By Amara Thoronka
Mr. Emmanuel Borbor, the Deputy Managing Director (DMD) of Rokel Commercial Bank (RCB) said the bank puts Sierra Leone at the top of its operations and activities, including its corporate social responsibility. The bank’s DMD was speaking at the 2nd RCB Meet & Greet with media practitioners at D’Bim D’Bam Multipurpose Complex in Freetown on Friday, 26th January, 2024.
“We put Sierra Leone first in all we do. There are many key players [banks], but we prioritize Sierra Leone. We need the media, organizations, institutions, businesses and individuals to always choose Rokel Commercial Bank because, for us, Sierra Leone comes first.
Rokel Commercial Bank is one of the finest government institutions in this country. We have grown so big and wide, but we are still not satisfied. We want to keep growing and expanding all over this country. Other banks see hard-to-reach terrains in the provinces as difficult or impossible to operate in, but we [RC Bank] are everywhere; and very soon this year we will be in many other places. The business has grown and we want to decongest the banking sector. We are number one with regard digitalization in the banking sector,” he said.
Mr. Borbor encouraged the media to publish the achievements, services and activities of the bank and help it raise public awareness on why everyone should make the bank their first choice. He stated that, without the media, the bank won’t have achieved all what it now boasts of. “We love the media, and we will continue to do business with the media,” he assured.
He called on media practitioners to always confirm with the bank on allegations or claims made by people before publishing.
Giving the importance of the engagement, head of operations Mr. Adikali S. Kamara said the media has been instrumental in raising awareness about their products and services.
He said, since the current Managing Director Dr. Walton Ekundayo Gilpin took over the management of the bank in 2017, there have been several rebranding endeavours to competitively position Rokel Commercial Bank, reiterating that the bank now stands out tall in the country’s financial sector.
“As part of our rebranding process from 2017 to date, we have made significant progress. We have introduced several products, including digital products. We have also embarked on financial literacy across the country. Now, our products are accessible locally and globally through the transformative leadership of our managing director. The media has been very pivotal in all of these achievements,” he explained.
In his presentation of some highlights of RC Bank’s corporate social responsibility last year, head of public relations Mr. Aruna Dumbuya said the bank helped several less-privileged persons, provided cash assistance to many life-transforming initiatives, provided assistance to learning institutions, complemented government’s effort in several areas, embarked on climate change interventions, among others.
The bank’s head of public relations also mentioned many national and international awards they won throughout last year.
“The several awards we have won and continue to win are testaments of the best banking services we offer and the continued adherence to our life-transforming corporate social responsibility gestures,” he noted.
Head of ‘Sim Korpor Department’, Madam Kezia Salankole said as part of their transformative undertakings, the bank rolled out ‘Rokel Sim Korpor’ [Rokel Sim Money], a mobile banking initiative that connects customers’ bank accounts to their mobile phones.
She added that, with the RC Bank Sim Korpor, registered customers can do balance enquiries, intrabank transfers, interbank transfers, quick response code payment, merchant payment, agency payment, bills payment, and payment to non-account holders through phone numbers.
Mr. Victor Sarty Kanu, the officer in charge of e-banking said their customers can do all business transactions electronically, something he said that puts RC Bank at the top in the banking sector in Sierra Leone.
“You can now seamlessly, at the comfort of your homes, offices and business places do all your transactions electronically using Rokel Commercial Bank e-banking services and products. We have our automated teller machines (ATM), points of sale (POS), internet banking, debit cards, Rokel Korpor cards, mobile banking and several others as a way to transform and digitalize banking in the country,” he said.
On behalf of media practitioners, Thomas Josephus Dickson of Salone of Salone Times Newspaper; Abdulrahman Kamara of Star Radio/TV; and Eastina Taylor, President of Women in the Media Sierra Leone (WIMSAL) recognized the role of Rokel Commercial Bank in supporting the media, something they emphasized the bank should intensify as the role of the media in promoting financial literacy cannot be overemphasized.
Copyright –Published in Expo Times News on Monday, January 29th, 2024 (ExpoTimes News – Expo Media Group (expomediasl.com)