“GTBank Is Using Workers Salaries To Pay Loans” – Akure Workers Shut Down Bank

Industrial workers under the Joint Public Service
Negotiating Council (JNC) Ondo State on Tuesday
shut down business activities at the headquarters
branch of the Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB) on
Alagbaka Road in Akure, the state capital.
The workers, chanting solidarity songs, were
protesting non-payment of their salaries. They also
alleged sabotage of their efforts by the officers of the
bank.
They said that GTB, without the knowledge of the
state government, had withheld their salaries with
the intention of using the money to defray its loans.
Many of them carried placards bearing such
inscriptions as: "Enough of GTB Exploitation Antics in
Ondo State"; "Workers and People of Ondo State
Beware of GTB in Akure"' "We are tired of GTB
behavior"; "GTB will ruin our life in Ondo State"; and
"We won't take this no more for GTB."
One of the protesting workers told SaharaReporters
that their salaries were withheld by the bank while
various unknown alerts were sent to them from the
bank.
"As at now I have not received my January salary
which is not supposed to be so. We learnt that GTB is
planning to defraud us. They want to use our money
for loans. We won't take this from them."
Speaking with journalists, the JNC chairman in Ondo
State, Comrade Oluwole Adeleye Samuel, also
alleged that the bank was trying to sabotage the
workers by using their salaries for defraying loans.
"This bank without the authority of the government
of Ondo State been represented by the Account
General took Seven Hundred and Six Million Naira
(N706.000.000.00) meant for the payment of
workers salary to defray a loan.
"As a result of this our salary has not being paid. We
are tired of this barbaric act of the bank. They are
holding us for ransom and we won't take it from
them. I can assure you that we won't allow any
transaction to occur in this bank unless they pay our
people".
All effort by SaharaReporters to obtain the position of
the Managing Director of the bank proved abortive,
as staff kept mute when asked about his
whereabouts.
But the Head of Operations of the bank, whose chest
badge read 'Kehinde Oyeleke,' but who refused to
mention his name to SaharaReporters, angrily
declined to comment on the issue.
"I am not aware of what is happening," he retorted.
"The bank does not have issues with the workers.
What sort of questions are you asking me, I just told
you we don't have issues with the bank? What do you
want me to say?"
The workers vowed to continue the protest and
threatened tio occupy the entire street leading to the
Alagbaka branch if no positive progress was made,
adding that they would not allow customers into the
bank.
Meanwhile the Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) of
the bank have been shut down with the protesters
threatening to deal with any workers of the bank who
dared to attend to customers.
As of the time of this story, officers of the Ondo State
Command of the Nigerian Police Force were being
drafted to the scene to curtail any violence and
prevent the protest from being hijacked.

Sent From David Aniemeka