By Ademola Olaniyan I Dec 19.25
LAGOS, Nigeria – The National Industrial Court sitting in Lagos has declared the dismissal of a former Assistant Banking Officer with United Bank for Africa (UBA) PLC, Bashiru Adegboyega Lawal, as illegal, null, and void.
In a judgment delivered on December 12, 2025, Hon. Justice R.H. Gwandu held that the bank failed to provide a fair hearing or follow its own internal disciplinary guidelines before terminating Lawal’s employment over an unsubstantiated allegation of a missing N2 million.
The court consequently ordered UBA to pay the claimant his full salaries and allowances from November 2014 until the date of the judgment—covering over a decade—alongside his gratuities and pension.
The legal battle, which began in 2016, originated from a complaint by a customer, Mr. Ogunwole Abiodun Mathew, who alleged that N2 million was missing from his fixed deposit account. Following the complaint, Lawal was suspended in November 2014 on “zero pay” and subsequently dismissed in March 2015.
However, Lawal, through his counsel, Adewale Bolaji, argued that the bank acted with malice.
He presented a police investigation report that completely exonerated him of any wrongdoing. The police report further revealed that the funds were recovered from a former branch manager who had a personal relationship with the customer.
During the trial, it emerged that while the bank dismissed Lawal in March 2015, it ironically invited him to appear before a disciplinary appeal committee seven months later, in November 2015.
Justice Gwandu described the timeline as “wonderous,” questioning how an employee could be dismissed before being given a formal opportunity to defend himself.
“The defendant has failed to show the court that the claimant was afforded fair hearing before his employment was dismissed,” the Judge held.
“Where an employee is dismissed based on an allegation of crime, the allegation must first of all be proven. Dismissal carries infamy and deprives the employee of benefits.”
The judge further noted that the bank ignored its own internal investigation team, which had only recommended that Lawal be “advised to resign” rather than dismissed, and disregarded the police findings that cleared him.
While the court declined to reinstate Lawal, noting that the employment lacked “statutory flavour,” it granted the alternative prayer for full financial compensation.
The court ordered UBA to pay:
N1,727,247.70 representing salaries from November 2014 to March 2015.
Full monthly salaries at the rate of N345,449.54 from April 2015 until December 12, 2025. All accrued gratuities and pension entitlements.
10% per annum interest on the judgment sum from 2014 until the judgment date, and 6% interest thereafter until the sum is fully liquidated.
The bank had earlier argued through its counsel, A.A. Ombugadu, that it lost confidence in the claimant due to the “suspicious circumstances” of the money’s disappearance.
However, the court ruled that “loss of confidence” does not give an employer the right to bypass the principles of natural justice and the terms of a written contract.
