| The pain and gain in money ‘games’ | Send to a friend |
| Sunday, 29 January 2012 12:01 |
 By The Citizen ReporterIn more-or-less equal measure, pyramid-like financial schemes have put smiles on the faces of some people, and caused tears to stream down the cheeks of others. Fortunate members of the schemes have benefited by way of using the money to establish mostly small-scale businesses, or facilitate speedier growth of the ones already in operation. The unlucky ones are reduced to psychological wrecks when the schemes collapse before their turn to get their share – a cumulative monetary figure representing a specific amount multiplied by the number of members – came. The schemes, commonly known as michezo ya upatu, are popular because they are relatively easy to operate, and provide a convenient source of cash for low-income earners who cannot access bank loans. The schemes also come in handy for middle-income earners who may access the loans but are discouraged by high interest rates, and the grim prospects of losing assets like vehicles, houses and title deeds in the event of default. But while, outwardly, michezo ya upatu constitute a financial saviour, they are, behind the scenes, a source of grief and potential nervous breakdown, because no relief is availed to those who lose out in the ‘games’ . This is because the schemes are based purely on mutual trust amongst members drawn by such fraternal factors as residential neighbourhood and common work-places, and are not coupled by legally binding terms like forfeiture of assets for defaulters. In which case, many of the people who join up are at least distantly aware that they are courting a risk and could weep and suffer heartache like some people have. They keep their fingers crossed and hope for the best – an approach that has partly paid off, and is evidenced by many successful stories of men and women who would otherwise be languishing in grinding poverty, or whose income levels would have remained static. Thanks to the ‘games’, some people have recorded considerable successes through investments in business, or, by using them as a savings system, they have avoided social embarrassments like their children being expelled from school for failure to pay fees. Emotional disaster strikes, however, when individuals entrusted with the groups’ cash, disappear, but even if they are traced, they cannot be arrested, prosecuted, jailed or fined. Cases abound too, of ordinary members who, after pocketing their share, pull out, thereby disrupting, and in some cases precipitating the collapse of the rotation-based ‘games’. Due to lack of water-tight systems of enforcing contribution compliance, and legal provisions for booking cheats, the savings ‘games’ have increasingly become games of chance, somewhat like gambling casinos. “I have been a member of two groups so far, and I think they provide a basis for worthwhile investment; but there is a lot of betrayal and dishonesty going on, which has turned the system into some kind of gambling,” Ms Josephine Mataka, a primary school teacher in Dar es Salaam, told The Citizen on Sunday. A few people have formalised their groups by opening bank accounts, and assigning cooperative experts within banks to manage their savings. “There are some women who have actually formalised their groups by opening group bank accounts, where the money is deposited,” says Margaret Chacha, the director of Tanzania Women Bank. But, she adds: “One of the biggest problems is that many people, especially women, do not have qualifications that make it possible for them to register such groups, so they are exposed to all kinds of betrayal by some selfish individuals,” Ms Chacha notes. Full story in Sound Living magazine Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites           |
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