There is hardly any year that passes, without the record of one or two Ponzi schemes in Nigeria that have swindled a lot of Nigerians of millions and billions of naira. It seems most Nigerians have a very short-term memory, that they easily forget their ordeals or learn from the consequences of others with fraudulent Ponzi schemes. I previously wrote an article on the need for the government to clamp down on Ponzi scheme operators in Nigeria.
What I got to realize is that before the government clamps down on some of these Ponzi schemes, the deed has most likely been done. They hardly arrest these Ponzi scheme operators from the onset, but rather, the arrest is usually made after they have swindled thousands of Nigerians of their hard-earned money. One thing I have to say is that aside from the government playing an active role in clamping down on these schemes, the citizens also have a role to play.
They should ensure to always do a proper background check of whatever scheme they want to invest their money in, to ensure they don’t lose their money. They should also run away from schemes that promise about 60%-80% Roi because any scheme that promises such outrageous returns is fake. After a deep thought on how to curb the Ponzi scheme menace in Nigeria, I concluded that most people who get defrauded by these schemes are also very greedy.
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They want to reap a lot without necessarily doing anything worth their energy. That is more like a scammers’ mindset because they want to reap more than ten times what they have down. Most of these Ponzi scheme operators seem to be very smart and know what most people like to hear because a lot of them psychologically mesmerize their victims with very juicy offers. We are not yet done talking about the Chinmark group Ponzi scheme saga which was run by Marksman who went into oblivion after absconding with millions of Nigerians’ money.
Just recently, the police arrested Ovaioza, after scamming investors billions of Naira with a storage scheme. The Ovaioza establishment was said to be designed to aid the growth of the Nigerian youth, but the reverse is the case. Sources report that Ovaioza used investors’ money to invest in a plaza, three (3) trailers, and goods she supplied to distributors, but the reality is that the worth of all these things may not be up to 25% of the money she collected from investors.
According to information gathered, this is someone who went from begging for 5,000 naira on social media in the year 2020 to controlling billions of Naira two years after. It is therefore imperative to say that those who knew her when she had nothing to do when she started commanding billions within a short period, and still went ahead to invest in her scheme, needs their heads examined.
Of course, some people experience swift growth in their business, but wealth creation is not a walk in the park. Its trajectory is visible for everyone to see, as it doesn’t just happen suddenly. As if that is not enough, there is also the Poyoyo investment scheme that has cost Akure and Lagos residents their millions. The CEO of the Ponzi scheme Kunle Adesua is reported to have absconded with investors millions, with no trail of his whereabouts.
Poyoyo investment limited offered a modest return on investment at 20% which was low enough to convince naive victims. The amusing thing about all these fraudulent schemes that have defrauded a lot of Nigerians, is that it won’t even deter most Nigerians from investing in another scheme. Once it looks like everything has subsided, another scheme springs up, and people still go ahead to invest without a proper background check.
I do not want to sound like a harbinger of bad news, but I will say that a lot of Nigerians will still fall victim to incoming Ponzi schemes. I don’t think there will be an end to the Ponzi scheme operations in Nigeria, it is only left for people to be smart and to do a proper background check on whatever they want to invest their money in.
