Thread: Ponzi scheme shakes Africa's Benin

Ponzi scheme shakes Africa's Benin
Virgile Ahissou and Artis Henderson, AAP
September 2, 2010, 11:12 am

More than 100,000 people in the tiny West African nation of Benin have lost their savings in a Ponzi scheme run by a now-defunct company that appeared to be publicly endorsed by the country's president.

The government said in a statement in August that more than 130,000 people gave their savings to Investment Consultancy and Computering Services. Together they lost more than $US130 million ($A142.87 million), the statement said.


The corporation was registered as a nonprofit computer service company and was operating illegally as a banking institution. ICC was forced to close on July 1, and more than a dozen of its employees were jailed.

But the reverberations have echoed to the top of Benin's power pyramid and now threaten President Boni Yayi, who appeared on television with ICC managers.
Television news shows showed Yayi and other top government officials posing alongside the managers of the investment firm. The images were reproduced on T-shirts. While investors interpreted Yayi's presence as an endorsement, the president did not officially speak in favour of ICC during the appearances.

In this country of 8.7 million people, the average yearly income hovers at $US750 ($A824). Many lost months to years of savings in the scam.

Electrician Lambert Saizonou, 40, planned to use his investment earnings to buy his first house. Now he has lost all of his savings. Jobs are scarce, and Saizonou worries it will take years to save to buy a home for his family.
"They promised me an interest rate of 200 per cent," he said. "Now I must start saving again, little by little."

Herman Menton, a 32-year-old company manager, lost nearly $US1500 after investing in ICC for a year. Like many of ICC's investors, Menton was referred to the company by friends who had already invested and lured him with the promise of high interest rates.

Perhaps the greatest swindle, some say, is the government's role in the investmentcompany. Many victims say the sight of government officials in the ads reassured them their money would be safe.
"We saw them on television," said Pierre Dossa, a mechanic who lost his savings. "How could we not believe in it?"

Since the announcement that ICC's activities were fraudulent, Yayi has swept his administration of those associated with the company. In July, he fired Armand Zinzindohoue, the minister of the interior, and Chief Prosecutor Georges Constant Amoussou.

More than a dozen individuals connected to ICC have been jailed, including the president's cousin and two of the company's top managers.
But some members of Benin's National Assembly say these measures do not go far enough. They accuse Yayi of being complicit in ICC's corrupt activities, and they have called for his impeachment.

But the government of Benin denies any wrongdoing. "This is a private affair between a business and its clients," said spokesman Candide Azanai. "Because the people have been robbed, the government is intervening for the security of its citizens."

An investigative commission has been established, and the government is seeking to retrieve funds from ICC, even seizing personal items such as cars and villas from the company's managers. Victims will be reimbursed according to how much money is recovered, according to Azanai.

ICC managers could not be reached for comment, as the company no longer exists and many executives are in jail.

Ponzi scheme shakes Africa's Benin - The West Australian

"They promised me an interest rate of 200 per cent," he said. "Now I must start saving again, little by little."


Doesn't that just say it all? All these things operate on greed.

Originally Posted by iamwil

"They promised me an interest rate of 200 per cent," he said. "Now I must start saving again, little by little."


Doesn't that just say it all? All these things operate on greed.

Yeah,

kinda makes one glad one doesn't live in a third world country where the average annual income is USD$750.00 being targeted by sophisticated criminals, doesn't it ???

You pseudo-Christian supercilious prick.

You wouldn't know the difference between greed and desperation, as***e.

True colors, "iamwil" true colors.

Originally Posted by littleroundman

Yeah,

kinda makes one glad one doesn't live in a third world country where the average annual income is USD$750.00 being targeted by sophisticated criminals, doesn't it ???

You pseudo-Christian supercilious prick.

You wouldn't know the difference between greed and desperation, as***e.

True colors, "iamwil" true colors.

When $750 allows you to live...raise a family...tis a different culture...

But similar factors, like here where the lure of high returns abled Madoff to take folks entire savings...tis greed at work and folks playing off greed.

And yes, I am glad I was not born into a third world country...however there are many that were and look at us and laugh.

I've met a number of PCVs who did their stint in Benin, my sister among them, I'm quite familiar with their living conditions.

You tell me, without greed would any ponzi scheme work?

Well without greed or gov't intervention which requires participation like Social Security.

