By Maduka Nweke
A total of 20 new winners emerged in the ongoing Spell and Win national consumer promo Season 2 carried out by Dangote Cement Plc, with the new millionaires emerging from Ekiti State, Abuja F.C.T. and Kano State. The winners who were handed the one million-naira cheques in ceremonies held in the three cities also received instant bank alerts of the money in their accounts.
Five winners Samson Oyebanjo, Onifade Busola, Akinlua David Akinyemi, Deji-Oni Bunmi and Ige Kehinde Oluwatayo emerged from Ekiti State; ten winners including a husband and his wife emerged in Abuja, while Kano State accounted for five winners, including Grace Ezigbo, Nura Ahmad, Jamilu Salisu, Aminu Bukar Makoda and Bello Aminu.
Speaking at events marking the handover of the cheques, National Sales Director, Dangote Cement Plc. Adeyemi Fajobi, while welcoming the new winners into the millionaires’ club, said the new entrepreneurs will support the economy and create more jobs for the country.
Marketing Director, Dangote Cement Plc, Mrs. Funmi Sanni in her speech, said only Dangote Cement has the capacity to inject such huge amounts of money into the economy. Sanni, who said a lot of promos were being promised by some companies under the facade of business promotion that turned out to be scams and decoys contrived to dupe the customers, stated that the ongoing promo was real and impactful.
“The target is to make a minimum of 10 millionaires in every state, only Dangote (Aliko) can do this. His philanthropy knows no bounds. I advise our customers not to wait till dry season before buying Dangote cement. Go, buy and become a millionaire. It is real and achievable if you patronize us”, she stated.
Recounting how he became a winner, Mr. Akinlua Akinyemi, a building contractor in Akure, Ondo State capital, said: “I was on a project for my uncle and fortunately I got the card inside the last bag of cement I bought to conclude the work and when I scratched, I got the correct spelling together with the one I had been keeping and I headed straight to Dangote office for registration”.
Another cement seller and winner, Mrs. Busola Onifade, said she got her own card through a block moulder working at a block industry in Ikere Ekiti, who has been buying cement from her. “I had earlier told him to be keeping the cards for me, but when I didn’t see him, I had to take pain and went to his office. Fortunately, I got where he carelessly dropped one of the cards and I quickly removed, scratched and got the spelling correct.”
One of the N1 million prize winners in Kano, Abubakar Makoda said he owns three block companies and uses only Dangote cement for production, adding that he buys over 200 bags of the product daily. He narrated that as he buys the product, he keeps on keeping the scratch cards found in each bag of cement until he got all the letters that make up the name D-A-N-G-O-T-E which made him the winner of N1 million cash prize.
While thanking Dangote Cement company for the gesture, Mr. Makoda promised to continue using the cement, and urged the general public to be buying the product. Another winner, Grace Ezigbo, said she won the cash prize after she asked her workers, working in her block company called Alabamu Block Company, to be keeping the scratch found in each bag of the cement.
“That is how I kept collecting the cards until I got all the letters that made up D-A-N-G-O-T-E. I’m now a millionaire. I’m happy. I thank God and I thank Dangote Cement company. I will keep advertising this company forever,” she said.
Meanwhile, a winner, Mallam Ali Babangida expressed joy that he won, describing it as one of his happiest moments in life.
“I want to thank Alhaji Aliko Dangote whom I share the same name with. And most importantly, I want to thank Almighty Allah for making it possible. I am a builder. I use about a hundred bags of cement on daily basis. This is real. I am calling on Nigerians and my fellow builders to buy Dangote cement. It is a win-win. The same is qualitative and the promo is real,” he said.
For Musa Yusuf, a new millionaire, it was a pleasant shock and a blessing. “I did not believe I could get a million naira from Dangote at this time of COVID-19 or Coronavirus, which has been devastating, especially for the poor.”
A major cement dealer in Ekiti, Mrs. Gilbert Igweka, described Dangote as number one cement factory in Africa, who has passion for economic development and the citizens’ upliftment. Gilbert urged the winners to apply the money judiciously by expanding the scope of their businesses and patronage for Dangote Cement