it is no secret that some of the US media you mentioned have a notorious track record in reporting on China.”
In an editorial, state-backed nationalist tabloid Global Times went further — describing Voice of America as a “lie factory”.
“The so-called beacon of freedom, VOA, has now been discarded by its own government like a dirty rag,” it said.
“The demonising narratives propagated by VOA will ultimately become a laughingstock of the times,” it added.
China has frequently criticised Western media reporting on the country as “biased” and it heavily restricts the operations of domestic news outlets.
Thorny topics covered by RFA and its fellow outlets included China’s alleged large-scale human rights abuses against ethnic minorities in the regions of Xinjiang and Tibet, as well as the crackdown on democratic activists in Hong Kong.
Notably, Radio Free Asia’s reporting is published in a wide range of languages spoken in China, including Tibetan and Uyghur as well as Mandarin and Cantonese.
Related news stories are heavily censored in China’s domestic media environment — and foreign reports on the subjects are blocked online.
The outlets had also long been critical of the influential former leader of Cambodia Hun Sen.
He welcomed the move to cut their funding, praising Trump for “his courage to lead the world in combating fake news, starting with news outlets funded by the US government”.
Hun Sen, who ruled Cambodia with an iron fist for nearly four decades and shut down multiple independent media outlets, has been the subject of critical reporting by VOA and Radio Free Asia.
In 2020, Beijing ordered several US media outlets — including VOA — to declare in writing their staff, finances, operations and real estate in China.
The decree was part of a media row between Washington and Beijing that saw more than a dozen journalists working for US media expelled from China.
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No strong opponent in Anambra governorship election – Soludo

By Francesca Hangeior
Anambra State Governor, Chukwuma Soludo, has dismissed any serious competition ahead of the November 8, 2025, governorship election in the state.
Soludo declared that he had not seen any worthy challenger.
He said there is a general agreement among Anambra people that his party, the All Progressives Grand Alliance, has delivered good governance and deserves another term.
He stated this during a media chat marking his third year in office on Monday.
Soludo noted that while Anambra voters may back different parties in national elections, they remain loyal to APGA when it comes to governorship and local government polls.
“If there is an election, I mean there will be an election, and if I am a candidate, I will be on the ballot, and then I ask: who else is running?
“Which party is fielding a candidate? So far, unless the person will come down from somewhere, I have not heard of any,” he said.
Soludo acknowledged that people have urged him to seek a second term, but the final decision rests with his party.
“The party has to agree to it and give me the platform. For me, I applied for this job intentionally because I felt that’s my way of thanking God for His bountiful blessing—to spend the rest of my life serving and leaving this place better than I met it.
“If my party nominates me and if my employers, who are the Anambra people, graciously renew the tenure, of course, it’s a great honour and a great privilege to serve,” he added.
Anambra is among eight states where governorship elections are held off-season due to court rulings.
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