Polaris Bank's Mail to Staff Banning Friday Prayers by Muslims Draws Backlash, Bank Clarifies Statement

• Polaris bank is under intense fire by Nigerians over a leaked email which directed Muslims not to observe Friday Prayers
• The bank had, through one of its managers, said it is not its practice to allow people to observe religious activities while working in the bank
• The bank refuted the allegation and said the email is not the true reflection of its policy on religion.

There is are growing call from customers of one of Nigeria's commercial banks, Polaris Bank, to boycott the bank over what they termed Islamophobia.

According to Daily Trust, a leaked email to the bank staff signed by Damilola Adegbite, one of the bank's managers, said the bank does not have a policy of allowing staff members to go to any religious activities, especially Muslim Juma'at services on Fridays.

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According to the email, staff members working under it YES Centres have been found guilty of dereliction of duty, mostly on Fridays.

What the email said

The email partly reads:

"Dear All, It has been observed that on Fridays, you leave your work desks to attend the Jumat service bearing in mind the impact of your absence on the workflow and productivity of Yes Center."

"Kindly note that there is no provision made anywhere in the bank's policy for employees to attend any religious activities during work hours. Going forward such permissions would not be granted on the Yes Center platform and any infraction of this directive would be dealt with accordingly. You are all expected to acknowledge the receipt of this mail. Thank you."

The bank has faced serious backlash since the email was leaked on social media, leading it to issue a statement saying it has or inhibits staff members from practising their religion.

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The bank's management said the email is not a true reflection of its position as a corporate organization.

The bank said:

"This is to clarify that Nigeria is a secular nation and our bank is guided by this standard. Accordingly, there is no policy in the bank that forbids staff from practising the religion of their choice; hence the said staff had acted in ignorance and we have since addressed the issue internally."

"We assure all staff, customers, and the public that we will continue to respect the fundamental rights and freedom of worship of every employee."

Nigerians react

However, Nigerians have taken to social media to express mixed reactions to the email, with many calling for a boycott of its services. In contrast, others say investors should pull their investments from the bank.

One person said:

"Northern Muslims have sent a strong message to the entire private sector benefiting from them directly. What happened to Polaris Bank will serve as a deterrent. No one threatens our religion and gets away with it. One of our mottos is that "an injury to one is an injury to all".

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While another stated:

"The disclaimer of Polaris bank claimed that the staff who issued a circular forbidding Muslim staff from observing Juma'at prayer did it without the approval of the bank authority. Is it not fiction she's not fired?

These people don't rate us."

And a third said:

"If boycotting Polaris is compulsory for all Muslims, who will provide job for the Muslims that will be laid off? They have apologized and that's enough... make una dey calm down."

Polaris Bank capitulates to court order, pays customer N500,000 for failed PoS transaction

Legit.ng reported that after back and forth, one of Nigeria’s commercial banks, Polaris bank capitulates to a court injunction and paid a customer N50,000 as damages over failed Point of Sale (POS) transactions.

The bank on Wednesday, June 22, 2022, paid the money to the customer, Idongesit Nwoko who had complained that it did not reverse the failed transaction within 72 hours as prescribed by the law.

According to Premium Times, the bank paid the money in compliance to an order of the State High in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.

Source: Legit.ng