Facts:

The Claimant was employed by the Defendant bank, an institution formed from the merger of the defunct People’s Bank of Nigeria and others. Her employment began on a probationary basis on November 11, 1999, and was confirmed on June 20, 2003, following a positive performance review. Over the course of more than 20 years, the Claimant served diligently and rose to the position of Assistant Manager, Head of Credit, and Acting Branch Head at the Defendant’s Kafanchan Branch in Kaduna State. Her employment was governed by a letter of appointment and the Defendant’s Conditions of Service. In March 2019, a former customer of the bank, Mrs. Fatima Mamman (a dismissed teacher), requested her account statement in order to process her pension entitlements. A withdrawal of ₦332,000 made from her salary account on October 22, 2013, was discovered. At the time of the transaction, the Branch Head was Mr. John Tafiya, with Mr. Maigida Jacob as Head of Retail Banking, and the Claimant serving as cashier. Due to the passage of six years and the Defendant’s non-computerized system, neither the Claimant nor Mr. Jacob could initially recall the transaction or locate relevant records.

In an effort to clarify the situation, the Claimant and Mr. Jacob investigated and eventually found an official letter dated October 21, 2013, from the Kaduna State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), requesting the refund of unearned salaries from the accounts of Mrs. Mamman and another dismissed teacher, Mr. Yakubu Michael. This letter confirmed that the withdrawal was an authorized transaction done at the request of the Education Board. Despite forwarding this evidence to the Defendant’s internal audit department, the Claimant was indefinitely suspended on July 3, 2019, and directed to report to the Branch Head twice a week. The Defendant continued to query the Claimant and invited her to appear before its Zonal Management Disciplinary Committee in August 2019. During the hearing, the Claimant presented the SUBEB letter, which exonerated her from any wrongdoing regarding the ₦332,000 withdrawal. However, the Committee disregarded the evidence and instead raised a separate allegation of a fictitious withdrawal of ₦524,000 from Mr. Yakubu Michael’s account. The Committee refused to properly investigate or give weight to the documentary evidence supporting the Claimant’s position and conducted the hearing in breach of her right to fair hearing and the Defendant’s internal policies.

On February 24, 2020, the Defendant issued a letter of dismissal to the Claimant, backdated to February 19, 2020. The Defendant claimed that the Claimant, along with Jacob and Tafiya, misappropriated the total sum of ₦856,000 from the customers’ accounts. They also demanded repayment of a vehicle loan and furniture allowance from the Claimant. The Claimant disputed the alleged loan figures and denied receiving any furniture allowance. Following her dismissal, the Claimant appealed in accordance with the Defendant’s Employee Handbook and submitted additional evidence, including a confirmation letter from the current Education Board Secretary dated April 27, 2021, affirming that the full sum of ₦856,000 had been paid in cash to the Education Board as a refund of unearned salaries. Further investigation by the Kaduna State Auditor-General confirmed the same. Yet, the Defendant neither responded to her appeal nor reversed its decision.

More than two years after her appeal, the Defendant issued a letter on September 12, 2022, commuting her dismissal to a termination of employment, again backdating it to February 19, 2019. The Claimant believes this backdating was done deliberately to deprive her of salary arrears and other entitlements between the date of her dismissal and the purported termination. Throughout this period, the Claimant was not paid her entitlements as required under the Defendant’s Conditions of Service. She asserts that she is entitled to unpaid half salaries and full allowances during her suspension amounting to ₦1,212,340.61, unpaid salaries and benefits from dismissal to termination amounting to ₦4,241,070.21, two months’ basic salary in lieu of notice totaling ₦71,657.68, and ₦42,994.61 as baggage/transport allowance.

The Claimant maintains that she acted under the instruction and authority of the then Branch Head and committed no fraud. Neither the bank nor the customers suffered any loss. The Defendant’s actions, including the disciplinary process, suspension, dismissal, and subsequent backdated termination, were carried out in bad faith, in breach of her right to fair hearing, and in violation of the Defendant’s own employment policies.