Kenyan presidential hopeful Patrick Osoi has sent a warning to Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote, threatening to deport him back to Nigeria if he wins the 2027 general election.
Osoi made the remarks in a video that has gone viral, saying he was strongly opposed to Dangote’s proposed $16 billion oil refinery in Lamu, Kenya.
I want to urge Aliko Dangote, please don’t hurry to start the refinery because when I will be sworn in as President of Kenya next year, you will be going back to Nigeria,” Osoi said while addressing supporters at a Lions Movement event.
The presidential aspirant said Kenya has competent indigenous businessmen who can take up the refinery project without the assistance of foreign investors such as Dangote.
“We Kenyans have businessmen who can start the refinery. We have business people in this nation who can do that job, too.” This is what we believe. “All movements are born here,” added Osoi.
Osoi’s comments came days after Dangote and Kenyan President William Ruto, alongside other African leaders, broke ground on the projected refinery in Lamu Port on September 30, 2026.
The proposed facility is intended to process 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day and is anticipated to be finished within about 40 months.
The project is meant to help bolster regional refining capacity and reduce dependence on imported petroleum products in Kenya and other East African countries.
Dangote’s projected investment is estimated at between $15 billion and $16 billion and the refinery is expected to mirror the success of his 650,000-barrel-per-day refinery in Lagos, Nigeria.
The project has also met criticism from some local inhabitants over land ownership, compensation and environmental concerns. A Kenyan court ordered the status quo to be maintained in a land dispute regarding the project.
Osoi’s comments seem to be in line with his attitude on giving priority to local entrepreneurs over international investors, but his comments are not an official decision of the government as he is not yet elected president.
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