Wema Bank has refunded N117,000 deducted from the account of Abu Opeyemi, a Kogi engineer, for a loan he did not take, after an intervention by FIJ.
The bank processed the refund in two parts and credited the engineer’s account on August 14, just one day after FIJ reported on the issue.
Opeyemi only discovered the refund on Saturday. He explained that he did not receive notifications for his bank account, so it took him some time to notice the credit alert.
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“I appreciate this. I am very grateful to you and the entire FIJ team. I couldn’t believe it. Considering that I have been trying for months. I really appreciate you,” Opeyemi said with obvious relief on Wednesday.
Refund received by Opeyemi on August 14
Opeyemi, in need of financial assistance, had approached Wema Bank with the expectation of getting a loan under not-so-strict conditions in 2023. He was told that he did not need to have a Wema Bank account and that he could expect minimal paperwork required.
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At the bank’s request, Opeyemi activated a Remita Mandate, which allowed automated deductions from his GTBank account to Wema Bank. Despite his loan application being declined, Opeyemi was debited approximately N58,000 twice, in October and December 2023.
From the start, Opeyemi had chosen to be patient with the bank because he thought he understood the process, rigour and time it would take to get a resolution. But his patience grew into rage after several months of attempting to get a refund through all the means available to him.
After more than eight months of unsuccessful attempts to get the refund directly from Wema Bank, Opeyemi reached out to FIJ. Four days after FIJ’s intervention and a day after the story was published, he received a full refund.
The post Wema Bank Resolves 8-Month Refund Issue for Kogi Engineer, Thanks to FIJ’s Intervention appeared first on Foundation For Investigative Journalism.