Human Rights Advocate Calls for GTBank Boycott Over Bloggers’ Prolonged Detention

Prominent human rights advocate, Chidi Odinkalu, has condemned Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) for allegedly using its financial influence to oppress bloggers who published critical stories about the bank. Odinkalu accused GTBank of collaborating with the Nigerian Police Force to detain bloggers Precious Eze and Olawale Olurotimi since September 19, 2024, on charges of cyberbullying and conspiracy.

He criticized GTBank for prosecuting the bloggers with a team of ten lawyers, including three Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs), and called for a public boycott of the bank.

He tweeted “Within 4 days, the @PoliceNG had finished investigation. The report of the investigation team led by Michael Abu, a Chief Superintendent of Police, #CSP, said explicitly that Precious Eze & Olawale Olurotimi should be “used as scapegoat.”

“There’s only 1 way to read these facts: @gtbank is using its considerable financial muscle to oppress & persecute poor bloggers so as to achieve a #ChillingEffect on civics. #GTBank forgets that we are also customers. If GTbank fails to stop this, citizens should stop banking wth it.”

A customer and tweeter user replied to Odinkalu and tweeted at GTBank accusing the bank, said: “Nigeria and it’s criminal justice system that allows a fraudulent Bank like @gtbank to use the instrumentality of the judiciary to intimidate, harass and prosecute impoverished and pauperized citizens. For the records and in very clear terms, @gtbank stole my money and has refused to return it to my account. @gtbank prefers to pay millions of naira to Lawyers and @PoliceNG officers than to return moneys it fraudulently debited from customers’ account. And the criminally unjust judicial system willingly enables such unjust treatment of citizens.”