It is written in the Book of Popular Dictums and Quotes Misattributed to Popular People that the whole is greater than the sum of parts. This means that when the individual parts of a thing are studied in context, they always look different (and a lot smaller) than when they are included in a whole thing. If that explanation is difficult to wrap the mind around, take the solid reputation of Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) and the soiled reputation of GTBank security officers as an example.
GTBank is possibly the most colourful banking institution in the African continent. With thriving subsidiaries in Cote d’Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda, the bank has grown from the puny bank to a gigantic entity in the corporate world. The only recurring problem in recent time has been the security staff of GTBank—to be exact, the beggarly disposition of the security staff of GTBank.
It is almost a proverb to complain about GTBank security personnel. According to reports on the subject, these men and women in security uniform at GTBank entrances have perfected the art of asking customers for money. But they do not just come out and say it—it wouldn’t be an art that way; they hail unsuspecting customers first, barrage them with salutations and ballyhoos, and then masterly ask for ‘change’ or ‘something for the boys’.
This attitude is already characteristic of two other prominent security arms of Nigeria—a legal arm and one that is usually more operational during electoral exercises. However, GTBank security detail has oiled the art and enjoys better dividends than its superior Security Boys. The only letdown is the reputation of GTBank.
Complaints of this beggarly attitude of GTBank security officers have gradually become the tune of most customers, especially those that regularly use the automated teller machines (ATMs). The complaints of these customers have grown in breadth, including the fact that when they refuse to acknowledge the begging or ‘drop something’, they are ridiculed, insulted or marked for payback at a later date.
All in all, these GTBank security staff—most of whom are contracted from private firms—are soiling the reputation of one of Nigeria’s indigenous and successful banks. Doubtless, not every GTBank security staff is like this; but, the yeast of begging has corrupted the whole dough.
In the case of beggarly security staff and the reputation of GTBank, is the whole still greater than the sum of its parts? Or will the Area-Boy attitude eventually overrun everything the bank has built?