A former female employee of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Mercy Nkechi Ihenacho, has leveled serious allegations of sexual harassment and wrongful termination of employment against the Managing Director, Mohammed Bello Koko.
Ihenacho, a lawyer who previously worked in the Legal Department at NPA headquarters in Marina, Lagos, and later at NPA’s subsidiary, Seaview Properties Ltd., filed a lawsuit (suit number NICN/LA/197/2023/ZNU28070) against Bello Koko at the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, Lagos division.
According to the plaintiff, she was dismissed from her position at NPA on May 16, 2023, alleging that it was a result of rejecting Bello Koko’s advances.
She claims that the Nigerian Ports Authority Managing Director orchestrated her termination out of malice due to her refusal to comply with his alleged romantic overtures, including an incident where she declined to kiss him in his office.
Ihenacho further alleges that, upon rejecting Bello Koko’s advances, he resorted to threatening to “tear my clothing.” Moreover, she claims to have experienced sexual harassment from Olakunle Onasanya, a Principal Manager and her superior at Seaview Properties Ltd., who allegedly made numerous inappropriate advances.
READ ALSO: NPA Cracks Down on Illegal Container Stripping along Port Access Road
The former employee asserts that her resistance to the unwanted advances from both Bello Koko and Onasanya resulted in victimization and her eventual dismissal from NPA.
As reported by Ships & Ports, in her plea to the court, Ihenacho is seeking an order for her reinstatement at NPA, financial compensation, and promotion to the appropriate grade level, aligning with the benefits granted to other members of her cohort employed in 2019. The case is set to unfold at the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, where the former employee is hopeful for justice to be served.