Dangote, joined the micro-blogging service, Twitter,
thousands of Nigerians at home and in the Diaspora
have extended a hand of fellowship to him by
subscribing to his tweets.
As at 5pm on Thursday, the President/Chief Executive of the pan-African conglomerate, the Dangote Group, had
attracted a followership of over 30,000 users on the social
network.
A check through his Twitter page shows that his followers
are not limited to ordinary Nigerians who make use of the
social service but include serving lawmakers in the National
Assembly, past public office holders, children of past
Nigerian leaders, as well as top shots in the nation's
entertainment industry.
Some of the high profile Nigerians following Africa's most
powerful man (as declared by Forbes magazine) include a
former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu; former Governor of
Kwara State, and Senator representing Kwara Central
Senatorial District, Bukola Saraki; and Vice-Presidential
candidate of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria in the
2011 general elections, Fola Adeola.
Others include a former Chief Executive Officer of the
United Bank for Africa, Tony Elumelu; daughter of late
military dictator, Sanni Abacha, Gumsu; artistes such as
Dare Art Alade, Dr. Sid, Rugged Man, and Weird MC,
among many others.
Surprisingly, despite the huge reception he received on
Twitter, Dangote has yet to deem it fit to reciprocate the
gesture by subscribing to the tweets of any of these
Nigerians following him on the social platform.
In fact, Dangote is not at present following any Nigerian on
Twitter, as he has signified preference for the tweets of a
few of his billionaire colleagues; his manufacturing
conglomerate, Dangote Group; the World Economic Forum
and the Kofi Annan Foundation.
The billionaires Dangote follows on the social network
include the former Chief Executive Officer of General
Electric Corp., Jack Welch; Chairman of the world's largest
personal-computer software company, Microsoft, Bill
Gates; and Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of General
Electric, Jeff Immelt.
Dangote's decision not to follow any Nigerian is very much
unlike some prominent Nigerians who make use of Twitter.
For instance, former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, who
follows only 26 people on the social network, deemed it fit
to follow some Nigerians.
Although Atiku subscribes to the tweets of foreigners such
as South African President Jacob Zuma, he did not lose
sight of prominent Nigerian users of the social service. As
such, Atiku follows the likes of Lagos State Governor,
Babatunde Fashola; former Minister of Education, Oby
Ezekwesili, as well as entertainers such as Don Jazzy and
Ice Prince.
Meanwhile, Dangote has broken his silence online, saying
he is "glad" to make use of Twitter. In his first and only
tweet, he gave a word of encouragement to many Nigerians
who have been asking him for advice on business success
saying, "nothing is impossible" to those who pursue their
dreams with commitment.
"Glad to be on Twitter. Wishing you all a prosperous New
Year. Stay positively committed to achieving your dreams,
nothing is impossible," Dangote said in his first tweet.
However, it is worthy of note that with his decision to sign
up for Twitter on December 31, Dangote joined the league
of eminent clerics, businessmen and world leaders who
signed up for the social service in 2013.
They include Pope Francis; the 41st President of the United
States of America, George W. Bush; 42nd President of the
United States, Bill Clinton; former US Secretary of State,
Hillary Clinton; American business magnate and investor,
Warren Buffet, among others.
Pope Francis, who was elected in 2013 to lead the world's
1.6 billion Catholics, became a social media star of some
kind when he began tweeting on March 17. His first tweet
stated, "Dear friends, I thank you from my heart and I ask
you to continue to pray for me. Pope Francis." The tweet
was reposted by 36,528 people, while 22,304 others
favourited it.
On December 10, when Bush joined Twitter, he used his
first message to pay tribute to anti-apartheid icon, Nelson
Mandela. He wrote, "Barbara (his wife) and I wish we
could have joined the US delegation honouring President
Mandela today. He, and his countrymen, are in our
prayers."
Also, US President Barack Obama reached out to Bill
Clinton and Buffet who both joined Twitter within days of
each other in May. "Welcome to Twitter, @BillClinton and
@WarrenBuffett," Obama wrote in a Twitter post.
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