A Nigerian man who spent a decade in Malta paying taxes is struggling to get his work permit renewed because his company cannot justify employing him instead of an EU citizen.

“I would be better off if I came to the country illegally,” Michael Ajibode, 40, said.

Mr Ajibode had moved to Malta in 2003 after a courtship with a Maltese woman he had met in Libya.

However, after four years and 10 months of marriage – two months before he was due for citizenship – his wife got a court order to remove him from their home, claiming he was abusive.

I’d be better off if I came here illegally

As she had done with two previous marriages, his wife also filed for annulment but Mr Ajibode proved his innocence and won the case on appeal, meaning the two are still legally married.

In the meantime, he was also wrongly accused of theft by the couple’s mechanic.

He was acquitted of all charges after it was proven in court that CCTV footage produced as evidence had been edited.

The court case cost him his job as a material handler at Methode Electronics.

“The agreement with Methode was that I should go and fight the criminal case and when I was cleared they would reinstate me,” he said.

Methode stuck to its end of the deal but the Employment and Training Corporation is reluctant to give Mr Ajibode a work permit because he is still considered a third-country national.

“My case is exceptional,” says Mr Ajibode. “I have been living in Malta for 10 years. I am still legally married to a Maltese citizen. I paid my taxes and my social security contribution. I have already been contributing to the growth of this country.”

Mr Ajibode left Nigeria 14 years ago to work in Libya.

“Since I came to Malta I have adapted to the culture and the system. It is more or less my home now. If I was born in Malta, I would be 10 years old.

“If it weren’t for what happened, today I would be a Maltese citizen,” he adds, pointing out that he also has permanent residence.

“My case is completely different from somebody who just came here yesterday. I was already working for Methode.

“They had already trained me for the job. I was even the shift leader,” he notes.

What annoys him most is that people who come into the country irregularly and are granted protection are better cared for by the Government.

“If I were a refugee, the Government would accommodate me and find me a job or give me unemployment benefits. I paid taxes for seven years before I lost my job and yet everyone said they could not help me.

“What have I done wrong? I am not a criminal. If a refugee comes to this country and can live a normal life, why can’t I live a normal life? What is my crime?”

There was some light at the end of the tunnel for Mr Ajibode last weekend when ETC chairman Alfred Grixti told Times of Malta: “I understand that the permit has been issued.”

However, when he showed up for work, Mr Ajibode was told that the permit was still pending clearance from the police, which could take about 30 days.

ETC has also since confirmed that all applications for non-EU nationals were sent to the police immigration department “for their views”, which is an “integral part of the application process”.

“Therefore, the permit was not issued,” a spokesman said.

Why the delay?

Despite being legally married to a Maltese person and living in Malta for a decade, Michael Ajibode does not yet enjoy freedom of movement or long-term residency status.

Until this is granted by the Department of Citizenship and Expatriate Affairs, he will continue to be treated as a third-country national.

“With about 26.5 million unemployed EU nationals, each country has to be in a position to justify the granting of work permits to non-EU nationals,” a spokesman for ETC explained.

Giving another example, he said a non-EU child living in Malta with non-EU parents in possession of work permits was only allowed to work in Malta until he was 21 years old.

“The minute he turns 21 he loses his right to automatically work in Malta and must apply for a work permit, unless he has obtained either freedom of movement or long-term resident status.”

These rules do not apply for a number of special professions including football players, film actors, entertainers, CEOs, general managers and directors.

The spokesman pointed out, however, that if a permit application did not pass the “labour market test”, the employer had a right to request reconsideration by a separate board empowered to issue a permit based “solely on humanitarian grounds”.

ETC also confirmed that irregular migrants, even those who had their asylum request rejected, were automatically given a work permit when they applied for one.

While they were in Malta awaiting a status change they must be allowed to work freely, the spokesman said.

“Otherwise, how are they going to sustain themselves?”