Sowore Calls UBA Staff ‘Tony’ Backlash a Class Issue, Urges Support for Trainee

Omoyele Sowore has criticised the backlash against a UBA graduate trainee who addressed the bank’s chairman, Tony Elumelu, by his first name in a viral video. Sowore argued that the dispute goes beyond a clash between African and Western workplace culture. He described it as a reflection of class, status and power, asking whether a wealthy executive’s child would face similar criticism for addressing a driver or gateman casually. He also urged UBA to provide psychosocial support for the trainee, saying she should not bear the mental-health effects of widespread online ridicule alone. The incident has renewed debate over workplace etiquette, hierarchy and respect in Nigerian offices.

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