Why internet fraud by youngsters is thriving despite crackdown by EFCC

The rising number of Nigerian youths engaged in the Advance Fee Fraud popularly known as ‘Yahoo Yahoo’ is, no doubt, worrisome. The recent discovery of recruitment and training centres for teenagers in some parts of the country even poses greater concerns for the nation. While many people blamed the development on failure of governance, accusing fingers were also pointed to various enablers who aid and abate the crime, BRIDGET CHIEDU ONOCHIE writes.

The slogan, “school na scam” has gained prominence among Nigerian youths in recent years. It is a statement that diminishes the relevance of formal education in the country and extols the get-rich-quick syndrome. The group of youths that mouth the slogan questions the rationale behind investing money and time in Western education without any hope of securing gainful employment upon graduation.

This mindset, perhaps, motivated the song of a Nigerian rapper, Steven Adeoye, in his track titled, Ali, which highlights that it does not take only academic intelligence to make money and live happily. Rendered in both pidgin English and Yoruba languages, the song says: “Ali go to school but Ali komoiwe. So, Ali leave the school. Ali gbaonaile. So, Ali buy lapi, Ali shey Yahoo, Ali make money. Now, Ali dey happy. I wanna be like Ali.”

The song literarily translates to: “Ali went to school but he was not intelligent. So, he dropped out, bought a laptop, engaged in internet fraud, made money and lives happily afterwards. I want to be like Ali.”

Yahoo Yahoo or 419 is used to describe those involved in advance fee fraud. The number was coined from Section 419 of Nigerian Criminal Code, which criminalises the process of obtaining money or property by false pretense.

The section stipulates that: “Any person who by any false pretense, and with intent to defraud, obtains from any other person anything capable of being stolen, or induces any other person to deliver to any person anything capable of being stolen, is guilty of a felony and is liable to imprisonment terms.”

As the society continues to lose its core moral values and adore riches, the younger generation erroneously believe that monetary acquisition is the yardstick for measuring success and greatness. Some people also attributed the get-rich-quick mentality adopted by the youth to the lifestyle of some politicians and political office holders, who embezzle public funds with impunity and go scot-free.

Records obtained from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) indicated that over 5,400 youths were arrested for alleged 419 offences between 2021 and March this year. The most frightening scenario, however, is the emerging trend among teenagers who struggle for space with the older generation in the criminal act. Just recently, EFCC announced the discovery of 419 training centres in the country involving primary school pupils as well as students of secondary and tertiary institutions. Although the location of the centres were not disclosed, the EFCC boss, Ola Olukoyede, lamented that the practice was going on with the consent of the minors’ parents, who were made to sign an undertaking before their children were initiated into the act.

“We have what we call the 419 training schools where they harvest our children from primary school. When they close from their regular studies at 2.00pm, they end up in some of these 419 training schools, where they are indoctrinated. They first ask them and their parents to sign an undertaking and they get indoctrinated into cybercrime as young as they are.

“That is the reason you see them in 100 and 200 levels hacking and you think they just started. No. They started 10 to 15 years back. We didn’t take cognizance of it. We thought all was well with Nigeria,” he explained.

Recently also, a video went viral of a young boy below 20 years who presented a brand new vehicle to his parents in one of the South-eastern states of the country. Worried by his source of income, the parents quickly alerted security agencies to question their son.

But situations where parents expose their children involved in crimes are very few, as most parents would rather shield their children and encourage them as long as the illegal act is capable of lifting the family out of poverty.

Odinakachi Micheal (not real name), who is 27 years old and a secondary school drop-out said: ““School is scam” was coined out of government’s failure to provide quality education and employment after graduation.

“I dropped out of school because my parents could not afford my WASC registration fees. Those who are educated but choose Yahoo do so because they want quick money. They want to make it early in life and eat money while they are young.

“For this group of people, going to school is a waste of time. Someone can enter the business now and in a month’s time, “e don cash out, dats the main thing. You understand? They buy cars, live the kind of life they want to live, that kain thing na.”

If offered jobs, will young people accept to quit Yahoo? Odinakachi simply laughed and said: “The way Nigeria is now, there is no hope for that. Where will you see the job? So, that is why many people decide to follow the route they understand. If you have grace, you will cash out soonest.”

He however admitted that there are numerous challenges associated with engaging in Yahoo Yahoo.

“Some have grace, others don’t. Those without grace go extra mile such as engaging in rituals. It is also generally becoming difficult to cash out these days because more people are aware of the ‘business’,” he revealed.

Adams Onuja joined Yahoo Yahoo as a final year student in a university in the northern part of the country.

He revealed to The Guardian: “I didn’t really experience the pressure to keep up with studies while ‘bombing’ (another term used to describe cybercrime). Where I was taught, we had boys who couldn’t cope combining studies and Yahoo.

