AN Ikeja High Court in Lagos, yesterday, ordered United Bank for Africa, UBA, Plc to pay its former employee, Mr. Gogo Anyanwu, his entitlements after he resigned from the bank following deductions from his salary.

The deductions were to repay a loan he granted a customer who later took ill.

Justice Opeyemi Oke, in her judgment, said it was illegal for any bank to recover loans by debiting its employees without their consent.

Anyanwu, who was an Assistant Banking Officer, had recommended that two customers, PMO Global Limited and First Omega Network Limited, be given a loan of N2 million and N4 million, respectively.

The loans were granted but the second creditor defaulted with the repayment of the entire loan because its Chief Executive Officer took ill.

In a bid to recover the loan, UBA converted it to a personal loan to Anyanwu, deducting it from his emoluments.

The claimant had told the court that his June and July 2005 salary of N51, 015 were withheld, as well as July 2005 Guranteed Bonus Pay of N341,391.

Also withheld was his five-year long service benefit of N650,000 and disengagement benefits of N123,500.

He said he was forced to resign from the bank in June 2006 following intimidations and threats from his employers over the loans.