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A
Toast to Dangote
Uche Ohia
As a small
boy spending Christmas with my parents in the village in the early 1970s, I
rode out proudly to the village playground one evening on my new Chopper Bicycle with my black and white
football fastened to the carrier at the back. If I thought all the other kids
would eat out of my hands because of my prized toys, I was mistaken. Initially,
many could not hide their admiration. But when it seemed that I was the focus
of attention, they kept their distance. Some made snide remarks or gestures and
a few glared at me and at the excited kids clustering around me. I found out
that good fortune does not always endear anyone to all his compatriots. It was
a lesson I never forgot. Since he became the legendary man with the Midas touch
and particularly since March 5 when he made history by being listed in Forbes 2008 list of world billionaires, Aliko Dangote has
had to contend with such ambivalence that beclouds public attitude to
affluence.
According to the American publishing
and media company, Nebraska based investment guru Warren Buffet (the sage of
Omaha), has become the richest man in the world with $62b, Mexican
communications magnate, Carlos Slim Helu, is ranked second with a net worth of
$60b, while computer software colossus Bill Gates (who held the title of the
world’s richest man for 13 unbroken tears) is 3rd with $58b. Dangote
with $3.3b is ranked 334 (a position he shares with 14 others). This makes him
the richest black person in the world ahead of black American TV talkshow icon
Oprah Winfrey ($2.5 billion), Mo Ibrahim ($2.5 billion) and
South Africa’s Patrice Motsepe, who
is ranked 503 with $2.4 billion. Dangote is preceded by two white South Africans:
Nicky Oppenheimer of DeBeers Inc. at no 187 and Johann Rupert at no 284.
From a modest commodity trading concern
established in the late 1970s buoyed by a loan from a benevolent uncle, Dangote
has today built a multi-billion naira conglomerate with heavy investments in
commodities, banking, agriculture, manufacturing, textile, import, exports,
agro sacks, freight and port operations. His interests cover such essentials as
cement, salt, sugar, rice, flour, pasta, and his operations go beyond
Nigeria to Benin, Ghana, Nigeria,
and Togo. Dangote creates wealth
and jobs. He has a staff strength of
over 15,000 with a broad minded employment policy devoid of discrimination. And
he pays hefty taxes! Dangote’s achievement brings to global focus the positive
potentials, the acumen, intelligence, energy and resourcefulness that are
abundant in
Nigeria.
Still Dangote’s name evokes mixed
reactions. For some, he is a beneficiary of government patronage who profited
from a vile political cronyism and bought up the people's patrimony at auction
prices. He is seen as creating a virtual monopoly over his products and
fiddling with the supply chain to push prices up or down despite the incentives
and waivers granted to him. Not a few consider him fit for anti-trust trial.
But we have a predilection for demonizing wealthy compatriots. Ndigbo explain
it with an adage: nwata ibeya kpakaliri
na-nku na-asi n’okpara nkeya n’ajo ohia (a child whose peer fetches more
firewood than him, claims that his peer gathered his own firewood in the evil
forest). Indeed, the universal perception of great wealth tends towards the
statement in Mario Puzo’s novel, The
Godfather attributed to the French novelist, Balzac: “behind every great
fortune, there is a crime”. Maybe. Maybe not.
All over the world, it is the duty of
government to regulate business - to check the emergence of monopolies and to
ensure fair competition. Which astute businessman will not take advantage of a
system that provides ample latitude for him to realize his dreams? Which
ambitious businessman will not hasten to maintain the best possible
relationship with the government in power? Which businessman will not apply his
economic muscle to influence politics in order to expand his investment
opportunities? They all do one way or another! Did Buffett not hold fundraisers
for both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama for president based on his belief
that both would make "great Presidents"? Were the earliest
billionaires in the
US
- J.P Morgan, J.D. Rockefeller, and Andrew Carnegie - not tagged as robber
barons? Dangote’s business empire was not built during the privatization
scheme. As a man with a dream and the determination to realize it, he only took
advantage of an opportunity he saw to expand his tentacles. Dangote invests in
Nigeria because he believes in
Nigeria. And he calls on everyone
else to do the same.
But there is a thread that runs through
all billionaires: philanthropy. The legacy of the greatest entrepreneurs is
that they devote substantial time and resources to charitable activities.
Rockefeller, Carnegie, Ford, and Bill Gates, all have foundations established
in their name which serve as a platform for demonstration of corporate
responsibility. Warren Buffet gives out a chunk of his wealth to charities.
Bill Clinton described Carlos Slim Helu as “the most important
philanthropist
in the world most people have never heard of". Soon the question
will boil down to how much of Dangote’s billions are trailing back to the
community through acts of compassion. How many chairs has he endowed in
Nigerian Universities? What cause is he devoted to? Which national malady is he
committed to its eradication? These are the signs of social responsibility.
About
a year ago, the Dangote Foundation
(DF), a proposed operating and grant making entity that would focus on
improving the living conditions of all Nigerians through support for projects
which tackle hunger and water supply problems, strengthen the quality and
quantity of health and education, and promote economic empowerment at the
community level was made public. Aside from a N15m donation by DF to UNICEF to
support the polio eradication campaign in northern Nigeria, donation of food
items to orphanage homes across the country, and recent plans by Dangote Group
to launch a programme called “Own A Truck Scheme” whereby the company’s truck
drivers would become owners of the trucks they drive, little else has been
heard of DF. Compared to the N200m donation which Dangote made to Obasanjo’s
2003 re-election campaign and N200m to the Presidential Library project, the DF
initiatives seem like a drop in the ocean.
Americans celebrate the American Dream warts and
all notwithstanding the fact that there are no American success stories that do
not have controversies trailing them. By his humility, modesty and robust achievements, Aliko Dangote is a Nigerian success story - the
Nigerian Dream writ large. We ought to celebrate him and others like him. In a
country where billions are more commonly associated with budgets or the charge
sheet of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Dangote deserves
a toast. uchebush@yahoo.com; 0805 109 0050
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Posted by Robot| 17.03.2008 13:17