Q FM Africa's Modern Radio
Dangote Industries Zambia Limited has categorically denied allegations made by Labour Minister Fackson Shamenda that one of its officials offered him a bribe to overlook critical labour issues at the cement manufacturing company.
In a statement made available to QFM News through its lawyers Theotis, Mataka & Sampa Legal Practitioners Dangote has described Mr Shamenda’s claims as malicious misinformation.
The company says if Mr Shamenda Minister was offered an inducement, as a responsible Zambian and figure of authority he should have reported the matter to the Anti Corruption Commission, which is the body legally empowered to deal with such issues.
It adds that Mr. Bala Zango who is alleged to have offered Mr Shamenda a bribe is a Manager at the Dangote Group head office in Nigeria and was assigned to Dangote Industries Zambia for 4 months to assist the local team with the set up of its human resource department and training for Zambian employees who are to work on DIZ’s highly automated plant.
The company expresses surprising that Mr Shamenda chose to have a “business meeting” with Mr Zango a junior member of staff at Intercontinental Hotel after working hours.
The company says Mr Shamenda has in the last 4 months paid the Dangote plant in Ndola four surprise visits accompanied by the media with two of such visits made at the weekend when no Dangote senior management were available.
DIZ says it to this effect that it made a written complaint of Mr Shamenda’s actions to its supervising ministry the Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry as it was beginning to feel that Mr Shamenda was deliberately looking for wrongdoing.
The company has however says, despite this unfortunate event it remains committed to working with the Zambian government on further expansion in Zambia and further values the support received from government to date.
DIZ is a subsidiary of Dangote Cement Plc, the largest listed company on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, with market capitalization of over $24 billion.
DIZ has to date invested over US$400 million to build Zambia’s largest integrated cement plant in Ndola, which will be commissioned in November 2014.