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Ibeju-Lekki Youths reap benefits of Dangote Refinery vocational Training
Modupe ASUDO
LAGOS-Many indigent youths in Ibeju-Lekki area of Lagos State are now counting their fortunes and reaping the benefits from the first batch of the vocational training programme organized by Dangote Oil Refinery.
So far, some of the youths who took part in the first batch of the programme which started in 2019, have secured jobs with Dangote Oil Refinery Company, while the others are doing well in their various trades.
“Now I can feed myself, pick my bills”, Mr. Balogun Jeleel Owolabi, who is from Epe Local Government Area, boasted as he spoke about the impact of the training on him and family members.
Speaking on his experience so far, Owolabi said that the training he acquired in refrigerator and air conditioner repair from the Dangote Refinery Vocational Training Programme has transformed his life and that of his family members.
According to him, Dangote Refinery offered him employment few months after graduating from the vocational training. “Few months after graduating from the training programme, I was called upon by the company to take up an employment at the project site.”
Owolabi described being offered an employment as the best thing that has ever happened to him. “I am very excited about the job and opportunity to learn more things from the company. My salary has been regular and I can now help my family members from whatever I am earning from the company.”
He encouraged other youths in the community who are feeling reluctant to participate in the training programme to make themselves available as they stand to benefit so much from the programme. “My message to other youths is that they should be serious and have focus. Although, the training may look challenging from the beginning, but at the end of it, they will be glad they did,” he added.
Also, Mr. Lamidi Oladehinde described himself as one of the lucky beneficiaries of the vocational training programme as he has been able to secure a job with the Dangote Refinery. He described the opportunity as ‘life-changing’. “The training has been beneficial in positioning us for success in our community.”
He stated: “I heard about the programme and indicated interest and we were asked to start our training and it lasted for six months. We learnt so many things; we learnt how to manage our business, how to balance our accounts and how to make our business plan. Jobs have been created for our army of unemployed youths by the company. And we are very impressed with Alhaji Aliko Dangote for bringing development, employment and empowerment to Ibeju-Lekki area of Lagos State.”
Another beneficiary from Epe Local Government Area of Lagos State, Mr. Opafola Abayomi Olusegun, said he was trained on refrigerator and air-conditioned repair.
According to him, he went further to acquire more skill to be able to function well in his chosen career immediately after the training programme.
Narrating how he got a job at the Dangote Oil Refinery, Olusegun said he got a call from the Refinery to take up a job in the company. “After graduation from the vocational training, I went further to improve my skills in order to gain more experience on my trade. The training I acquired during the programme has impacted my life positively. Through this programme, I have been able to secure a job at Dangote Refinery company.”
He urged Aliko Dangote not to relent in his efforts and investment in youth empowerment programmes. “So many lives have been touched with Dangote vocational training,” he said.
Speaking on the rationale behind the training, Dangote Group Executive Director, Strategy, Capital Projects and Portfolio Development, Mr. Devakumar Edwin, said that the programme is aimed at curbing unemployment among the youths.
According to him, the programme cuts across a wide range of vocational skills including welding, electrical technician, plumbing, auto mechanic, radio and television repairs, refrigerator and AC repairs, building and furniture making.
Edwin said the initiative was in line with the vision of Aliko Dangote, President of the Dangote Group, to provide employment opportunities for youths, especially those found within the company’s host communities.
He said addressing Nigeria’s unemployment crisis requires providing platforms for youths to learn various vocational trades that would enable them to develop themselves and also become employers of labour.
“We know that there are a lot of graduates out there looking for jobs and that is why you should focus and take this training by the National Directorate of Employment (NDE) seriously. We will train you; we will equip you, and also ensure that you will be employable or become entrepreneurs”, Edwin added.
Embattled Nigerian pastor and founder of SPAC Nation, Tobi Adegboyega, has defended his opulent lifestyle, claiming it serves to inspire young people rather than flaunt wealth.
This statement comes amid a UK Immigration Upper Tribunal ruling ordering his deportation over visa violations.
Adegboyega, 44, faced accusations of overstaying his visitor visa, which expired after he arrived in the UK in 2005.
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He had applied to remain in the country on human rights grounds. The tribunal, however, ruled against him, citing his failure to regularize his status.
The pastor’s luxurious lifestyle, including designer clothing and expensive cars, was a focal point of the case.
Addressing the tribunal, Adegboyega stated that his lifestyle is fully funded by his wife, Mary Olubukola Alade, who earns £100,000 annually at AON.
He said, “I live with my partner, Mary Olubukola Alade, who earns £100,000 per year working for AON. I spend my time working for the church, for which I am unpaid. I am entirely supported by Mary. I have a first-class law degree from Nigeria, but I have ‘sacrificed’ my legal career to help those who cannot help themselves.”
Defending his appearance, Adegboyega emphasized the importance of projecting success to his young congregation.