No, wil, this is not simple greed on the part of the people who invested. This says it all

Perhaps the greatest swindle, some say, is the government's role in the investmentcompany. Many victims say the sight of government officials in the ads reassured them their money would be safe.
"We saw them on television," said Pierre Dossa, a mechanic who lost his savings. "How could we not believe in it?"

These are people who have little education and no experience in investing. They saw government officials with the company officials. Why would they think that a government official would even be in the same room with someone who was not on the up and up?

Carpe diem? Well, technically yes, morally, no.

Carpe diem? Well, technically yes, morally, no.

It is hard to see how anyone with above zero intelligence can compare the victims of a ponzi fraud perpetrated on an uneducated, poor third world population with those in a modern society with good information, education and communication systems.

Iamwil, ponzis are frauds and they are often carried out by some very effective fraudsters. This isn't an argument about the legality or morality of an MLM, it's a report about a massive crime with victims. Your response is callous and, if as you say, you understand how a country like Benin operates, it is also repugnant.

Originally Posted by iamwil

You guys are indicating Ponzi schemes works without greed...please tell me how.

You seem confused, Wil.

Some people don't even know they're participating in a ponzi scheme. You brought up Madoff and his "high returns". But who thought Madoff was running a ponzi scheme? The victims didn't know.

The rate of return that Madoff offered was around 10%. Not really that high, in my opinion.

My 401k retirement fund is with Vanguard. The annual rate of return is 12.7%.

The people investing with Madoff were getting less than I get with my 401k. And his 10% returns were fake.

Are people who want a 10% return on their money really greedy?

I don't think so.

Originally Posted by Unsaved Trash

Of course he's a victim himself of his cactus juice MLM and has lost money for 11 years. But hey, he can't even figure that one out.

But here's what happens:

They'll defend their ponzi schemes by saying that they're participating because they really, really, really LOVE the products.

That's why they pay so much for all the stuff.

It's not about greed. It's about love.

iamwil" is simply employing his "Christian" first world psychic skills to the problem.

It's an amazing talent, really.

The story alleges that over 100,000 people from a third world country fell victim to the fraud, but "wil" using his amazing skills is able to deduce that they were driven by greed.

And he can provide further proof of his "knowingness" abilities by revealing his sister once visited Benin.

I think his abilities are commonly known as "revealing ones' true colors" in some circles.

Here's an interesting article about the Benin ponzi scam, from the New York Times. Not only has the ICC scam caused damage to hundreds of thousands of families in Benin, but its consequences may well shake the country's political stability.

So much for ponzi schemes being harmless.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/19/wo...a/19benin.html

Originally Posted by Seriously?

In a way, yes. A farmer in Africa with no education and little access to investment information is approached by someone promising that they can invest their money and give them a return. This person is apparently educated and shows the farmer they have connections in the government by showing the farmer pictures. The farmer has never heard of Ponzi schemes and probably doesn't even have a bank account, much less access to the internet, TV, or a daily newspaper. The educated person says "trust me". Yes, I feel sorry for the farmer. He didn't have a chance.

The secretary, on the other hand, has at least a high school education, has a bank account, has access to the internet, 300 channels of TV (she's not watching Suze Orman, obviously), daily news via newspaper where Ponzi schemes are discussed fairly often. If she is that clueless in today's society here in the US, then while I regret she lost her investment I cannot feel sorry for her considering she didn't do her (to quote MLMers) "due diligence".

Again, comparing apples and oranges.

I think we will find it apples and apples. I think we'll find that most of the participants were from the cities, and more educated than your poor farmer, and also with a much higher salary than the $750 a year...

Originally Posted by Blue Wolf

Some people don't even know they're participating in a ponzi scheme. You brought up Madoff and his "high returns". But who thought Madoff was running a ponzi scheme? The victims didn't know.

Where did I say people 'knew' they were involved in a Ponzi scheme? I simply said that without 'Greed' greed for unrealistic returns, a ponzi scheme can't operate.

Originally Posted by WishfulThinking

So much for ponzi schemes being harmless.
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And who thinks Ponzi schemes are harmless??

Originally Posted by iamwil

I simply said that without 'Greed' greed for unrealistic returns, a ponzi scheme can't operate.

Geez, you can't help yourself, can you.

You'd rather be "right" than virtually anything else, wouldn't you ????

Are you saying a ponzi scheme cannot operate without giving "unreasonable returns" ????

