The death of the notorious hunter of internet fraudsters
(Yahoo Bois), Razak Tunji Alaaso a.k.a "Alhaji Gay" which took place
on the 19th of July, 2015 around his residence at Mosalasi road, Agbado Ijaye,
Lagos has been widely celebrated by youths in Nigeria on the social media.
The celebrations over the death of an individual who was
allegedly hacked to death with his evident mutilated body exposes the level of
decadence in the Nigerian society. Below are a couple of lessons one can draw
from the unusual excitement over the gruesome death of a fellow human being:
(1) Majority of Nigerian youths are into internet scam:
This point bores down to the over 60% rate of youth
unemployment in Nigeria. When the legal means are not available, the illegal
routes are mostly adopted. If you have ever had dealing with the late Alhaji
Gay as a youth or adult, then you are into internet fraud. His name is only
known to those in the ''Yahoo circle" as he cheated them massively under
the guise of representing the Nigerian Police force and the Economic and
Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC. He allegedly seized cars, houses and funds
running into millions of naira depending on the wealth status of the fraudster.
(2) High level of corruption in the Nigerian Police Force and
the Economic and Financial Crime Commission, EFCC:
The police and the EFCC were misrepresented by the late
Alhaji Gay. He reportedly had guns, handcuffs and other sensitive materials
used by certified security operatives. I heard of him when he invaded a bank in
Ibadan to effect arrests of internet fraudsters. He moved in a convoy as a
security operative using hoodlums as his men. He extorted money illegally from
offenders unhindered. He tortured some uncooperative individuals in uncompleted
buildings under the nose of the Nigerian police. He went as far as traveling
outside the country to places like Ghana, South Africa, Malaysia and other
havens of Yahoo Bois to effect the arrests under the auspices of the same
police and EFCC. They severally released disclaimers on him but he was never
brought to book because they were taking cuts from him. He was highly connected
among the police and the EFCC operatives. These affiliations helped him in
commanding the obedience of the arrested scammers.
According to the Punch newspaper, over 25 landlords of the
Alagbado street in Lagos on the 15th of July, reported him to the Lagos state
Police Command, Ikeja, Lagos prior to his death over the illegal sale of lands
and sexual harassment of males. They stated he was above the law.
(3) The Nigerian society has successfully embraced internet
scam:
Following the social media reactions especially on platforms
like Facebook, Twitter and top comments on blogs, several youths that were not
into internet fraud joined the infamous bandwagon of Yahoo Bois to celebrate
the abrupt demise of their unrepentant tormentor. This goes a long way to tell
you that financial crime has become a norm in the country which is totally
unacceptable. Impromptu parties were thrown and a lot of victims of the late
Alhaji Gay shared their ordeals with him openly. They allegedly kept their bitter
encounters with him fearfully secret.
It should be noted that these youths will outgrow internet
fraud one day and become leaders in the areas of politics, businesses,
religious organizations, Non-Governmental organizations etc with the same
mentality and culture of fraud. This accounts for the high rate of corruption
that has crippled the Nigerian society. President Muhammadu Buhari recently
told the United States of America that the accumulated looted funds are in the
region of a staggering figure of $150 billion over the past 10 years.
(4) Living life on the fast lane is the fastest route to
untimely destruction:
Alhaji Gay lived his life on a fast lane. He was accused of
an array of offenses ranging from illegal arrests, battering, torture,
impersonation, illegal extortion of money from suspected criminals, seizure and
sale of landed properties and cars. He was even accused of a crime as heinous
as murder. According to his victims, he used voodoo which helped him in
gathering intelligence reports as well as for protective purposes.
(5) Most Nigerian ladies indirectly support internet fraud:
A study of the celebrating circle revealed that there were
several females among them. It is appalling that Nigerian ladies have sold
their conscience for financial benefits. The name "Alhaji Gay'' is far
from being strange to them as they usually hear their Yahoo boyfriends discuss
him. Nigerian ladies are known for reaping from funds whose sources are unknown
to them and even when they know, they hardly care so far they are getting a
large chunk of it. These are not the ladies needed as wives.
Furthermore, the late Alhaji Gay had a network of informants
that fed him with intelligence reports on huge scams in Nigeria and outside the
country as perpetrated by Nigerian youths. One social media user said he
received a call from him while he was in Malaysia. The deceased mandated him to
send his share of a recent big scam he orchestrated. The way he swiftly got
information was diabolical to people. This also exposes the degree of betrayal
in the ''Yahoo industry'' as the fraudsters were always found snitching on
themselves especially after a huge hit.
It is hoped that Nigeria gets better someday so that our
youths can look away from internet scam to other productive engagements. This
will enable them to reach their full potentials in life towards the greatness
of Nigeria.
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