RSN™ Insights: Art & Life In Nigeria

Commentary by Nigerian Artist named “Jekein“

This is from a post on Facebook by a Nigerian Artist named “Jekein”

Nigerian Artist Jekein Stands Up To Yahoo Boy Scammers

Her Post

“They’re called Yahoo Boys. The name comes from the old days when they used Yahoo email accounts to scamScam A Scam is a confidence trick - a crime -  is an attempt to defraud a person or group after first gaining their trust through deception. Scams or confidence tricks exploit victims using their credulity, naïveté, compassion, vanity, irresponsibility, or greed and exploiting that. Researchers have defined confidence tricks as "a distinctive species of fraudulent conduct ... intending to further voluntary exchanges that are not mutually beneficial", as they "benefit con operators ('con men' - criminals) at the expense of their victims (the 'marks')". A scam is a crime even if no money was lost. people. I first started seeing them when I went to the University of Lagos. They form little gangsGangs A gang is normally a group or society of associated criminals with a defined leadership and internal organization that identifies with or claims control over a territory or business practice in a community and engages, either individually or collectively, in illegal, and possibly violent, behavior. Online gangs are not limited by territory and may operate side by side with other gangs while engaging in crime online. Some members of criminal gangs are initiated (by going through a process of initiation), or have to prove their loyalty and right to belong by committing certain acts, usually theft or violence, or rituals. Gangs are usually rougher and more visible than scammer cartels, and more often arrested.. They travel in convoys where all the cars are the same color. They’re always on their laptops. These days a lot of them are legitimized. They rent office space. They refer to their targets as ‘clients.’ They start charities. They put their fraudFraud In law, fraud is intentional deception to secure unfair or unlawful gain (money or other assets), or to deprive a victim of a legal right. Fraud can violate civil law (e.g., a fraud victim may sue the fraud perpetrator to avoid the fraud or recover monetary compensation) or criminal law (e.g., a fraud perpetrator may be prosecuted and imprisoned by governmental authorities), or it may cause no loss of money, property, or legal right but still be an element of another civil or criminal wrong. The purpose of fraud may be monetary gain or other benefits, for example by obtaining a passport, travel document, or driver's license, or mortgage fraud, where the perpetrator may attempt to qualify for a mortgage by way of false statements. A fraud can also be a hoax, which is a distinct concept that involves deliberate deception without the intention of gain or of materially damaging or depriving a victim. money into other businesses. Some of them have Instagram accounts with hundreds of thousands of followers. They post pictures of their cars and clothes. They never mention where they got their money– but everyone knows. A lot of them buy art from me. Since a lot of their scamsScams A Scam is a confidence trick - a crime -  is an attempt to defraud a person or group after first gaining their trust through deception. Scams or confidence tricks exploit victims using their credulity, naïveté, compassion, vanity, irresponsibility, or greed and exploiting that. Researchers have defined confidence tricks as "a distinctive species of fraudulent conduct ... intending to further voluntary exchanges that are not mutually beneficial", as they "benefit con operators ('con men' - criminals) at the expense of their victims (the 'marks')". A scam is a crime even if no money was lost. are emotional fraud, they’ll even ask me for advice on things that women would say in a relationship. Or they’ll ask me to pick up their phone and pretend to be a secretary. I never participate. Recently I’ve even stopped selling them paintings. It’s cost me a lot. But I can’t take their money without feeling complicit.”

(Lagos, Nigeria)

You can find more of her art on her Facebook page here »

Tell Her We Admire Her Courage To Just Say NO To Scammers!

Nigerian Artist Jekein

In another post Jekein writes …

Her Post:

“It happened in May. I was driving my friend’s Mercedes to school because my car had broken down. And suddenly I got pulled over. I turned on the interior lights. I showed the policemen my ID. I called my friend on the phone and asked him to explain the situation. But they said: ‘Not enough, get out of the car.’ They started calling me a prostitute. I told them I’m an artist. Then they saw my laptop in the backseat, and they tried calling me an Internet scammerScammer A Scammer or Fraudster is someone that engages in deception to obtain money or achieve another objective. They are criminals that attempt to deceive a victim into sending more or performing some other activity that benefits the scammer.. They asked me to open my computer and type in the password. I told them it wasn’t possible. Then they asked for a huge bribe, and I told them it wasn’t possible. That’s when they cocked their guns at me. One of them got in the front seat. He pointed his gun at me and told me to drive to an ATM. I brought him to this exact spot, and he escorted me to the machine. I left the car running. I maxed out one of my cards, and told him that I have go back and get another one. Then I locked the door and started driving away. That’s when he started shooting at me! All of this was captured on surveillance cameras. I sped away. I was taking short cuts and back roads. The whole time I was thinking I’m about to get killed. When I got home, I found four dents in the car from where the bullets hit. Afterwards I contacted the police, and they said they wouldn’t even speak to me unless I deleted the story from social media. I said: ‘I’m not doing that. I’m a law student.’”

(Lagos, Nigeria)

This is the best example of how Africa is not a lost cause, but until their governments make the decision to end corruption these systems will remain.