Basic HTML Version
September
4 Monday
week 36
September
Tuesday 7
S
ome time ago, I got a call from a certain
fellow who claimed to be an engineer in
NNPC, (Nigerian National Petroleum
Corporation) in charge of crude oil allocation. I
had received similar calls in the past from such
people claiming to be one top government official
or the other . They are usually fraudsters with
their tell tales of imaginary money in the bank
or some oil well they own.
My usual reaction was to dismiss these dream
merchants in their make belief world of fantasy.
But on a day like this I decided to indulge this
chap and string along like a potential ‘mugu’.’
“Hello sir’, what can I do for you?” I asked. He
replied, “my name is Reverend Moses Green of
the NNPC Head Office. My office is actually in
charge of oil allocation and I will like to inform
you that your mobile number was picked up
among several numbers. The idea is for you to
benefit from this present government’s effort
towards providing more people with allocation for
oil. Congratulations, sir.” I replied, “Thank you,
my brother”. I tried to feign warmth and naivety
to keep him confident and reassured that he had
a real prey in his quarry. “That is very kind of
you”, I said bristling with excitement and enthu-
siasm.
He spoke at length about how transparent the oil
allocation exercise has been and how lucky I am
to be selected. I told him that I was really im-
pressed particularly knowing that he is ‘a rever-
end gentleman who has an honest disposition.’
I had now set the stage for the conman to unfold
his extortion tactics. He had met his prey with
the right combination of greed and gullibility.
“Your allocation for this quarter is for N500 mil-
lion, all you are expected to do is to pay 1% of the
required sum”, he quipped. “That is not much,
sir” I said. I could feel his fevered excitement.
“There are many more benefits you will get to
know later”. He asked me to send him details of
a current account I have presently including my
e-mail address. I tried to sound tough by ask-
ing him why he needed my e-mail address. He
quickly replied saying that he needed to send
me certain documents in respect of the transac-
tion.
He spoke about his devotion to God and his dis-
position to honesty and fairplay. “You see my
friend, as a child of God, I can never deceive you.
Ever since I got this appointment, I have received
all kinds of temptation. But I can tell you, I
have been resisting them to keep my reputation.
You know that is why the man in this position
was fired. I have integrity and a lot of people
can vouch for me.” I said to him, “You know the
only reason why I will want to deal with you is
because you are truly a man of God and I know
you will not lie to me”. This jolt of confidence
reflected in his response as his voice seemed to
have resonated with vigor, “Just text me your
bank details and you will see how quickly you
will get those allocation papers. I promise.”
I must confess that I was enjoying the comic
flow of this conversation. It was all so interest-
ing to note that the ‘Reverend’ thought that
he was on the verge of closing a deal. I tried
to make myself sound so vulnerable, “Rever-
end, please make sure I get this allocation, I’m
begging you.” His voice turned frenzied like a
hungry shark who has just smelled blood, “We
have to interrupt this call so you can send me
your bank details, so you will know how seri-
ous I am. You don’t have to discuss this issue
with anybody. You know how the world is now.
Some people may want to take advantage of
your good fortune and begin to plot evil against
you.” I quickly responded that I will not do such
a thing since “God had sent him to me”. He fur-
ther said that if I divulge information on this
allocation, I could lose the allocation.
I took my time to reflect on the psyche of this
would be fraudster. Did he really think that one
had fallen for his poorly orchestrated scheme? Is
this how he has been stalking his victims and
mauling them down. I sent him wrong details
of my bank account as well as an e-mail ad-
dress I had just created.
In less than an hour, he called again thanking
me for a prompt response. It is tragic enough
that a man would channel his creative energy
for such acts of criminality. I felt a strong
compulsion to end this conversation with this
fraudster. He kept talking about his love and
dedication to worshipping God. I had had
enough of this endless conversation. It was time
to tell him some home truth. To drive home my
point, I conveyed my disgust in local pidgin
parlance, “Pally, why you dey fool yourself like
dis?” This would have startled him out of his
wits. There was an uneasy minute silence before
the click, indicating he had hung up. In that
one minute, he realized that his bubble had been
busted like a baby’s sand castle.
The Fraudster’s call
BY MICHAEL NWABUZOR (MEDIA RELATIONS UNIT, UBA)
Sharing
Experiences