So, a fraud offering 1 or 2 percentage points over the "norm" cannot operate, is that your reasoning ???

Here's a tip for you, free and gratis, Mr non judgmental "Christian"

Just admit you made a racist, thoughtless and judgmental comment involving the behavior of over 130,000 people who live in circumstances so far removed from your Western understanding as to be incomprehensible, whether or not your sister was once there.

What's worse, you've managed to further reinforce the depth of your ignorance even further by attempting to rationalize and justify your original comments.

Mea Culpa, "wil" Mea Culpa

It's easy, "iamwil" you can do it.

What's more, you'll feel better for it.

And who thinks Ponzi schemes are harmless??

Try the ponzi founders and promoters for one and their apologists for two. The HYIP boards are full of them.

What is hard to understand is why you are trying to push some of the blame for this particular ponzi onto its participants and not its perpetrators.

The reports on the Benin ICC ponzi make it quite clear that the people who you consider better educated are also supporting their extended (and less educated?) families and the majority participated in order to help them too - not out of greed. For this reason it has so many victims. All this ostensibly supported by a highly popular government in a new democracy.


And better educated and better off are relative terms. It is suspected that the life style of those so called better off people has little or nothing to do with your own.

Are your comments simply due to guilt by association?

Originally Posted by WishfulThinking

What is hard to understand is why you are trying to push some of the blame for this particular ponzi onto its participants and not its perpetrators.

Because all liars, thieves and conmen stick together! You failed in MLM? Well you just didn't work hard enough and didn't try hard enough and didn't want it hard enough! You were taken in by a ponzi? It's your own fault! You were greedy! That's what sobs like Willy will tell you.

You know Willy, you really need to just shut the hell up. The greed in Ponzi schemes and MLMs comes more from the purveyors of these schemes than it does from the participants. That is where the real greed is, pal. You simply cannot believe that these people are victims, because you yourself promote and believe and and rip off people with the worthless, overpriced garbage that is peddled by the MLM that you are in.

You try and insist that the average income for this country is not what is stated, yet it certainly is. I found several credible sources on the net confirming this. I also found sources confirming the lack of education in this country and that most of the people do not live in the cities and even the ones that do, live in dire poverty. Again, you try to justify what has happened to these people to whitewash your own behavior. I suppose that is the only way yopu can look in a mirror and sleep at night.

You are a disgrace as a human being. You claim your sister was there. Another one of your continued bullshit stories and lies.....much like your phony job, your phony commute, your phony office and your phony vacation. You claim to believe in God....you rant on over at Scam, about making the world a better place and all the other kumbaya b.s. that you drool about....yet it's all just bullshit and lies. You don't walk the walk. You spout crap that you think will make you look better than the person that you really are. You have no credibility. But more and worse than that, you have no heart, no soul, no courage, no conscience, no morals, no values and you cannot even distinguish the diference between right and wrong. You are simply, a heartless *******.

The savings of more than 100,000 people in Benin have been lost in a pyramid scheme, prompting calls for the President of the tiny West African country to be impeached after he appeared to endorse the investment scam.

Thousands of families put money into Investment Consultancy and Computering Services (ICC) as word spread of its ability to offer returns of between 50 per and 200 per cent to investors while it used its apparently bottomless funds to finance health clinics, feed orphans and make large donations to Christian groups.

But the dream of quick wealth evaporated last month when ICC was forced to close, leaving behind it 130,000 people who had invested their savings and losses of about $130m (£84m) in a country where most subsist on $2 a day. Many families had pooled their investments, meaning that up to a quarter of the nine-million strong population has been directly affected by the scam.

Lambert Saizonou, 40, an electrician, was typical of many victims, having poured his savings into the Ponzi scheme in the hope that he could buy his first house. He said: "They promised me an interest rate of 200 per cent. Now I must start saving again, little by little."

Anger against the authorities, who at best failed to stop ICC trading when it was not registered as a bank and at worst turned a blind eye to a fraud into which thousands of people poured their life savings, coalesced this week into a vote by more than half of Benin's MPs calling for President Boni Yayi to face impeachment proceedings.

Mr Yayi, a former development banker elected in 2006 on an anti-corruption ticket, was seen on television news bulletins posing alongside other government officials with managers of the investment company. The images were reproduced on T-shirts and in advertisements, prompting many investors to interpret the presence of the President as an endorsement.