“Most of them were in 100 and 200 levels. This is because Yahoo work is mostly done in the night. We don’t usually sleep at night. We sleep during the day and you know that schools happen only in day time.

“So, many of them couldn’t keep up and it had a toll on their results. Some of them had to quit schooling in order to concentrate fully on Yahoo because they were all making money. Mind you, the person that taught us Yahoo was also a school drop-out.”

Onuja disclosed that peer pressure is a major factor that lures today’s youths into cybercrime.

“All my friends were doing it and they were making good money. They showed off their latest gadgets and I wanted to be part of them.

“It is hard to resist the temptation of easy money when you are struggling. I know it is not the right path but it is hard to quit if you start it,” he added.

For Goodwill Akpan (not real name), education is considered a scam in Nigeria due to unemployment, poor salary and employers’ inability to pay workers’ salaries at times.

He noted that most times, people get jobs that are not in line with their course of study. “You study a course and at the end, you don’t practice what you studied. You also get poorly paid while those that didn’t go to school are doing well for themselves,” he remarked.

Admitting that education enriches one’s knowledge, Akpan, however, faulted the Nigerian education system, saying it does not prepare one for self-employment.

“How much knowledge do they gain from schools in Nigeria? Most people go to school just to acquire certificates and after that, focus on life,” he added.

He regretted that Nigerian youths found themselves in the Yahoo trap in spite of the risks involved.

“If you go through the social media, you will read stories about youths doing Yahoo, how they fight demons. Most people wouldn’t want to continue that kind of life if the system is working. They feel bad but they just have to close their minds to it in order to survive. Others are stone cold anyway,” he said.

When asked about the attitude of the youth towards menial jobs, Akpan said: “It is still the same society. You don’t expect a degree holder to accept an employment of N70,000 monthly in Nigeria of today; they also have family matters to solve. So, menial job is not a concern for a youth engulfed in life; he would rather travel outside or do any form of illegality besides Yahoo. Aside from Yahoo, there are other forms of illegalities that people indulge in.”

Akpan added that most youths would have preferred to go into entrepreneurship instead of engaging in crime but lack of fund was a setback.

“To start a business in Nigeria requires money and even when you source money to start, there are so many things that can force one to shut down in less than two years. So, most youths engage in what they are sure of, which is scam,” he submitted.

To get the youths out of Yahoo, Akpan said that the system has to work to enable them regain confidence in society while the government must restore the value of education.
How Loss Of Values, Government Failure Incentivise Fraud

In spite of the reasons given above, some people have blamed Yahoo boys for adopting wrong values and negative mindset driven by the desire to get rich quick and live flamboyantly.

Mr. Frank Ebo (not real name) holds a Masters degree in Economics and Statistics. Having sought for a white collar job without success, he opted for poultry farming in his village for survival.

He decried that some school drop-outs Yahoo boys often mock him for investing time and resources in education without gains.

“To them, I am a metaphor for ‘school na scam’. They don’t see me as gainfully employed because to them, I do dirty work while they look flashy, buy designer clothes and trending things. So, for them, those that have the money are the real people,” he said.

On the apathy towards education by some youths, Ebo said: “Most people acquire education in order to secure good jobs but at the end of the day, the jobs are not there. So, the young people are turning their minds to somewhere or something that can give them money fast.

“The government is also not sincere enough in addressing economic challenges confronting the society. What is the confidence in the young people that there would be a better tomorrow? The ideology of the youth is to do anything possible to live today and die tomorrow. In fact, there is no tomorrow for most young Nigerians.”

Ebo also blamed politicians for living flamboyantly at the expense of the masses.

“Our President who lives in Abuja far from any water body has a presidential yacht. That shows how much we glorify money. So, these young ones also want to belong, own new cars and beautiful houses.”

He, however, expressed fear that some illiterates and school drop-outs ignorantly engage in rituals to succeed in the Yahoo ‘business’.

“Even though I am not sure, I can tell you that some of the money they claimed to have gotten from internet frauds is given to them by a clique. Who are they defrauding? Although they hack bank accounts, how many people are they defrauding? Some of them that bring large sums are into things beyond internet fraud. A lot of them cannot read or write. How do they defraud people?” he queried.

He warned that considering the pace at which education is being relegated, the country may experience shortage of manpower in the nearest future.

“When hook-up girls marry Yahoo boys, even cooking at home will be a problem. They will have to rely on restaurants. Nobody will even apply for government jobs and there would be shortage of workers,” he noted.

Executive Director, Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) and Chairman, Board of Amnesty International, Nigeria, Auwal Musa Rafsanjani, also blamed leadership failure for the increasing number of Nigerian youths that engage in cybercrime.

“The only value they see in politicians is how to make money quickly. That is the reason you see young people at the age of 15 years inducted into this process by some wicked, unpatriotic and irresponsible people.

