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N4.6b lost to robbery, fraud in banking sector, says
NEWS Olugbodi
National By Adewale Sanyaolu
Metro
Africa
World THE Managing Director of Background Check International (BCI),
Business Mr. Kola Olugbodi, has disclosed that a total of N4.6 billion was lost
OPINION in the banking sector last year due to the rising cases of armed robbery
Editorial and fraud.
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He said the loss was as a result of the inability of various banks to
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Cartoons make use of the appropriate preventive mechanisms available.
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Olugbodi said this on Wednesday, during a media briefing on the
SPORTS activities of BCI since its inception two years ago.
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Abroad He added that the corporate world cannot afford to continue to lose so
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Results much in the face of modern preventive techniques that are capable of
guiding against such occurrence.
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Focus On the activities and objectives of BCI, he said the company is the
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Arts first full-service background check, employment screening, claims
Media verification and vital document verification company in Nigeria.
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He added that the company emerged from a sincere desire to enhance
Education competence in corporate and non-corporate organisations.
Weekend Specifically, he said BCI through background check services expose
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false claims and forged documents.
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Food & Drink Besides, he said the company carries out check in the areas of
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certificate confirmation, address confirmation and property or tenancy
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"Since we started this business, we have seen cases of forged
Agro Care documents and certificates.
BUSINESS
SERVICES "For instance, a company we helped to conduct a check on their
Property workers, revealed that out of 40 workers, 10 of them were working
Appointments with forged documents. We are able to know this much because we
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went to the various institutions they claimed they graduated from," he
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Maritime Watch He amplified that most employers don't bother to carry out
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Energy Report background checks of their workers, saying this is a dangerous trend.
Insurance
Compulife "It is advisable for employers of labour to carry out character checks
of intending or working workers because there is the need for
employers to know why someone had to leave where he was originally
working to get another job. Ditto for prospective tenants as well.

Olugbodi noted that most of the robberies that take place in homes,
private and public sector is done through connivance. But because
employers don't take the issue of check seriously gives leeway to fraud
and other crimes.

The BCI boss said this is a way of the company's contribution to the
lingering problem of insecurity and fraud in the country. "If the
landlord subjects tenants to check, it would have helped in solving the
problem of insecurity. And cases of drivers stealing cars and night
guards conniving with armed robbers would have been adequately
addressed," he argued.

On how the company protects individual rights to privacy, Olugbodi

explained that the activities of the company are totally within the law,
so that individual rights are not trampled upon.

According to him, the clients must first obtain the authority or

permission of the employee before a search on him or her is conducted
which is always documented.

On the international scene, he said the company already has working

relationships with organisations that are into background checks, so
that if there was a need to conduct an international check, the response
gets back within 48 hours.

He disclosed that the company is also talking to some banks on risk

management issues and loans, while preparations are also on to partner
with the Bureau of Credit Business all in a bid to enhance the issue of
security.

Currently, BCI has clients spread across the aviation,

telecommunications, oil and gas and banking industries. While it is
still talking to some embassies on the need to engage their services for
efficient service delivery. While it has two clients outside the country.

On the average, Olugbodi revealed that it takes an average of six to

eight weeks to fully complete a check depending on the number of
employees involved.

This, he adduced to some bureaucratic bottlenecks in some institutions

of higher learning, which sometimes slow down the process of checks.