When I got the news that its beautiful MD didn’t attend the 70th birthday of iconic and influential Co Founder, I wasn’t surprised. Infact I could have pledged my last kobo against his coming.
GTB in the last few years has morphed from a vision driven platform to a tense environment of mistrust, broken loyalties and fiefdoms ruled by an all conquering Emperor who brooks no opposition.
Fear is the currency of the trade. You walk on eggshells and pretend to be happy. But the pride of being part of such an enviable institution is buried with the insecurity that comes with working within a corporate monarchy.
GTB was what we all looked up to. Those of us young bankers who couldn’t enter, looked at the lucky ones with envy. The Bank set the pace in service delivery, ethical banking and jumped on the technology revolution to gain an almost first mover advantage in the retail market.
But the strain started almost from the beginning. One of the Co Founders left at 42 but wanted to be Executive Chairman which was soundly opposed by the brother. This led to a cold war which allowed the present king take advantage.
He was to be herded out to Ghana if the big ogas had accepted the new position of Executive Chairman. This must have irked him and he set out to take his pound of flesh if he ever emerged.
Fate smiled and the other founder passed on and he emerged. Consolidation of power became an emergency retort. This led to the culling of strong hands thereby weakening structures and pushing more powers towards the sedentary top office.
Experienced and well versed hands either left or where pushed out and what was left were minions who would always do the bidding.
The Bonus which was legendary for its robustness was one of the major tools for empowerment.. The Bank had a policy of sharing a %of PBT amongst top staff and the CEO had the prerogative of sharing at his full discretion.
This, sources have told me turned into a very strong tool of control and reward and it also came in very handy during the movement from a normal Bank to the Holdco structure where we now have the MD of the subsidiary almost a caricature.
Today all power is in the Holdco, and the MDs of the various subsidiaries including the Bank are nothing but just appendages of a very powerful hand.
So yday was the 70th birthday of the founder and he had to be honoured.
An idea that started on the GTBank One Big Family platform made up of both current & ex staff had come alive .
The awareness was loud! Every attendee had to pay for a seat & donate to charity. Even some of the current staff paid but didn’t attend. The only invitees were non-members of the GTBank family who are yellow mans family & friends.
So the beautiful one didn’t need an invite as he was very much aware of the dinner and was however, invited.
The yellow man was put on a pedestal and honoured and as one of the most illustrious alumnae said – Yellow, your wealth is in those that passed thru you.
But the statement get k-leg cause the beautiful one also passed thru and the ethics that have guided the illustrious career of the yellow man seems lost on him.
I hear last night was marvelous. Dance choreography from beautiful alumni, Two Sitting Governors in attendance, Aremo Segun Osoba one of my most favourite elder statesmen and a whole lot of distinguished Alumnae
But none of the 3,000 staff of the Bank nor its emperor were in attendance.. I even heard that some of the current staff who paid asked for accounts in other banks so that it would not be traced back to them.
This is the culture of fear that pervades the Bank.. The Body language didn’t permit attendance and as such they stood aside as the world honoured an illustrious son.
For me the loss is on the beautiful one and his soldier ants, for the yellow man has made his mark.. A very indelible mark that cannot be wiped out of the face of the earth.
Two remarkable things – GTB and the Pension reforms will continue to put Fola Adeola’s name in our minds whenever we sing tha National Anthem and mention our Heros.
He is a huge and well accomplished hero and a little thing like the ungrateful non attendance of such an auspicious event by the titan army who should be beholden of him would really do nothing to dent an image and a positioning that remains indelible in our minds.
I have spoken, but please don’t come and beat me for I am but an orphan
Thanks
*Duke of Shomolu*