Adrien Houngbedji, a leading opposition politician, told the Associated Press: "We have elected a chief of state to protect the people. He has betrayed the confidence placed in him by the people, and he should be prosecuted before the high court of justice."

ICC officials relied on word of mouth to attract clients, who were met by consultants promising attractive returns. Guy Akplogan, the company's director, said in a television interview earlier this year: "We are God's workers."

The scandal, which has already prompted street protests in the capital Porto Novo, threatens to cause upheaval in what has been hitherto one of the most stable countries in West Africa, cited approvingly by Western diplomats for its independent parliament, civilian control of the military and comparatively free press.

Mr Yayi has attempted to limit the damage to his administration by cracking down on anyone associated with ICC. Last month he sacked his interior minister, Armand Zinzindohoue, who was accused of providing bodyguards for the company's bosses, and chief prosecutor Georges Constant Amoussou, who was alleged to have blocked an investigation into the scam when concerns were first raised last autumn. About 13 ICC executives have been jailed for offences including fraud.

The government has set up a commission to investigate the scandal and vowed to rake back funds by seizing the assets of ICC managers, including luxury cars and villas. Candide Azani, a government spokesman, denied that Mr Yayi had personally approved ICC, saying: "This is a private affair between a business and its clients. Because the people have been robbed, the government is intervening for the security of its citizens."
[B]

Thousands left penniless after collapse of Ponzi scheme - Africa, World - The Independent

The Republic of Benin is a nation in West Africa. It borders Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east and Burkina Faso and Niger to the north. The country has a population of 8.8 million who are highly dependent on agriculture. A substantial amount of the nation’s income arises from subsistence farming. Some tidbuts from articles about Benin....

Orphan Relief and Rescue was started three and a half years ago by founders Rebecca and Tim Pratt, who were traveling through the country of Benin, West Africa when they came across an orphanage with 109 starving children.
"Becca said, 'This has to be stopped,'" Desmond said.

August 2010:

With a per capita income of US$690 in 2008, Benin ranks in the lower income group of countries. The country has consolidated its democratic process since 1989. The country also engaged since the 1990's in important economic reforms which resulted in a sustained economic performance with an average annual growth rate of 4.4% over 1990-2006. The development outcomes of this positive growth have been limited due in part to the relatively high population growth (3.2%), and in part to the vulnerability of the Beninese economy to external shocks. Poverty has been reduced but remains relatively high. According to the latest estimates in 2007, one-third of Beninese continues to live under the monetary poverty line, while approximately 40% of the population lives in structural (non-monetary) poverty. Access to basic social services has been improved, in particular in the education, water and health sectors. However, achieving MDG targets in some other sectors remain a significant challenge.

Now asshole, you tell me how people who are desperate, naive, uneducated, ignorant and downright broke, are greedy again. You are a despicable piece of slime. You defend those you would steal from the impoverished and then try to justify their deeds.

One-third of the population live below the poverty line set by Benin, which suggests that close to 50 percent live below the dollar-a-day international poverty line. The dollar-a-day poverty line is based on the income required to provide the absolute minimum of nutrition, clothing, and shelter. Some 29 percent of children under 5 are malnourished (the figure is 1 percent for the United States), and life expectancy is 55 years (in the United States it is 77 years). Almost all those in poverty are in rural areas, relying on small-scale agriculture for their livelihoods and suffering because of poor land, inadequate rainfall, and not enough income to purchase good seeds, fertilizer, or farm machinery. In 2001 Benin was ranked 157th out of 174 countries in the UN's Human Development Index, which combines measures of income, education, and health provision.

In 1999 there was 1 doctor per 200,000 inhabitants. There was 1 midwife per 12,000 pregnant women, and just 42 percent of the population had access to health care. Several international initiatives to improve these figures have been undertaken. The constitution decrees that primary education is compulsory for all, though fees must be paid. In 1998 there was a 62 percent enrollment in primary age education, though this number dropped to 17 percent in secondary education. In 1993 almost US$1 million was set aside for a scheme for rural girls to be exempted from school fees. In 2002 adult literacy stood at 29 percent.

Average home in the interior of Benin taken in 2010:













Hospital



The City







All of these pics are from 2010. Now tell us again about the greedy people livong in Benin, you low life cretin.

Originally Posted by A Life Aloft

All of these pics are from 2010. Now tell us again about the greedy people livong in Benin, you low life cretin.

