Greater Glory, a loan-lending cooperative society domiciled in Mokwa, Niger State has milked millions of naira from loan-seeking residents in the city.
For one to get a loan from the platform, you have to part with N30,000 or more, WikkiTimes learnt. This money, according to sources, covers the potential beneficiary’s registration fee.
A mother of four, Hassana Yahaya was one of the platform’s victims. She told WikkiTimes how she was coerced to pay N32,000 before accessing a loan.
“To be a registered member, one has to purchase a form for N2,000 before depositing N30,000 to them,” said Hassana, adding she had to borrow the deposit from a friend. “They told us that Greater Glory is a zero-interest loaning platform. But we have to pay N32,0000 to join them.”
According to Hassana, there were six members in her group who deposited money with Greater Glory. “But they had fled with our money,” she mumbled. “We lost over N120,000 to them in our group. They left on the night that we paid them.”
The platform, as WikkiTimes findings revealed, targeted more women than men.
Like Hassana, Fatima Mohammed, a group leader who won five hearts for the platform, also borrowed money to register with the loaning platform. She was not a lone debtor, the five members of her group were also indebted.
“I was the group leader and collected money for five people. We lost over N100,000 to the corporative,” Fatima told WikkiTimes. “They promised to lend us N120,000 each after registering with N32,000.”
The repayment period was specified, according to victims who spoke to this paper.
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“I convinced other people to be members of the loaning platform,” she recalled. “And I was even making jest of them for joining lately.”
“It was my neighbour that came to tell me about Greater Glory that one doesn’t need to stress much to get a loan from them,” said Saratu Umar, another victim.
“When you purchased the form and paid 30,000 to them, you can borrow up to N200,000,” she quoted her friend’s words. “But before one becomes a member, you have to obtain a form.”
Ramatu Shehu, one of the victims, says she lost about N50,000 to the platform. According to her, the platform’s agents were seen in Enagi town — about 70 kilometres from Mokwa — after defrauding scores in Mokwa. She explained that the “scammers” fled Enagi after swindling the locals there.
“I deposited N50,000 in Greater Glory cooperatives but sadly ran away with it when I needed it most,” she lamented.
The platform, according to sources, also swindled people in Jebba, a Niger town neighbouring Kwara State. Apart from the women scammed, Greater Glory also scammed its staff, WikkiTimes learnt. One of their staff who gave his name as Idris was not paid his salary before they ran away.
Idris had submitted his Senior Secondary Certificate Examination results to them when they came looking for staff to work with them. He would later be given a membership card to draw more people to the platform. The platform, according to Idris, was operating along Rabba road.
“The loan organization came to uplift vulnerable residents of the communities but later made away with their money,” Idris explained.
THE MAKE-BELIEVE APPROACH
Greater Glory, WikkiTimes understands, had wet the ground before implementing its evil plan. Some of the victims who were hitherto suspicious of the platform were outrightly scolded and threatened to refund their membership fee to them.
While there was not a specific time to repay the loan, the platform did not take a refund until after a month. “Even when you have it a day after taking the loan, they would not want you to refund them until a month later,” said Aminat Mohammed, an aged mother who was also swindled by the loaning platform.
“It was also rumoured that they were scammers and we went to confront them in their office where one of their staff yelled at us saying we should collect our money if we believed the rumours,” Aminat told WikkiTimes. “Unfortunately, they fled the next day.”
Amina was wooed to the platform by one of its staff, identified as Farouq. His whereabouts, unlike Idris, remain unknown. Although Idris is a resident of Mokwa.
WikkiTimes ran a Google search to fetch information about Greater Glory, but nothing was found in relation to the name. The contacts on their cards were not connecting when contacted. Also, enquiries sent to them had not been responded to at press time.
