Billionaire Alhaji Aliko Dangote
travelled from Nigeria to Dar es Salaam to sort out the mess, which was
mainly exacerbated by wicked people bent on frustrating the project for
personal interest.
During the talks at State House in Dar
es Salaam, Dr Magufuli assured the investor that his administration will
continue creating favourable environment for all investors in the
country to catalyse industrialisation drive.
He said there has never been any problem
with the Mtwarabased cement manufacturer as recently reported in the
media, accusing people bent on dubiously benefiting from the coal supply
business of engineering the destructive information.
The president assured the investor that
he will directly procure the natural gas from the Tanzania Petroleum
Development Corporation (TPDC) instead of sourcing it from middlemen.
"You should always consult the
government in case you face any problem or you need any information
instead of using people who are after profit making,” said Dr Magufuli,
explaining that Mr Dangote had requested for land but dishonesty people
wanted to cash in his demand by selling him a plot for 43bn/-, which the
president described as pure greed and unfair.
Mr Dangote dismissed as trash the
recently widespread media reports that he had closed down the cement
plant due to the government ban on the importation of coal, saying,
“It does not make sense because
Tanzanian coal is not only cheap but also of high quality.” He confirmed
that the company has 600 trucks for cement distribution in the country,
adding that apart from conducting business in Tanzania, he also intends
to generate more jobs for Tanzanians.
The investor said it was commercially
illogical for him to import raw materials, which are readily available
in the country, assuring the president that he remains committed to
working with the government and has no plan of closing the cement plant.
Recently, the Dangote Cement Chief
Executive Officer, Mr Harpreet Duggal, dismissed as false and malicious
reports that it had suspended operations due to exorbitant production
costs.
He instead attributed the temporary
production halt to technical problems of the plant’s units, saying the
company engineers were working hard to repair the fault parts to have
the plant resuming production soon.
Meanwhile, President Magufuli yesterday
swore-in the newly appointed Njombe Regional Commissioner (RC), Mr
Christopher Ole-Sendeka, who is taking over from Dr Rehema Nchimbi whom
the president has transferred to Singida.
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