former Kenyan Defence Forces (KDF) soldier and presidential aspirant, Patrick Osoi, has threatened to halt the Dangote Refinery project in Kenya and send Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote back to Nigeria if he becomes president in the 2027 election.
Osoi argued that Kenyan businesspeople should be given the opportunity to establish and operate the country’s proposed oil refinery, insisting that local investors have the capacity and resources to execute the project without relying on the Nigerian industrialist.
He made the remarks while addressing supporters of his political movement, as he outlined his position on Kenya’s proposed refinery and the role of domestic businesses in the country’s oil sector.
“I want to tell Aliko Dangote, please don’t rush to start the refinery because when I’m sworn in as President of Kenya next year, you will be heading back to Nigeria,” Osoi said in a video posted online by A.M Media.
“We Kenyans have businesspeople who can start the refinery. I want to tell Dangote, please, don’t hurry up to start the refinery, because by next year, February, the time I’m sworn in as the president of this country, you’ll be back going to Nigeria.
“Because we have Kenyan refineries which can do that job. We also have business people in this country who can do that job. That is what we stand for. And this is the home of our movement.”
Osoi’s threats come amid mounting political, legal and community controversies surrounding Dangote’s proposed multibillion-dollar oil refinery in Lamu County, a project backed by Kenyan President William Ruto and intended to strengthen the country’s petroleum-processing capacity and reduce reliance on imported fuel.
His declaration also places the proposed investment at the centre of a broader debate about local participation, foreign investment, land rights, transparency and who should benefit from major industrial projects in Kenya.
The controversy surrounding the refinery intensified after Dangote and Ruto attended its groundbreaking ceremony in Lamu on September 30, 2026.
The proposed East African refinery, estimated to cost about $16 billion, is expected to process up to 700,000 barrels of crude oil daily.
Project proponents say it will strengthen regional energy security, create jobs and reduce East Africa’s dependence on imported petroleum products.
However, the project has faced opposition from residents, civil society organisations and opposition politicians over land ownership, compensation, environmental safeguards and the lack of publicly available information about the agreement.
On September 28, 2026, 133 residents filed a legal challenge at the Environment and Land Court in Malindi, seeking to halt the development.
They alleged that land earmarked for the project included ancestral property their families had occupied, cultivated and developed for generations without adequate compensation or resettlement arrangements.
The dispute has raised questions about whether affected residents were properly consulted and whether their land rights were adequately addressed before the refinery project moved forward.
The Kenyan government, however, has defended the land arrangements. Lands Cabinet Secretary Alice Wahome said the largest portion of the land designated for the development was public land, while maintaining that legitimate claims by landowners and occupants would be addressed.
The proposed refinery has also come under scrutiny from consumer-rights advocates and environmental campaigners.
On October 10, 2026, the Kenya News Agency reported that Save Lamu, a civil society organisation based in Lamu County, demanded that the government and Dangote’s project promoters publicly disclose documents demonstrating compliance with legal, environmental and public-participation requirements.
The group raised concerns about the absence of publicly available project-specific environmental and social impact assessment documentation, details of the relevant environmental licence and its conditions, as well as unresolved land-compensation issues.
It warned that legal action could follow if the concerns were not addressed.
Meanwhile, Kenyan opposition figures have demanded greater disclosure of the project’s financing arrangements and the extent of any proposed government investment.
On October 6, 2026, Jubilee Party leader Fred Matiang’i called for the disclosure of details surrounding the refinery and other concessions, arguing that the government should provide answers on projects attracting public scrutiny.
Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna has also asked the Senate’s Energy Committee to provide information on the project’s approval, financing, procurement, environmental impact, land arrangements and ownership structure.
The project is intended to serve Kenya and the wider East African market, with supporters arguing that it could expand refining capacity, create employment and stimulate industrial development.
Its critics, meanwhile, are demanding assurances that those benefits will not come at the expense of local communities, environmental protections or public accountability.
As the debate continues, the refinery faces the challenge of reconciling its regional economic ambitions with the legal, political and community concerns surrounding its construction.
The disputes have added uncertainty to the implementation of the project, although Dangote has maintained his commitment to the investment despite the legal challenges.
Osoi’s comments introduce another dimension to the debate, framing the refinery not only as an investment and energy-security initiative but also as a question of domestic business ownership and economic sovereignty.-saharareporters