THE Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) has asked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to rethink his Presidency’s fraternity with corporations who break the nation’s laws and harm public health.
CAPPA’s statement is coming on the heels of Coca-Cola’s recent visit to the president where the corporation re-announced a $1 billion investment pledge to Nigeria over a period of five years.
According to CAPPA, Coca-Cola’s latest investment promise was nothing more than a recycled, unfulfilled commitment first made three years ago to the Muhammadu Buhari administration.
In a statement issued to Nigerian Tribune on Wednesday, CAPPA accused the bottling company of attempting to exploit the rhetoric of investment to whitewash its dirty image marked by multiple dishonest trade practices, as has been repeatedly exposed, including most recently, by the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC).
“It is a matter of grave concern that the news is once again awash with Coca-Cola’s promise of a $1 billion investment in Nigeria. This is the second time in three years that the company has made this hollow pledge to different ruling governments, and yet it failed to deliver the first time around.
“Despite the company’s failure to honour its previous commitment, the government of the day has not only embraced the company’s latest pledge with undue fanfare but also quickly risen to defend its dubious track record of dangling promises that never materialise with evidence.
“While the government may claim that Coca-Cola couldn’t fulfil its earlier commitment due to a “challenging business environment,” the disturbing truth remains that, beyond its woeful record of unmet financial pledges, Coca-Cola’s presence in Nigeria has more than any other thing been defined by its persistent onslaught against public health and regulatory infractions than anything else.”
