Popular social media activist, Martins Otse, better known as VeryDarkMan, has accused the Dangote Group of abandoning a 22-year-old lady who was crushed by one of the company’s trucks in Auchi, Edo State.

The activist, in a video posted on Instagram on Monday, shared disturbing footage of the victim lying helpless at the Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital, where she has reportedly spent 11 months battling severe injuries.

According to VeryDarkMan, the victim — who was on her way to submit her final-year project before the tragedy — has accumulated hospital bills exceeding ₦5 million, with no financial support from the company.

“On reaching the Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital in Auchi, Edo State, we met an abandoned victim of Dangote’s reckless unlicensed driver. She has been in the hospital for 11 months with bills of over ₦5 million. Dangote has abandoned her. Let the world know that we will not be allowing any Dangote trucks in Auchi today if all victims of Dangote’s drivers are not properly taken care of,” he stated.

The activist insisted that Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, and his company must take responsibility for the lives affected by their trucks, rather than allegedly leaving victims and their families to suffer.

This development comes just days after Big Brother Naija Season 7 winner, Phyna Otabor, raised alarm over her sister, Ruth, who was also crushed by a Dangote truck in Auchi. While the company later pledged to settle Ruth’s medical bills, no public word has been given on the newly exposed case.

Meanwhile, the controversy unfolds as the Dangote Refinery prepares to deploy 4,000 new compressed natural gas trucks for nationwide fuel distribution. The rollout, however, has already been delayed, with the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) citing truck numbering issues.

Opinion

The silence of the Dangote Group on this latest allegation is troubling, to say the least. For a conglomerate of such global standing, questions of corporate accountability should never be swept under the carpet. Trucks belonging to the company are frequent users of Nigerian highways, and with such dominance comes a moral and social responsibility to ensure safety and provide immediate redress whenever tragedies occur.

This is not just about one accident victim; it is about the countless lives at risk daily. If victims are truly being left abandoned, it paints a grim picture of profit over people — a narrative no brand, no matter how big, should ever want to carry.

As Dangote prepares to expand operations with thousands of new trucks, Nigerians deserve assurance that safety, driver licensing, and victims’ welfare are top priorities. Anything less would be a betrayal of public trust.

Corporate success should never be measured by wealth alone, but by how much value and humanity it brings to the society it thrives in.