So silly you are... I've seen the pictures...I know the poverty. I say again...the vast majority of these people were not NOT victims of this scam. I am waiting for someone to prove me wrong with my contention. It is just a guess on my part. I'm guessing when we see the demographics of these victims, the majority won't be the rural folks or those living below the poverty line, the majority will be those living well above the 'average' income, and not living in your pictures. When I say greed feeds a ponzi scheme, I'm still waiting for your response how it doesn't. Less than one and a half percent of the population participated...I am saying a large percentage of them were greedy....not the other 98.5% that didn't participate!

Hyperbole anyone?

A hint for ya, just so you know, of course they sleep on the dirt floor in the rural areas. They have no AC, no electricity, no doors, no windows, they take every bit of furniture out every day and sweep the dirt floor to sweep out the mites and the bugs, you can't do that with furniture, with a bed in there you would end up with an infestation providing the bugs with homes. You also don't sweep out the geckos, the lizards or the spiders...they are your friends, you sleep with them, they eat the bugs.

Orphanage in Benin....



The orphanage is located in Lokossa, Benin, West Africa.

The orphanage is currently home to 56 children, all of whom are either orphaned or abandoned.

There on no beds, so they sleep on the ground. Since our visit in 2009 each child and volunteer received a hand-made quilt, which at least gives a bit of padding between them and the ground.

We've also been able to supply mosquito nets! This drastically lowers the chance of the children contracting malaria.

The orphanage was built on public property and in less than 2 years they will be forced to move.
So, since the new cement enclosure is now complete, thanks to many generous donations, we've set a new goal. Before the children are forced to move in 2 years, we are hoping to build a cement dormitory within the new enclosure on the new property. The dormitories at their current location are built with sticks and clay with a thin layer of cement to hold it together. Though the rain has eroded the cement and the rooms leak whenever it rains. Also, it is poorly ventilated, so in the dry season the children sleep with the doors open, and already several children have been bitten by snakes while sleeping and required medical attention. They are also very small rooms, with 14-18 boys and girls sleeping inside.

There is no real upper class in Benin, you ignorant, backpeddling asshole. Not much of a middle class either. THEY ARE ALL POOR by the standards considered by the WHO and the United Nations and other organizations!!! What the hell is it, that you don't get about that, numbnuts? Read the facts on this tiny impoverished country. Educate yourself instead of just running your mouth like you do here and on scam. Oh wait, that would conflict with your ability to lie, deflect, and just make crap up and pretend that you actually know something wouldn't it? It doesn't matter what you "believe", you moron. It matters what the truth is! And the TRUTH is something you have never believed in, your entire life!

You have stated several times on her that the victims of this Ponzi were and are nothing but greedy. You have said nothing negative at all about the instigators of the Ponzi til now when your feet are held to the fire by several posters here and the lightbulb must have finally dawned on your pea brain that you are looking like the heartless, slimy, witless conman that you are. Too late for backpeddling now.

A Ponzi scheme cannot run without the greed of the perpetrators of the Ponzi. Try to get that through your thick imbecilic, uninformed, unlearned skull, you piece of garbage! You make me hurl. You really do!

New York Times:

COTONOU, Benin — It started as a tip between friends, an unheard-of chance to pile up riches in a poor land. How could you go wrong with a good-works company, apparently tight with the government, promising interest of 50 and 100 percent, maybe even higher?

The “investment” was a Ponzi scheme that has ended in disaster for tens of thousands of families on this sliver of the West African coast, wiping out savings, shaking the economy and threatening the president in a nation of nine million that has long been a regional exemplar of stability.

Parliament is demanding his impeachment, high officials have been forced out, and crowds of small savers up and down this Pennsylvania-size land of rich traditions but limited means are demanding restitution.

Benin, birthplace of historic African kingdoms, is on edge. Last week, dozens of fraud victims massed outside the prefecture here in the country’s bustling economic capital. They pressed up against the fence, anxious, angry and insistent that because they had seen pictures of President Thomas Yayi Boni, himself a former banker, alongside officials of the company, called Investment Consultancy and Computering Services, they assumed that it must be legitimate.

Officials estimate that there are between 50,000 and 70,000 victims, with losses of perhaps $180 million — a big sum in a place where most subsist on less than $2 a day and breadwinners have extended families counting on them.

“No family has been left untouched by this,” said Gustave Anani Cassa, a lawyer and former justice minister. More than 4,000 complaints have been brought to his law office alone, he said.

