The Managing Director of Pro-Credit Bank Andre Radloss is working on a scheme to sneak out of Sierra Leone within the next two weeks as the bank has been sold off to Ecobank without giving notice the workers and paying any end of service benefits to them. The customers too haven’t been informed of the take over. As part of the scheme, Andre Radloss would embark on massive sackings for trivial reasons even as Ecobank staff would gradually take over Procredit Bank operations starting this week. This development has worried almost all the customers and they are rushing to withdraw their savings.
Andre Radloss only spoke to staff on Tuesday 23rd February about the takeover deal that started in August 2009, a violation of the contractual agreement between the bank and workers. In the meeting, Radloss threatened to dismiss any staff member suspected of having links with the media. Asked about the situation of staff, he declined to speak on who would pay end of service benefits and told them that during this transition period, staff members that Ecobank wish to retain would be retained.
Pro-credit Bank has been hiring foreign workers disregarding labour laws and the Labour Ministry stands accused of receiving bribes several times to keep sealed lips about it, sources within the bank reveal.
“The Deputy Minister of Labour Moijueh Kaikai once rushed into the bank as the bank was hiring the services of foreigners without paying the necessary taxes to Government. But Agnes Massaquoi Kanneh Head of Human Resource intervened, doing it the usual corrupt way,” an employee of Pro-Credit said.
When the bank started its operations in 2007, it sent staff members to its Academy in Franfurt, Germany. The staff spent between 3 to 6 months in the Academy but on their return to Sierra Leone most of them were sacked for unexplained reasons.
“Check their staff list and you will notice that only few staff have been with the bank since the bank started operating in the country in 2007,” a Central Bank Staff said.
“We’ve seen what happened to staff of IBTI, SALPOST Bank, BCCI and others in such a situation; and we hope the Government would not sit by and see us being abused by economic savages,” a Pro-Credit employee said.
Meanwhile customers (including bank staff) have been storming the bank withdrawing all their savings for the past one week as the bank never informed them about the take over and what would happened with their money thereafter. Attempts by The Punch to reach the Pro-Credit Managing Director proved futile as his staff blocked this reporter to talk to him. Even his mobile phone contacts weren’t responding.
Share this
Twitter
Myspace
Digg
Del.icio.us
Yahoo
Technorati
Newsvine
Googlize this
Blinklist
Wikio
Export PDF
Print