“It is very sad that the only thing the youth are learning from our politicians is how they can steal money to behave in the manner they are behaving. So, since they cannot go into public office at their age to loot money, they device other ways such as Yahoo.

“Secondly, the failure of parents to provide character behaviour and observe their children to know their friends is equally contributing to the problem. Parents have neglected their roles; community and religious leaders have all neglected their roles as most religious leaders concentrate their teachings on prosperity.

“Abandoning teachings on fear of God and patriotism and concentrating on God not being poor contributed largely to exposing younger ones to illegal ways of getting money in the society.

“Community leaders who give chieftaincy titles to young ones without interrogating their source of money are also guilty,” Rafsanjani said.

He, therefore, charged parents to arise and forestall the dangerous trend of kid Yahoo by instilling discipline in their children.

A Presbyter in Methodist Church of Nigeria, Cathedral of Grace, Abuja, Ugochukwu Sylvester Madu, absolved religion of any blame but rather blamed religious leaders for not interrogating some members and donors about their sources of income due to fear of blackmail.

He said: “Difficulty in rejecting donations from individuals even when it is clear that they are guilty of Yahoo ‘business’, and thorough discipline of such individuals is a failure on the part of religious leaders.

“As a seasoned youth pastor, coach and counsellor with over 14 years experience, I have observed that even children under the age of 15 are susceptible to the allure of get-rich-quick mentality.

“This is largely due to an excessive focus on miracle money and prosperity messages, which promotes erroneous interpretation of success as being achieved without hard work.

“Such messages often neglect crucial values that contribute to a stable social system such as accountability, integrity, contentment and harmonious coexistence,” he said.

Beyond the failure of religious leaders to instill fear of God in most of their members, Madu also blamed poverty for the increase in Yahoo Yahoo activities.

“The institutions responsible for ensuring proper governance and social and economic stability have been politicised, compromised and destabilised. Leaders in all domains should take responsibility for the collapse of structures and work collectively to remedy the situation,” he said.

Increasing Spirit Of Laziness Amoung Youths
Observers also noted that some youths exhibit a high level of laziness and apathy towards honesty and hard work. According former Chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Kaduna State Chapter, the Rev. John Joseph Hayab, Yahoo Yahoo is often carried out by people who do not want to work.

“The bible says that whoever does not work should not eat but when people want the easiest way to become rich, popular or easiest way to control the society, they go into every kind of evil as long as it is going to give them money.

“I agree that some parents encourage their children; it is because those parents see their children’s classmates who were not better than their children in class, joining politics and becoming multi-millionaires in a short while, driving big cars and intimidating them.

“So, if you look at this Yahoo thing, it is just like a mother encouraging her daughter to go into prostitution in order to get money for them to eat. My worry is that to be knowledgeable in internet requires some training.

“How can one acquire training just to steal from somebody rather than for enriching your mind positively? Hayeb asked.

Warning that such will bring disgrace to the families, communities and tribes of the perpetrators, he expressed worries that the increase in Internet fraud was encouraging negative profiling of Nigerians abroad.

“Today, because of the evil of Internet fraud going on, it is assumed that all Nigerians are involved in Yahoo Yahoo. So, you can see how these boys have turned a society of respected people into that of criminals.

“The fact that they keep running and hiding shows that they are not at peace. They cannot sleep, they cannot raise a decent family and even when they do, they will end up putting their wives and children to disgrace. I appeal to young men to earn their living through hard work. Work and earn money with dignity,” he admonished.

Hotels as habitat for Yahoo boys
Most Yahoo boys lodge in hotels for months while perpetrating their illegal act. Although hoteliers may know the kind of ‘business’ they do, they still welcome them with open arms.

A hotel operator in Abuja, who pleaded anonymity, explained that it would be unhealthy for his business if he begins to interrogate prospective customers’ sources of income. He also explained that operational costs have put several businessmen on edge, including those in the hospitality industry, and has positioned everyone to grab any available opportunity to remain in business.

“My sister, you clearly understand the country’s economic situation. When we see customers, business interest takes priority. Unfortunately, EFCC raids them regularly but the struggle continues,” he said.

A Port Harcourt-based lawyer, Chief Festus Oguche, however, warned that a hotelier could be criminally culpable for acts done in his premises if he is in contemplation of the type of business his customers are engaged in and still goes ahead to admit them.

“In that wise, the hotel and owners are within the category of persons aiding and abetting the crime, which could very possibly extend to becoming accessories after the fact.

Oguche said: “Apparently, the hotelier’s bills are paid with proceeds of crime and if well established, can fetch him allegation of obtaining stolen goods. An hotelier may attempt to feign ignorance but a look at his customer would confirm his persuasions since Yahoo boys have some physical peculiarities in their features that we all know.

“We all know instinctually where such unlawful activity is going on even from some distance, unless the hotelier is relying on his total lack of prudence.”