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A few days ago, 80 nigerians where on FBI list for fraud, another 30 on death row in Saudi Arabia for drug related offences. These news left many tongues wagging.
Unfortunately while these ones exposed abroad chose to embarrass us internationally, fraud comes in different shapes and sizes and many of us are nothing but low key fraudsters.
Lecturers compel students of higher institutions through their class representatives to raise them funds. Some of them frustrate students until they pay in cash, kind or carry over their courses.
Many lecturers are lords. Some even proudly announce that distinction is for God. School management stampede students into silence, terminate students admission for insisting they do the right thing.
Students are also not left out of buying higher grades through cult intimidation and trading sex for marks.
NYSC officials rip corp members of their little allowance through some fake policies such as insurance. They compel corp members to contribute fixed amounts to present as monetary rewards to CDS co-ordinators. Failure to contribute has consequences.
During my NYSC, we were compelled to pay between N500 and N1,000 each in my Community Development Scheme known as CDS group before we could sign our names on the final clearance list for passing out.
Failure to pay meant your name will be ommitted. Mind you, we were over 500 in my CDS group. Do the maths, some people are just simply living off others. Let’s not talk about NYSC deployments, it’s another big business entirely.
Our law enforcement officers deal us unimaginable brutality on a daily basis and still insist we bribe our way out. No day passes without one video or another of extortion, intimidation and extra judicial killings perpetrated in broad day light by men in uniform in this country.
Pastors and Imams are demi-gods and must not be questioned by mere mortals because they know it all. Whoever dares to question them receives the bashing of their lives. Unfortunately, many of them are purveyors of paranoia, using fear and fake prophesies to dupe gullible people.
People who dare speak up on how they were molested or battered in their marriages or just opening up on their past hurt, are shut down. We tell them to deal with their pain in silence and not offend God by calling out religious leaders. While the culprit have a filled day feeling untouchable, they are free to have access to more victims to damage.
In our government offices, you must settle people or your file would likely get missing. You have to bribe or know the boss directly to have access to him or contracts, if not, then money must exchange hands.
The fake and substandard products in our markets, nobody takes responsibility for losses and injuries incured, neither is any one held responsible for allowing such products find their way into our markets. Yet they receive alerts at consumers detriment.
Our government hospitals will leave you questioning what the life of a Nigerian is worth. It’s more like some Doctors and nurses deliberately deliver below standard as to encourage patients to patronize private hospitals.
Our roads are potholes ridden barely two or three years after construction. Some Nigerians even collaborate with foreigners to dupe Nigeria after collecting kick backs. If you dare to ask who executed such shabby job and at what cost, you will be shut down. If you say more, you are likely to lose your life or threatened into silence.
Securing admission into higher institutions of learning or even getting employment after graduation is dependent on who you know and how much you are willing to spend in cash or in kind.
Employers of labor hurt their employees on a daily basis and emotionally black mail them with sack. People get away with a lot by virtue of financial capacity. They treat you however they like and expect you to shut up and we still wonder why our country is like this.
Principled and not easily bamboozled individuals who challenge norms, refuse herds mentality, ask questions when not convinced are easily frustrated if not killed. What is happening is worse than what happens in a battle field.
Nigerians literally have no where to take cover and no bullets to fight back, the situation is pitiable. Nigerians are relegated to the state of keeping mute in the face of many wrongs and injustices. Hypocrisy has become part of our genetic make up.
We shall not stop saying the truth, but until we all change our ways as well, things will remain the same. Too much talk on the wrong things and no action on the right ones makes hypocrisy our biggest problem.
We must start questioning norms and damning the consequences. Evil men will not continually hold us all to ransome. Be that Nigerian who will speak and stand for the truth always. Stand with those fighting for our collective good and rights.
Fraud is fraud, be it internet fraud, drug trafficking, producing or selling substandard products, kidnapping, armed robbery, insisting and accepting bribes before doing due diligence etc. Fraud is fraud!
