Real reason Presidential aide, Onanuga deleted comment on $600m Maersk investments

Mr. Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, deleted a tweet from his X platform (formerly Twitter) as the shipping giant Maersk declined to validate his assertion that it will spend $600 million in a port in Nigeria.

Onanuga who shared the statement on his X handle claimed that the investment was secured during a World Economic Forum meeting in Riyadh over the weekend.

Onanuga revealed that A.P Moller-Maersk chairman, Robert Maersk Uggla, had discussed the investment with President Tinubu on the sidelines of a meeting discussing energy development and growth.

The statement quoted Uggla saying: “We believe in Nigeria, and we will invest $600 million in existing facilities and make the ports accommodating for bigger ships”.

However, Maersk officials, in response to Arise TV enquiry, Maersk neither contradicted or denied Ononuga’s statements.

“Maersk has been present in Nigeria for 35 years and, as a global provider of logistics services, we remain committed to develop opportunities for growth to people, the port sector and businesses locally

“Therefore, it is natural to have an ongoing dialogue with the administration. However, we are not able to comment on any investment talks,” the company said.

Speaking on the issue, an analyst with some insider information, Mohammed Faruk said; “Many individuals may have overlooked the details of the initial FGN press statement and failed to juxtapose it with the subsequent Maersk statement, leading to a misinterpretation of both narratives.

“Maersk’s response subtly reveals the situation’s complexity, acknowledging its regulatory constraints during a quiet period preceding its quarterly financial report. This period restricts the extent to which it can divulge information about ongoing negotiations to avoid potential penalties related to stock manipulation—a concept familiar to those versed in corporate communications for publicly listed entities.”

He said Maersk is due to report first-quarter results on Thursday, meaning that management is in a regulatory quiet period limiting what they can say publicly about the company’s activities.

Daily Trust finding revealed that the minister of trade will release a statement affirming the investment collaboration.