A Ponzi scheme is an investment scam that pays early investors with money taken from later investors to create an illusion of big profits. This kind of investment will provide mouth-watering gains that will push millions of people to invest their money with the hope of getting huge returns in no distant time.
Ponzi scheme often appears to be real as the owners and operators of the online scheme will only ask investors to deposit a small amount of money and cash out big in few days to come. The major task given to investors is to bring down-liners with the hope of making them cash out bigger and faster.
Over the years, few people especially the new investors in a new Ponzi scheme, have been seen smiling to banks with the money they withdrew from the scheme. This first blessings as people may call it is a major way to deceive people that such investments are real. Some of those people advertising the gains they made from the scheme are part of the operators of those sites. Their main aim is to lure others to invest.
However, when more people must have invested, the operators will run away with the money and investors will start having issues logging into the sites.
The popular MMM that dealt with millions of Nigerians who invested in that scheme years back is a clear example. The young and old fell victim to MMM. The shock of the crash of MMM sent some to their early graves while some developed incurable sicknesses. Many who invested all they had were rendered homeless. Some students in different higher institutions became dropouts as many of them used their tuition fees and house rents to invest.
It is even more worrisome to note that some priests left their calling and started pursuing instantaneous wealth because many of them were also trapped in there, when they invested church monies. All the issues caused by these Ponzi schemes in the society should teach Nigerians a great lesson.
Recently, another Ponzi scheme came up and people were inviting their friends and family members to join. The more you bring people, the more chances you have to earn higher.
A bitter question that needed an urgent answer was, where will the gain of millions come from? People borrowed from banks to upgrade for better returns. When the operators gathered all the wealth they needed, they came out with flimsy stories that got some hospitalized.
The Truth is that things are really tough in the country and a lot of people are struggling to survive by all means, hence they can easily fall prey to such schemes. However, that is not enough reason not to identify scammers when they surface. The security agencies like the Economic and Financial Crime Commission EFCC, should trace these scammers and deal with them. If not, more Nigerians will continue to fall victims.
Government should reduce the cost of living in this country and provide job opportunities to our teeming youths so that they will channel this fraudulent energy to what will bring glory to the country. Above all, Nigerians should be contented with what they have and work harder to improve themselves other than relying on Ponzi schemes for survival.
AKACHUKWU ELINWA
