AEC Condemns Dialogue Earth’s Attempt To Use Prominent African Voice To Demonise Africa’s Largest Refinery

The African Energy Chamber (AEC), an African energy advocacy group, has condemned the recent smear campaign by China Dialogue Trust, now Dialogue Earth, attempt to use a prominent African voice to put out a demonising piece to attack Dangote Refinery, Africa’s largest refinery and the world biggest single-train refinery.

As earlier reported on Saturday, the British-based NGO, Dialogue Earth, contacted the Editor-in-Chief of West Africa Weekly, David Hundeyin, to produce an article attacking Dangote Refinery. An attempt by a Western NGO to use an African voice to endorse energy poverty in Africa.

It is also important to note the foiled attempt followed a series of reports where the CEO of Dangote Refinery, Aliko Dangote, had, unusually, openly complained about local and international challenges the 650,000 barrels per day refinery has been facing.

After the Dialogue Earth news broke, the AEC, which represents the voice of the African energy sector and a strong advocate for African voices, published a piece condemning the Western NGO on Monday.

In the publication, the AEC said it strongly condemned the dirty tactics employed by Dialogue Earth to hire Africans and use them to destroy their own oil and gas industry.

The AEC fully supports Hundeyin and commends him for standing up against Dialogue Earth. We are wholly against a Western NGO trying to use African voices to advance their biased agenda,” stated NJ Ayuk, Executive Chairman of the AEC, adding that “The attempt to get a well-known Nigerian journalist to endorse such a smear campaign effectively shows a cowardly approach by the Western NGO to try and destroy the African oil and gas industry, all because they can’t do it with their names or organisations.

“We have seen how African crude oil has been treated, how funding for Mozambique LNG has been treated, how the West has constantly attacked South Africa as it tries to develop its natural gas and how they have constantly attacked other gas projects and cut off financing.

“These tactics are hurtful to African development, our fight against energy poverty and young people that want to build strong democracies,” Ayuk added.

Meanwhile, the $500 (₦794,568.19) bribe to write a smear campaign piece against the refinery has gained both local and international traction and also criticism by local NGOs and individuals.

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About The Author

Mayowa Durosinmi

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M. Durosinmi is a West Africa Weekly investigative reporter covering Politics, Human Rights, Health, and Security in West Africa and the Sahel Region

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