Nigeria: Fraud, The Order Of The Day

By Ogude Franklin

Nigeria in West Africa is seen as a corrupt country in the world because of her history of poor leadership and bad government.

Having kleptocrats as government officials has become an excuse for some of her citizens to live recklessly and extort people given the slightest opportunity. There is this general mantra on the streets, “school na scam” which has sunk into the minds of the masses. Majority of these young people who are supposed to be the future and hope for a better tomorrow are forgetting that without education, there is no exposure.

Furthering, the negative approach of the Nigerian youths to making and earning a living, has to a considerable extent contributed to a crippling economy. Notwithstanding, the government has chosen through their policies and actions, to hoard job opportunities basically for their families and relations. Consequently, creating a society where young people have fading visions and ambitions.

ALSO READ: BREAKING: Supreme Court Bars Buhari, CBN From Banning Old Naira Notes

In 2020, youths across the country stood up to kick against incessant killings and unlawful arresting of young people, because government agencies like the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) and the Police were hiding behind their uniform to abuse and harass young citizens with hasty generalization that their source of living was through fraudulent acts.

Aisha Yesufu, an activist and business woman who hails from Edo State, South-South, Nigeria, in the midst of the fight against SARS and Police brutality, on Arise TV, said life to her is, “having a nation where the child of nobody can become somebody without knowing anybody”.
The youths of the country have lost hope in the government because they have overtime shown lackadaisical attitude towards youth empowerment. Also, they have the executive arm of government arresting ‘good looking’ boys with the assumption that they are fraudsters.

Graduates after leaving school, have little or no job opportunities awaiting them, causing some of them to venture into fraud, otherwise called ‘Yahoo yahoo’ as a means of survival. Some of these ‘yahoo yahoo’ boys, who for one reason or the other were not lucky to acquire secondary or tertiary education now cite decent graduates as bad examples and the definition of poverty.
Speaking with some of these fraudsters, they generally hold the view that they are retrieving from the Westerners what was stolen from their forefathers before and after Nigeria’s independence.

Fraud has so much contributed to the hardship faced by the masses. It is one reason amongst others why business people hike the prices of some staples with the mentality that they have the money and would pay. This has marked the average Nigerian as someone who will seize every opportunity to extort another citizen. Prices of clothes, shoes, and general outfits are hiked as these fraudsters are willing to pay twice of what a regular salary earner would pay.
Undergraduates are not left out of this enigma, as some go to school as an excuse to escape being watched by their parents or guardians. Thereby, attaining a level of freedom to venture into fraud. In disguise, Most of these guys pose to be Bitcoin traders and currency exchangers.

Continuing, fraud has eaten into the Nigeria system like a cankerworm and needs purging. The unscrupulous actions of the government have created a loophole for unethical and immoral beliefs amongst the youths. The government needs to change its approach to governing, they should create a society where the value of education is seen and job opportunities are made available for young citizens.

Interestingly, internet fraud according to defaulters have alleviated families from poverty and their standards of living has greatly improved. This is now the order of the day as they see no need to acquire higher education when they can get the basic necessities which helps them kick-start fraud.

What will the government do to rebuild the country?

Would government, through policies and actions, change the mindset of youths?

These questions remain unanswered.