“I’ve lost everything,” said Christian Benhoungbedi, an auto painter waiting outside the prefecture. He said he had invested hundreds of dollars. “I just wanted to help my family.”

Some had waited days outside the yellowing government structure, spending the night under a huge mango tree. Others in the crowd spoke of suicides and deaths from hypertension because of the losses. They brandished official-looking “I.C.C.” contracts with the Statue of Liberty and the stamps and seals that are a staple of West African officialdom. They said they had been enticed by seeing members of the government on television with I.C.C. officials.

Benin’s pride in its domestication of political life — with an absence of military in the streets, a Parliament not in the pocket of the president and a relatively free press — has made the blow even harder. The country has not looked back since a popular uprising effectively overthrew the corrupt military dictatorship 20 years ago, the first such overthrow in post-colonial Africa.

The newspaper kiosks in this chaotic and ramshackle city explode with disputatious publications, and in the mornings yellow-vested drivers of motorcycle-taxis crowd them to read and argue politics. Government, if not always clean, has at least been more or less freely elected. Under Mr. Boni, the country has taken a populist turn, with big bonuses for civil servants blamed in part by the International Monetary Fund for a doubling of the deficit.

Now, victims of the scheme associate Mr. Boni’s government with it. And there is corresponding fear among analysts that citizens will give up on the country’s young democracy and take to the streets as they did in 1989 to get rid of the military dictatorship.

“I’m afraid the people will lose confidence,” said Mathias Hounkpe, a political scientist who works for Parliament, known as the National Assembly.

He estimated that up to a quarter of the working population had been affected. Others agreed that the scheme was worrisome, both economically and politically, with one Western diplomat saying it had a huge impact on short-term discretionary spending.

“This business is a crisis of the regime, something that profoundly implicates the state,” said Roger Gbégnonvi, a former minister in Mr. Boni’s government. “If, behind every saver, there are only 10 people, my dear sir, then the whole country is shaken.”

A majority of lawmakers in Parliament have signed a letter demanding that Mr. Boni be tried before Benin’s Supreme Court for “favoring the activities” of the fraudulent company.

After all, “he’s fired his interior minister” for being involved, said one lawmaker who signed the letter, Kolawolé A. Idji, a former National Assembly president. “That’s not just anybody,” he said, adding “This is an affair of state.”

Officials did not object as I.C.C., while ensnaring its victims, multiplied its good works, helping to finance health clinics, feeding orphanages, digging wells and making donations to the evangelical Christian groups that are important here. Calendars and fabric showing President Boni and one of the company principals circulated.

“We are God’s workers,” the company’s director, Guy Akplogan, said in a television interview this year.

With its do-good reputation set, serious-looking men in dark suits promised secretaries, mechanics, low-level civil servants and others an investment that would deliver nearly half their principal back within three months.

In fact, I.C.C. was operating a classic pyramid scheme: money from one investor was used to pay another. The money was not invested anywhere, but buried in the basements of the company’s principals, said President Boni’s political counselor, Amos Elegbe.

Inside the labyrinthlike presidential compound, Mr. Elegbe dismissed suggestions that Mr. Boni was associated with the fraud, but acknowledged “there were fraudulent interventions on the part of structures of the state.”

He blamed the interior minister, Armand Zinzindohoué, who is accused of furnishing bodyguards to the company’s principals. And he excoriated the principal state prosecutor, Constant Amoussou, whom officials accuse of having blocked an investigation of I.C.C. once the alarm was sounded last fall. He has since been jailed.

“He was in it up to his neck,” Mr. Elegbe said. About 13 of the company’s officials are also in jail, Mr. Elegbe said.

And while the president did grant an audience to I.C.C. officials in May, it hardly meant much, Mr. Elegbe insisted, since he has also met with hundreds of other entities and officials.

Mr. Elegbe, a veteran of several governments here, largely blamed the greed of his compatriots. “I’m surprised to see how far we’ve gone into moral degeneration,” he said. “How could people be so greedy?”

But the crowd outside the prefecture last week was not in a mood to blame itself for the devastating losses.

“I saw the head of I.C.C. Services with members of the government on television,” said Michael Dagah, an electrician who said he invested $2,500. “The government sanctioned it. It seemed serious,” he lamented.

