Loan sharks taking advantage of Africans

Last night, I read this article by a known Nigerian Journalist called David Hundeyin. He's known for his bravery in writing and uncovering deep secrets amongst politicians and anyone worth talking about in Nigeria.

_{Image from SHVETS Production on Pexels}

In this article, he wrote about a friend who had been a victim of loan sharks and was forced to pay some significant consequences. He found himself in a dicey situation and rather than bother family and friends, he took a loan from a mentioned loan company and couldn't pay in time.

Due to his delay in paying back that loan, he and his wife were flaunted as criminals by the loan platform. Their pictures, emails and phone numbers were sent to many of their contacts and they were called horrible names.

His wife attempted suicide twice just after giving birth to a child and so he decided to reach out to David who then took the matter up and did some major digging on the loan companies.

His findings were remarkable.

I used certain loan companies in 2019 when I was in a terrible situation and I couldn't find anyone to seek support. I was fortunate to have borrowed before they became as brutal as they are. Luckily for me, I paid back every single loan I took and have never looked back since.

_{Random messages I receive from a loan company}

These companies start off being friendly. Some of them that you have never used send you messages like these urging you to seek their service when you don't even need them. However, the moment you default for a brief period, they don't hear pleas.

Recently, a friend of mine attempted to kill himself because of this defamation. He sent me this message today after reading the findings of David Hundeyin. What I found crazy is that they put this young man through hell for a debt of less than $75. How absurd is that?

_{Message from my friend who got defamed by a loan company}

Other loan options

I was quite upset with my friend when he told me he had taken a loan from these apps. Truth is, I had no clue he had a financial need. While I can understand the need to not want to bother anyone, his need was genuine and he's a good guy. I gave him a list of people he could have asked instead of that app and he agreed with me that he messed up.

He initially needed a loan of $150. I broke down a list of people he knows and told him how he would have asked for $20 from each of them and gotten the amount he needed. Now the damage has already been done. It makes no sense to loan him money to pay up a debt that has already done as much damage as it could do.

My advice?

Beg from a physical enemy instead of these loan applications. From the article, you'd understand that a lot of them have been banned in other countries but most African countries always tend to aid rubbish until the last minute.

Their interest rates are absurd and the price you pay when you delay is never worth it in the first place. They are illegal and their activities ought to be stopped but until then, many will still suffer.

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