An Egyptian contractor, Marco Zoccoli, has threatened to drag his country into a dispute with a Nigerian businessman, Sani Dangote.
Premium Times reports that Zoccoli is accusing Mr Dangote of betrayal of trust, rights infringement, and breach of contract.
The development is coming four years after both men entered into a business partnership.
Mr Dangote, a relative of Africa’s richest man and billionaire Aliko Dangote, is the owner of Dansa Agro-allied Limited, NPS Nigeria Limited, and vice president of the Dangote group.
In several letters to Nigerian authorities and court documents seen by PREMIUM TIMES, Mr Zoccoli accused Mr Dangote’s NPS of owing him N30 million.
The Egyptian also accused Mr Dangote and his company of abusing his fundamental rights by withholding his international passport for over two years and threatening to throw him out of Nigeria without full payment for a three-year contract between both parties signed in September 2014.
In an interview with Premium Times, Mr Zoccoli said he joined Mr Dangote’s company after the Nigerian businessman expressed interest in working with him.
“I was working in a company, Woodmill, when I met Alhaji Sani Dangote. He invited me over to his office in Lagos and we discussed the proposed contract. After we agreed on the terms of the contracts, I was made to move to Calabar. The contract was for three years, September 2014 to October 2017.
“His company, NPS Limited, was involved in the production of timber and they were having issues because, in Calabar, you can only sell finished wooden products. So he approached me to help with the production of wooden doors for the Nigerian market.
“I was supposed to be paid 4000 euros as salary per month, with an additional N200,000 for my local upkeep,” Mr Zoccoli said.
He said Mr Dangote promised to match the salary in his previous employment with the one he was to be paid in the contract. According to him, the Nigerian businessman also promised to increase his salary over time.
However, a few months into his employment Mr Zoccoli said he noticed a disturbing development that attracted several changes in the terms of his contract and personal life.
According to Mr Zoccoli, Mr Dangote’s company went back on its plan to install some important machines after purchasing the same through the Egyptian, for over a year.
“I brought the machines to Nigeria in January 2015. But rather than move them from the port in Lagos to Calabar, the company left them at the port till 2016.
“Not only did they abandon the machines, but they also left them under the heat of the sun and the rain,” Mr Zoccoli said.
Consequently, Mr Zoccoli said he was forced to join in offloading the machines with three other staff and ended up with a complication in his spine.
“Something happened. I was trying to move away from a coming object when I was hit by another. I went home and massaged the place with balm and hot water, thinking it was mild. But the following day, I could not move. I was taken to the hospital and told that five of my vertebral disc had dislocated,” Mr Zoccoli said.
Despite the health challenge, Mr Zoccoli said he continued the work after his treatment at a Lagos teaching hospital which was partly funded by Mr Dangote’s company.
Meanwhile, when PREMIUM contacted a human resource official at the company simply identified as Liyatu, she denied knowledge of the matter.
Another staff of NPS Limited later called the news platform and accused Mr Zoccoli of distorting the facts.
“I just want you to know that those people are telling lies. That case was taken to court and struck out,” the caller who refused to identify himself said in a telephone interview with PREMIUM TIMES.