“People told me it was something good, and you would get lots of interest,” said Germaine Dagbo, who said she put in $1,200. “There was a photo of President Yayi in their offices,” she said. Now, “we’re turning everything over to God.”

Do me a favor Willy. Just go kick youirself in the ass, because I can't be there to do it for you. If I could, believe me, I would.

One more time, just for you, turd boy...so you think that some poor person who saved and scrimped and worked who knows how many hours a week, for who knows how many years, in a menial job and put his life savings of $1,200 in this ponzi is "rich"?

"I am saying a large percentage of them were greedy."

I am saying that you have no heart, no soul and no brains whatsoever. If you are an example of a "Christian", then God help you. You need help more than the poor people of Benin. You are a lowlife, pathetic, animal.

I answered your question regarding the greed factor. You just chose to ignore it because you don't like the answer and you cannot stand the truth. That is something that all conmen have in common isn't it?

Once again, asshole......The real and true greed in Ponzi schemes and MLMs comes more from the purveyors of these schemes than it does from the participants. That is where the real greed is, pal. You simply cannot believe that these people are victims, because you yourself promote and believe and and rip off people with the worthless, overpriced garbage that is peddled by the MLM that you are in. You both prey on the uneducated, the needy, the poor, the hopeless, the gullible, desperate and those without the tools and circumstances to better themselves and their lives.

That is the truth, and the answer, you Sociopath.

Glibness and Superficial Charm

Manipulative and Conning
They never recognize the rights of others and see their self-serving behaviors as permissible. They appear to be charming, yet are covertly hostile and domineering, seeing their victim as merely an instrument to be used. They may dominate and humiliate their victims.

Grandiose Sense of Self
Feels entitled to certain things as "their right."

Pathological Lying
Has no problem lying coolly and easily and it is almost impossible for them to be truthful on a consistent basis. Can create, and get caught up in, a complex belief about their own powers and abilities. Extremely convincing and even able to pass lie detector tests.

Lack of Remorse, Shame or Guilt
A deep seated rage, which is split off and repressed, is at their core. Does not see others around them as people, but only as targets and opportunities. Instead of friends, they have victims and accomplices who end up as victims. The end always justifies the means and they let nothing stand in their way.

Shallow Emotions
When they show what seems to be warmth, joy, love and compassion it is more feigned than experienced and serves an ulterior motive. Outraged by insignificant matters, yet remaining unmoved and cold by what would upset a normal person. Since they are not genuine, neither are their promises.

Incapacity for Love

Need for Stimulation
Living on the edge. Verbal outbursts and physical punishments are normal.

Callousness/Lack of Empathy
Unable to empathize with the pain of their victims, having only contempt for others' feelings of distress and readily taking advantage of them.

Poor Behavioral Controls/Impulsive Nature
Rage and abuse, alternating with small expressions of love and approval produce an addictive cycle for abuser and abused, as well as creating hopelessness in the victim. Believe they are all-powerful, all-knowing, entitled to every wish, no sense of personal boundaries, no concern for their impact on others.

Early Behavior Problems/Juvenile Delinquency
Usually has a history of behavioral and academic difficulties, yet "gets by" by conning others. Problems in making and keeping friends.

Irresponsibility/Unreliability
Not concerned about wrecking others' lives and dreams. Oblivious or indifferent to the devastation they cause. Does not accept blame themselves, but blames others, even for acts they obviously committed.

Lack of Realistic Life Plan/Parasitic Lifestyle
Tends to move around a lot or makes all encompassing promises for the future, poor work ethic but exploits others effectively.

Criminal or Entrepreneurial Versatility
Changes their image as needed to avoid prosecution. Changes life story readily.

That pretty much sums up your life.

MORE than 100,000 people in the tiny West African nation of Benin have lost their savings in a Ponzi scheme run by a now-defunct company that appeared to be publicly endorsed by the country's president.

The government said in August that more than 130,000 people gave their savings to Investment Consultancy and Computering Services. Together they lost more than $US130 million ($142.87 million).

The corporation was registered as a nonprofit computer service company and was operating illegally as a banking institution. ICC was forced to close on July 1, and more than a dozen of its employees were jailed.

But the reverberations have echoed to the top of Benin's power pyramid and now threaten President Boni Yayi, who appeared on television with ICC managers.

Television news shows showed Mr Yayi and other top government officials posing alongside the managers of the investment firm. The images were reproduced on T-shirts. While investors interpreted Mr Yayi's presence as an endorsement, the president did not officially speak in favour of ICC during the appearances.

