The National Industrial Court sitting in Owerri has awarded N50m in damages to a former banker, Mr Godspower, over his “wrongful blacklisting” by the Central Bank of Nigeria following what the court described as “career-damaging and malicious actions by his former employer”
![](https://thenigerialawyer.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SADR.jpeg")
![](https://thenigerialawyer.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/TheNigerialawyer-WhatsApp-Channel1.jpg")
Delivering judgment, the presiding judge, Justice Nelson Ogbuanya, set aside the employment ban placed on Godspower and held that Godspower’s employer, First Bank acted wrongly in forwarding Godspower’s name and biodata to the CBN as an ex-employee disengaged for fraud and dishonest activities.
Justice Ogbuanya ruled that First Bank’s action, which led to Godspower’s blacklisting under Section 44(4) of the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act, constituted an unfair labour practice and workplace defamation.
From facts, the claimant, Godspower, told the court that his employment with the bank was terminated on the grounds of “services no longer required,” after he had earlier been suspended and later recalled from suspension over allegations of misconduct.
Godspower said he later discovered that his inability to secure another banking job was because his former employer had published his name and photograph on its portal and sent his details to the CBN as one of those dismissed for fraud, leading to his blacklisting from the financial sector.
In its defence, his former employer admitted publishing Godspower’s details and sending his name to the CBN but argued that it acted in compliance with BOFIA and a regulatory circular issued by the apex bank.
The bank also argued that the Industrial Court lacks jurisdiction to entertain a matter bordering on defamation, being a tort-based claim.
However, Justice Ogbuanya dismissed the objection, affirming that the court has jurisdiction over employment-related disputes, including workplace defamation by virtue of the 1999 Constitution.
“From the record, I find that the subject matter of the dispute bordering on workplace defamation and the manner of termination of employment raises issues of unfair labour practice in this suit, which involves issues of employment relationship as it arose from the workplace,” the judge held.
He added, “Workplace Defamation, a type of defamation that can only arise in a work environment and related to the routine course of work, borders on labour relations at the workplace, which is essentially different and distinct from general defamation.”
On the merits of the case, the court found that recalling the claimant from suspension pending investigation amounted to his exoneration by operation of law and that there was no justification for reporting him to the CBN.
Justice Ogbuanya faulted the bank for terminating the claimant’s employment on one ground while portraying him to regulators as having been disengaged for fraud.
“The claimant’s grouse is not necessarily the mere act of termination of employment on the reason of ‘services no longer required’, but more of the defendant’s overreaching acts of publishing the claimant’s name and photograph in its accessible portal and sending his name to CBN for sanction, without him being indicted or the reason disclosed in his termination letter.” Justice Ogbuanya held
In awarding damages, the court awarded the sum of N50,000,000.00 against the defendant in favour of the claimant as compensation by way of general damages for the act of unfair labour practice.
Justice Ogbuanya said the wrongful publications “tarnished his cherished career and rendered him jobless and traumatised,” and consequently ordered that the publications be set aside.
“As a consequential order, the said wrongful publications are hereby set aside, and the defendant is restrained from further giving effect to its career-damaging publications against the claimant,” Justice Ogbuanya ruled.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE FOR LAWYERS: A COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE
Reimagine your practice with the power of AI “...this is the only Nigerian book I know of on the topic.” — Ohio Books Ltd
Authored by Ben Ijeoma Adigwe, Esq., ACIArb (UK), LL.M, Dip. in Artificial Intelligence, Director, Delta State Ministry of Justice, Asaba, Nigeria.
Bonus:
Get a FREE eBook titled “How to Use the AI in Legalpedia and Law Pavilion” with every purchase.
How to Order: 📞 Call, Text, or WhatsApp: 08034917063 | 07055285878 📧 Email: benadigwe1@gmail.com 🌐 Website: www.benadigwe.com
Ebook Version: Access directly online at: https://selar.com/prv626
________________________________________________________________________ The Law And Practice Of Redundancy In Nigeria: A Practitioner’s Guide, Authored By A Labour & Employment Law Expert Bimbo Atilola
_______________________________________________________________________
New Year Promo: Get Five Maritime Law Books For N150,000 — 63% Discount
The promotion, which commenced on January 8 and runs until February 8, 2026, offers five core maritime law books authored by Dr. Emeka Akabogu, SAN, ordinarily valued at N405,000, for just N150,000 — a 63% discount.
Interested buyers can place their orders through the following channels:
Phone: 0704 329 3271
Online Store: https://paystack.shop/aa-bookstore
Website: www.akabogulaw.com
______________________________________________________________________
