Olayiwola Matthew
A former Territory Manager with Guinness Nigeria Plc., Mr. Ntima Anya, has dragged the company before the National Industrial Court, sitting in Akure, Ondo State, seeking N100 million in damages over alleged wrongful, unlawful termination of his appointment.
The defendants in the suit are: Guinness Nigeria Plc, and Moshood Adejoro, a former Line Manager with the firm.
The matter saw the claimant open his case through his counsel, Samuel Chukwudi Nmesi, who tendered 36 documentary exhibits in evidence before Justice K.D. Damulak.
The court admitted all documents and adjourned further hearing to November 27, 2025, for cross-examination by the defence counsel, Ade Abioye.
Anya, who served as Territory Manager for Ilorin/Offa, had alleged that his dismissal on October 30, 2020, violated due process and was a product of bias, witch-hunt and gross unprofessional conduct by his immediate supervisor and other top officials of Guinness Nigeria.
He told the court that despite submitting a medical report from Olanrewaju Hospital, Ilorin, which confirmed that his blood pressure had dangerously increased, the company denied him annual or sick leave.
Instead, he was allegedly forced to work during the COVID-19 lockdown and compelled to sell nearly expired Dubic Malt products – actions he said endangered both his health and professional integrity.
According to the claimant, his dismissal process breached every known labour regulation, alleging that his company assets were seized in public, that the termination letter was signed under duress at a distributor’s outlet in Ilorin, and that no exit clearance or orientation was conducted despite his nearly 10 years of service to the company.
Anya further accused the firm of denying him access to proper medical care, forcing him out of hospital on the very day his appointment was terminated, and trivialising his hypertensive condition as “ordinary sickness.”
He maintained that his health deteriorated rapidly after the incident, leading to severe vision problems that now require corrective lenses.
The counsel urged the court to hold that the purported Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) cited by the company as the basis for his dismissal was fraudulent and never formally initiated.
He noted that internal emails presented in court showed inconsistencies in the PIP timelines, suggesting deliberate intent to mislead the court.
The claimant also tendered several exhibits, including multiple medical reports, ECG scans, and referral letters to cardiologists, as well as commendation letters, salary review documents, and corporate awards for excellence he received in 2019 and 2020.
He argued that such records proved his strong performance before his dismissal.
Among the documents admitted were a death certificate of his mother – whom he said died due to his inability to finance her medication following his sack – and a Certified True Copy of a previous court judgment in a similar case where another former employee, Bright Nwosu, won against Guinness Nigeria at the National Industrial Court in Port Harcourt in 2023.
Anya’s counsel told the court that Guinness’s actions went beyond wrongful dismissal, describing them as “an attempted homicide” given the health risks and psychological trauma inflicted on his client.
He emphasised that the case was not only about justice for one man but also about ending a pattern of abuse of power within the organisation.
Medical reports presented to the court indicated that the claimant now requires urgent and intensive medical care, possibly abroad, to manage the complications arising from uncontrolled hypertension.
The court, however, adjourned the matter to November 27, 2025, for continuation of cross-examination.