When Bankers Drop Like Flies

Chronicled by Afronuts @ Wednesday, September 05, 2012

There was a time when being a banker was the ultimate job that paid the best; as a banker you had arrived, you were the big boy/girl and you gathered respect in social circles. I remember those days when I’d just finished my youth service, I went for many interviews and tests each time a bank put up a vacancy. At a time during my youth service which took place in Imo State, I had to travel to IMT, Enugu, to take a test for a job consideration in one of the topmost banks.

I got there and was utterly intimidated and discouraged.

Thousands and thousands of youth corp members and job seekers flooded the place; some of the job seekers already had multiple working experiences thereby sliming chances for the greenhorns like me. The test held all over the nation in different centres across different states…and I got to hear that the bank needed just 60 people to hire.

Fast forward to today.

Working in a bank now seems like a last resort to survival in these harsh times when the economy is not smiling on corporations. To make matters worse, bankers started dropping like flies under the pressure of work at the time when the recession freshly hit. Then when the consolidation took place it seemed to worsen further.

Caleb Ogbonnaya

Now it’s happening again and Banker’s are dropping dead again. Access Bank seems to be in the wake of this. With all the scandals and controversy surrounding the bank on its acquisition of Intercontinental Bank amongst other things, the issue of its staff dying on the Job should call for some sort of intervention.

Just yesterday, an Access Bank staff, Caleb Ogbonnaya of E-Banking at Oyin Jolayemi Branch at Victoria Island slumped and died before he could make it to the hospital.

Solabomi Olugbemi

This incident happened just barely two weeks after a female staff Solabomi Olugbemi of Retail Business Unit , Simbiat Abiola branch collapsed and died due to high blood pressure.

Also, with the circulating speculation that 60% of Access Bank are highly hypertensive and run the risk of heart attack in their prime, I believe there’s need to sound an alarm.

I don’t envy bankers anymore, not with the crazy unrealistic deadlines imposed upon them by their superiors. Every time I meet with friends who are bankers (especially in the marketing field), I feel for them. 

I have a friend who works in a bank and I see the signs on him – he has started growing white all over the place in his hair, moustache and beard; I’ve heard him talk about the nasty crazy deadlines and how its only God’s grace that’s sustaining him. All I can do is just pray for him and others that I know.

Let's however not fail to note that there are survivors…and these are the ones naturally wired for the job but how many of such do you find in these times where people prefer to pursue money rather than their passion? 

I’m so glad I never passed those banking tests!