An employee of the Citibank Nigeria Limited, Adebisi Omojola has dragged her employer to court over alleged illegal dismissal.
The suit is filed by her counsel, Abayomi Alagbada.
Mr. Alagbada in suit number NICN/LA/422/2022 led before the National Industrial Court sitting in Lagos is seeking an order of Mandatory Injunction to reverse the decision made on November 25, 2022 and restore the claimant back to her position as Assistant General Manager, AGM, with her salaries and other benefits fully restored.
She was dismissed after a suit was initiated to prevent the action pending the determination of the originating suit.
Joined in the suit is another employee of Citibank, Mr. Gboyega Oloyede who the Claimant had accused of victimisation and harassment in her earlier petition to the company and the Court.
The 13-paragraphs affidavit in support deposed to by one Eucharia Patrick in the Law firm of AAGU Legal, Solicitor to the Claimant claimed that the court processes commenced on November 4, 2022 and were served on the Defendants/Respondents.
He said that despite the pendency of the matter, the Defendants/Respondents on November 25, 2022 sent her a letter via E-mail informing her of the decision of the company to terminate her appointment with immediate effect.
In the affidavit, it was averred that the action is a flagrant disregard to the process of the court.
It was also averred that the Claimant is a single mother of three whose means of livelihood depends on her job and by extension her salary.
This she claimed that their survival has now been jeopardised.
Mr. Alagbada’s Legal Firm want the court to compel the reversal of the decision to sack her client in the interest of justice.
She was employed by Citibank Nigeria Limited in the year 2013, now she has risen to the position of Assistant General Manager, but things fell apart between the Bank and Adebisi Omojola.
The reason is not far fetched, Adebisi Omojola earlier claimed a case of harassment, intimidation, bullying and attempt to force her out of job.
In particular, she is having a grouse against the attitude of the Second Defendant, Gboyega Oloyede.
In the court process against the Defendants filed by her counsel, Abayomi Alagbada, the Claimant claimed that the unilateral sharing of her medical reports and other private information is a breach of her fundamental rights to privacy as enshrined in the law and a breach of Data Protection Law.
In the earlier court process, she is seeking the order of the court directing Citibank Nigeria Limited to assign her to another supervisor, saying she can no longer work with the second defendant.
She is also seeking an order directing the First Defendant to reinstate her or reconnect her back to all its platforms, having not committed any offence or contravened the Bank law in any form.
In the alternative, she is claiming a sum of N200,000,000 (Two hundred million Naira) in damages against the Defendants, N10,000,000 (Ten Million Naira) as cost of litigation and another order directing the payment of all her entitlement accruable to her in the Contract of Employment and Handbook for employees who are forced out by Citibank.
The beginning of bad blood between the Claimant and the Defendants started sometime in 2016 when the Claimant had issues in her marriage which led to serious medical complications and legal issues which forced her to be away with her children in Canada.
She averred that the issues with her was brought to the knowledge of the Management which gave her support needed at that material time.
But she started having poor appraisal in 2019 when she protested non payment of 90 percent of her salary for a period she worked for, but the second Defendant decided to disregard, for reasons known to him.
She claimed that between the period of September 17, 2019 and October 10, 2019 she had reasons to reject the discriminatory payment planned by the Second Defendant.
During this period, the Claimant claimed that she acted as a whistleblower of unethical conduct by the Second Defendant.
This she said continue to work against her with the connivance of some people at the Management level.
She also claimed that her medical report were released to the HMO, who was mandated to cross check the medical report she obtained from, Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, LASUTH.
In the court process, Adebisi Omojola through her Counsel Abayomi Alagbada raised allegations of misconduct against Citibank and the top management staff of the Bank and want redress from the court.
But for now, her lawyer claimed that the Bank has resorted to self help in utmost disregard to the sanctity of the court.
