BRIBERY ALLEGATION: Dangote sues Zambia’s Labour Minister

A subsidiary of Dangote Cement in Zambia has sued the country’s labour minister for libel and slander after he accused one of the company’s executives of trying to bribe him.

The minister, Fackson Shamenda had in September said an executive of the company attempted to bribe him in a hotel. He said it during a tour of the plant in Ndola. But the company denied the bribery claim and described it as “malicious misinformation”. It has now sued the minister.

In the writ of summons dated October 10, Dangote Cement said the minister had created an impression that the company was exploiting Zambian workers and enticing government officials with bribes.

“The plaintiff has been brought into public scandal and its reputation has been injured,” it said.

Dangote Industries Zambia (DIZ) has 400 workers building a $400 million cement plant. Its staff count is expected to hit 2,000 by the time production starts in November.

Zambia has on several occasions been at war with foreign companies which they accuse of circumventing labour laws. Last year, the country revoked the work permit of the chief executive of Konkola Copper Mines, owned by London-listed Vedanta Resources. Zambia threatened withdraw its mining license when it announced plans to lay off 1,500 workers