Gross Abuse of Fundraising in Nigeria: From the Corridor of Agbala Gabriel to the Pocket of Papa Ajasco
One of the many things in Nigeria that appear to be wrong in recent times is fundraising. There’s so much poverty in the land, millions of people actually need help, some can barely feed. Hence, fundraising sounds like what everyone would like to jump on without understanding the full idea of the situation and circumstance. Aside the obvious poverty which would speak to most people’s emotions to want to help, most of the religions practiced in Nigeria place a huge emphasis on giving, everyone looking for a ‘miracle’ backs it up with giving. Another factor that can’t be overlooked is our culture. It seems humanity-inclined as we have a communal society where sharing and giving is more pronounced.
Having admit the weight of poverty that both the rich and the poor have to painfully bear, I’m of the opinion that fundraising is grossly abused, and the abuse may become an irritant. Some individuals with questionable character have made giving an avenue to milk hardworking Nigerians while some familiar faces have also tapped into what now appears as a our vulnerability to emotionally blackmail us to sustain their celebrity status, which do not mean poverty in the actual sense of what poverty is in Nigeria, or even most part of the world.
While I think individuals like Agbala Gabriel should have been apprehended and questioned over activities in his foundation, I also think it’s necessary for individuals with foundations channelled at helping the poor should have a credible, stable source of income that can accommodate giving. And if they have to initiate fundraising, it should be transparent using a fundraising platform where everyone sees how much is raised, how much you remit and how much you hold for your operation. VeryDarkMan, KingMitchy, AgbalaGabriel and many others don’t have anything else they do. It’s now like they just wake, raise funds without transparency and embark on projects. This niche is becoming increasingly popular and of course lucrative.
I read the rebuttal WAPtv issued regarding Papa Ajasco plea for help and I wasn’t really surprised it’s a gimmick sold to Nigerians, because by all standards Papa Ajasco don’t look poor. He might be having a rough finances, but he doesn’t need public sympathy like millions of homeless Nigerians sleeping under bridges across our big cities. A house owner even in the deepest part of the village is not poor.
I can’t speak on how people throw their money around, but we are encouraging what is fast growing to become a pain. We all know how we run around to get help from friends and family members when we are in need, why do our celebrities jump on social media to start begging for help every opportunity that presents itself. I encourage giving, but before our eyes, people are turning it into a large scale business.
Even though the poverty we see in every corner of Nigeria today is a creation of lack of foresight by those at the helm of affairs, and I don’t believe 1000 Dangotes supporting the poor can end the magnitude of poverty in our country, giving has to continue because it’s part of us. Yet we must do better to give to people who actually need help.