The court noted, “For instance, people have pointed to the fact that he wears designer clothing and drives expensive cars. He was adamant that all of his personal possessions had been paid for by Mary.
“He believes it is important for him to dress the way that he does because he needs to inspire these young people – they need to understand that there are legitimate ways of making money, for instance through entrepreneurship.”
Despite the ruling, Adegboyega dismissed the deportation concerns as insignificant.
“I’m right here at home, no cause for alarm. Naturally, I will dismiss things that have to do with retrogression; every Nigerian should be proud of me. Living in the UK, a city that is well known for pulling people down, I have survived all sorts, so the matter that they are propagating is the smallest matter,” he said.
He further expressed confidence in his resilience. “No panic, I love London city, it is my city, and nobody can do anything. Of all the people of colour you know here – pastors and leaders – I have survived everything. I’m here, I am at home, nobody should panic for me.
“I succeeded well in this country despite all challenges, and I’m in the league of people you look up to. I have survived that well; nothing has changed, nothing will change,” he added.
Amid the growing controversy surrounding the detention of human rights lawyer Dele Farotimi, renowned Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Aare Afe Babalola has publicly addressed the defamation allegations leveled against Farotimi.
The legal action stems from claims made in Farotimi’s book, Nigeria and Its Criminal Justice System, which Babalola asserts contains false and defamatory statements about him and his law firm, Afe Babalola & Co.
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In a petition dated November 19 and submitted to the Ekiti State Commissioner of Police, Adeniran Akinwale, Babalola accused Farotimi of making “criminally defamatory” statements about him, his law firm, and two senior lawyers at his firm, Olu Daramola SAN and Ola Faro.
The defamatory remarks are tied to the Supreme Court case Major Muritala Gbadamosi Eletu & Ors v. H.R.H. Oba Tijani Akinloye & Ors.
Babalola revealed that the allegations came to light when one of his lawyers purchased Farotimi’s book while traveling through Murtala Muhammed Airport.
After reading the book, the lawyer immediately brought its contents to Babalola’s attention.
Other members of his firm reportedly did the same, prompting the senior lawyer to take legal action.
In his petition, Babalola pointed to specific passages in Farotimi’s book that accused him of corruption and unethical conduct. The petition reads:
“I write to report the criminal defamation of myself, my law firm Afe Babalola & Co., and my lawyers, Olu Daramola SAN and Ola Faro, by one Dele Farotimi in his book titled ‘Nigeria and Its Criminal Justice System’, published by Dele Farotimi Publishers, in respect of Suit No. SC/146/2005: Major Muritala Gbadamosi Eletu & Ors v. H.R.H. Oba Tijani Akinloye & Ors.
“Sometime on 2/11/2024, one of our lawyers, while traveling through Murtala Muhammed Airport, bought a book by Dele Farotimi titled ‘Nigeria and Its Criminal Justice System’. He read the book and immediately brought it to my attention. Many of my lawyers also bought the book and read it.”
“The defamatory statements are as follows:
- That Aare Afe Babalola corrupted the Supreme Court to procure a fraudulent judgment in the service of his client.
- That Aare Afe Babalola, Olu Daramola, Olu Faro, and the law offices of Afe Babalola & Co. (Emmanuel Chambers) compromised the Supreme Court and the remaining semblance of integrity it might have had, when they went back to the Supreme Court and got the Court to swim in the sewer of corruption and shameful self-abnegation.”
Babalola strongly denies the allegations, claiming that they are false and damaging to both his personal reputation and the integrity of the Nigerian judiciary.
Nigerian author and activist Dele Farotimi’s book, Nigeria and Its Criminal Justice System, has surged to bestseller status on Amazon amid a legal battle with prominent lawyer and businessman, Afe Babalola.
The controversy surrounding the book has captivated public attention, driving both online and offline demand.
The book, which critiques systemic corruption in Nigeria’s judiciary and highlights alleged misconduct by key legal figures, saw modest sales following its release in July 2024.
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However, Farotimi’s arrest on Tuesday, following a petition filed by the 93-year-old Babalola, triggered a wave of public curiosity.
By Thursday evening, it had climbed to the top of Amazon’s bestseller rankings, according to checks by Vanguard. Bookstores across Nigeria also reported a significant uptick in demand.
Biztellers reports that Farotimi was detained in Lagos by armed police officers and transported to Ado Ekiti, about 300 kilometers northeast of the city, where Babalola is based.
The senior lawyer alleged that the book accused him of compromising Nigeria’s judiciary—a claim that has sparked heated debates about freedom of speech and accountability in the legal profession.
On Wednesday, Farotimi was arraigned in an Ekiti court, where the judge ordered his remand pending a bail hearing scheduled for December 10.
Farotimi’s legal team has vowed to contest the charges, framing the case as an attack on intellectual freedom.
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