In this country of 8.7 million people, the average yearly income hovers at $US750 ($824). Many lost
years of savings in the scam.

Electrician Lambert Saizonou, 40, planned to use his investment earnings to buy his first house. Now he has lost all of his savings. Jobs are scarce, and Mr Saizonou worries it will take years to save to buy a home for his family.

"They promised me an interest rate of 200 per cent," he said. "Now I must start saving again, little by little."

Herman Menton, a 32-year-old company manager, lost nearly $US1500 after investing in ICC for a year. Like many of ICC's investors, Mr Menton was referred to the company by friends who had already invested and lured him with the promise of high interest rates.

Perhaps the greatest swindle, some say, is the government's role in the investment company. Many victims say the sight of government officials in the ads reassured them their money would be safe.

"We saw them on television," said Pierre Dossa, a mechanic who lost his savings. "How could we not believe in it?"

Since the announcement that ICC's activities were fraudulent, Mr Yayi has swept his administration of those associated with the company. In July, he fired Armand Zinzindohoue, the minister of the interior, and Chief Prosecutor Georges Constant Amoussou.

More than a dozen individuals connected to ICC have been jailed, including the president's cousin and two of the company's top managers.

But some members of Benin's National Assembly say these measures do not go far enough. They accuse Mr Yayi of being complicit in ICC's corrupt activities, and they have called for his impeachment.

An investigative commission has been established, and the government is seeking to retrieve funds from ICC, even seizing personal items such as luxury cars and villas from the company's managers. WHERE IS THE GREED AGAIN, WILLYBOY??? Victims will be reimbursed according to how much money is recovered, according to Mr Azanai.

ICC managers could not be reached for comment, as the company no longer exists and many executives are in jail.

How many times do you have to read the TRUTH Willyboy before it actually sinks in and you admit that you don't know your arse from a hole in the ground? My guess, is never!

Much of the population of Benin simply could not afford to participate and be taken in by this Ponzi, numbnuts. They are poor as dirt! Also most of them live outside the cities (such as they are) in rural areas where the scheme never reached. It was purportrated in the cities for a reason! DUH! Don't let logic and reason get in the way of your lying, unfounded, b.s., ignorant statements though. How stupid are you? Wait.....you've already proven that many times here and on Scam. You really are a shameful excuse for a human being.

Tis funny...I am now the perpetrator of the Benin Ponzi scheme....amazing.

Again....

Some proof that folks around the national average wage were the majority of the victims? Not.

Some proof that the gov't (not individuals) was in collusion? Not.

Just ranting and raving and personal vendettas against me? Plenty.

Oh my, he's gonna kick my ass.... all because he's read the same articles I have, all because he can search on the internet and not prove my thesis wrong.

I don't care to be right or wrong, I made an observation.

Can a ponzi scheme work without greedy victims?

Can it?

Should the leaders and perpetrators of the scheme be prosecuted....duh...of course.

Are we seriously here to debate the obvious?

Is it a shame? Duh.

But can a ponzi scheme succeed without greed?

Tis a simple question which has instigated incredibly long responses that have nothing to do with the answer.

Oh and pilot...congrats on your skills of spewing venom and cutting and pasting...

top notch.

the classes were worth it...

Maybe you can answer the other question though.

For the third and last time, asshole:

The real and true greed in Ponzi schemes and MLMs comes more from the purveyors of these schemes than it does from the participants. That is where the real greed is, pal. You simply cannot believe that these people are victims, because you yourself promote and believe and and rip off people with the worthless, overpriced garbage that is peddled by the MLM that you are in. You both prey on the uneducated, the needy, the poor, the hopeless, the gullible, desperate and those without the tools and circumstances to better themselves and their lives.

Much of the population of Benin simply could not afford to participate and be taken in by this Ponzi, numbnuts. They are poor as dirt! Also most of them live outside the cities (such as they are) in rural areas where the scheme never reached. It was purportrated in the cities for a reason!

I, unlike you actually have a real business to run and a job, so I am going to work to earn a real living, make real income, honestly I must add, and do something that I can be proud of. It's a good thing too, because you make me sick and my stomach is churning just being in the same space as a souless, heartless, low life such as yourself.

You simply cannot and never will accept the TRUTH! That is what comes form a life of delusions, unacknowledged failure, no education, lying, and supporting MLMs.