First Bank: Regional Manager’s Death In Kano Raises Posers

By Fola James

First Bank Plc management is in deep worry over its employees in Kano after Abdullahi Lawal, the bank’s regional manager in the commercial city fell to the corona virus pandemic.

The Nigerian Centre for Disease Control, NCDC will also need to investigate whether the bank has actually put in place serious measures to protect both customers and staff from contracting the novel virus while conducting businesses in and around the bank’s premises across the state.

This has become so in view of the death of more than 20 prominent persons in the state, including its senior staff.

The management on Saturday confirmed the death of Lawal, who it said worked in one at its Kano Main branch

Folake Ani-Mumuney, group head, marketing and corporate communications, in a statement on Saturday, said the bank shared with the family the grief of untimely demise of its employee.

The statement reads “Our thoughts and prayers are with his family at this time as we do all that is necessary to support them. We ask that all necessary courtesies be extended to the family so they can grieve privately.”

Following the tragedy, the bank said it has now shut the branch where the deceased worked.

The bank said it has activated its COVID-19 precaution response plan as part of measures to help contain the virus.

It advised employees and customers who had been in contact with the deceased to self-isolate according to guidelines provided by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC).

First Bank said it has taken the pandemic seriously because “As a responsible corporate organisation, FirstBank has been at the forefront of the concerted efforts against the coronavirus pandemic alongside others,” the statement said.

Accordingly “We have robust protocols in place including practising social distancing, frequently disinfecting our buildings and locations even whilst ensuring services are available through our alternative channels such as our ATMs and other digital platforms.

We have immediately, therefore, shut down access to the premises as we disinfect the entire location and ask all staff and customers who may have been in contact with our late colleague to follow the NCDC guidelines and self-isolate.

We will, as a matter of course, extend all possible support to staff and customers at this difficult time.”

Meanwhile, checks by the magazine indicate that social distancing, one of the measures prescribed by NCDC to contain the spread of the novel disease, has yet to be enforced in most banks in Lagos, for instance, where customers are still allowed to crowd around Automated Teller Machine, ATM despite the restriction on movement by the federal government.

Banks are allowed to render skeletal services within the period of the lock down.