The tontine is a rotating savings system made by a group of people. Depending on the monthly payments, subscribers deposit a certain amount and each in turn collects the total amount and thus until the end of the cycle. The tontine can be daily, weekly, monthly, bimonthly, etc. Its online practice, particularly on certain social networks (Facebook and WhatsApp) in Burkina Faso, in general, and in Ouagadougou, in particular, has become commonplace. People do it in order to help others to be able to save money to carry out any project. On the other hand, there are bad apples who take advantage of this to try to scam subscribers. We have dipped our pen in a field where strangers can often rub shoulders, despite the risks… Read!
The rest after this ad
Sitting in her chair, eyes glued to the computer screen, she is at her post. She welcomes us this beautiful morning, with a broad smile, enough to put us at ease and facilitate exchanges. Once the presentations have been made, we approach the subject which brings us to his workplace. Alizèta Zoungrana alias “Adja Bénie”, businesswoman, entrepreneur and president director of Adja Bénie Corporation has been a promoter and manager of tontines for 20 years.
Example of text published by the “tontinières” (NB: Facebook screenshot) Alizèta Zoungrana alias Adja Bénie, tontine manager
On social networks, Alizèta Zoungrana is much better known under the nickname “Adja Bénie”. This mother of three children has been organizing tontines and “Cauris d’or” since 2004. Today, managing a tontine is no longer a secret for her. She organizes several kinds. Takes ranging from 100,000 F CFA to 10 million F CFA are possible with it.
How does an online tontine start?
The emergence of social networks, notably Facebook and WhatsApp, has allowed Adja Bénie to attract more subscribers. She lets us know that as soon as she wants to propose a new offer, she posts posts on her networks and interested people write to her privately. They pass on their contacts to her and she integrates them into the group of their choice.
“I integrate them into a WhatsApp group that I will call, for example, tontine 100,000 per month. If it’s the first group, I put number 1 and so on. These are 10 people that I take each time for 10 months.
And, for 10 months, the contribution is made at the end of the month, that is to say from the 31st to the 5th; so the payment deadline is 05. When people contribute then, that makes a total of 1 million which I give to the first on the list”, she explains.
Tontines online… not just in money!
Online tontines are not only cash-based. Increasingly, they concern material goods such as mobile phones, land, household appliances, food kits, motorcycles or even clothing, etc.
Marthe Adena is an online retailer. She has also been organizing online tontines for household appliances, laptops and computers for around 5 years. “ I make everything related to household items, kitchen items, cell phones, televisions, computers “, she specifies.
Adena Marthe, online tontine promoter
She says she uses tontine groups on Facebook to launch her different tontines. The problems that the “tontinières” face, according to her, are among other things scams which are increasingly recurrent.
Conduct a minimum of investigation before…
Adja Bénie and Marte Adena say they have developed their own strategies to avoid getting caught in the traps of scammers.
« I make the list in order of arrival but if I don’t know the person, I never put them in first position because the person can take on and invent problems (I have a sick child, I had a death, etc.) just to not pay. So I make the list based on the serious people that I always put in mind », reveals Adja Bénie.
It’s almost the same strategy put in place by Marthe Adena. She testifies that she conducts small surveys on any new person who registers on her tontine lists. “I do a minimum of investigation into the person. If the person has never made a tontine with me, I don’t give them the first five places.
This helps limit losses. And already when the person is in bad faith, they categorically refuse to integrate when there are five people in front of them because it will not suit them “, she says.
She informs that when the amount of the tontine exceeds 100,000 F CFA, she calls the person who has just joined the circle of her subscribers to discuss with her. “I will know his place of residence and that of his activity before the actual start of the tontine. For the motorcycle tontine for example, on the day of collection, the person fills out a form with their CNIB (Burkinabe national identity card, Editor’s note) “, she says.
Alizèta Zoungrana has been promoting tontines for 20 years (©Jonas Yaméogo)
In addition to these investigations, Adja Bénie and Marte Adena note that most often, they inquire about the identity of new subscribers with the other “tontine mothers” they meet to find out if they are trustworthy people.
« We sense the scam coming when the explanations no longer hold up. At some point you feel that this person is going to cause problems for you. When the delays are repeated and it’s always the same person who has problems like my child was sick, I had a death… », notes Adja Bénie.
Tontine subscribers are also being scammed…
Doing tontine online today is not only risky for the promoters but also for certain subscribers who unfortunately come across “tontine moms” who are not very Catholic.
These promoters prepare their coup well in advance, according to Zalissa Kiemtoré (not her real name), a victim. Once they manage to collect it, they disappear without warning, while taking care to block the people from whom they took the money.
Zalissa Kiemtoré explains to us how she was scammed. She tells us that one day, she was surfing Facebook when she came across a tontine ad where each person had to contribute 300 CFA francs per day and at the end, subscribers were to receive a set of thermos meals. This young trader decides to launch for a total subscription of 42,000 CFA francs.
“Being a small businesswoman, I could not afford to pay cash. The proposal was 300 CFA francs per day and after 30 days, one person took it. We were in a group of five people and I was the first, which made me happy.
Honestly, I didn’t suspect anything. I paid the money normally until the day it was taken. I was impatiently waiting for her to signal me to join her to collect my dues but that never happened. The good lady had simply blocked me everywhere and disappeared online,” she lets us know.
Example of publication to attract subscribers
She later learned that the promoter made the other members of the group believe that she was the scammer and was not paying her dues, which is why she removed her from the group.
“Later, I saw people posting that she had scammed them Also. Others said they had gone to report to the Central Cybercrime Brigade (BCLCC). I left it to God for me. From now on I no longer make tontines. I paid for my box where I am slowly saving », informed Zalissa Kiemtoré.
Read also 👉 Ici Au Faso: Terracotta piggy banks with Géraldine Mouniratou Sanou
According to Adja Bénie, to limit this increasingly recurring practice, the initiators of tontines must themselves have income-generating activities. Because managing money that doesn’t belong to you gives rise to a lot of temptations.
“But when you have an income-generating activity, it is easy not to be tempted, but above all, to be able to contribute in place of a person who gives you a false leap during the cycle”, she insists.
The Central Cybercrime Brigade to the rescue
From now on, thanks to the actions of the Central Brigade for the Fight against Cybercrime (BCLCC), the two stakeholders of the tontine are more or less comforted thanks to the remarkable work done at this level.
We spoke with a manager at the Central Cybercrime Brigade to get his opinion on the subject. At first glance, Gendarmerie Warrant Officer Koanda Tahirou is clear that the practice of tontine is not legal. Whether online or traditional, informs the latter. “ This practice is comparable to microfinance while microfinance is regulated, according to the provisions of banking regulations and those of decentralized financial systems. “, he specifies.
According to Pandora, it is possible to regulate tontine, provided that you comply with a law in this direction. “ The collection of savings is conditional on obtaining prior authorization from the ministry responsible for finance. So, for reference, we can talk about decree 2009-439press of June 30, 2009 which promulgates law no. 023-2009/AN OF MAY 14, 2009.
This law talks about the regulation of decentralized financial systems in Burkina. This means that for a person who absolutely wants to make tontine, the person will have to follow this law which has been promulgated”he believes.
Gendarmerie Warrant Officer Tahirou Koanda serving police collaboration at the Cybercrime Brigade
According to Warrant Officer Koanda, this law in its chapter II, article 4, subpoint 1 stipulates that “are considered as deposits, the funds, other than contributions and compulsory contributions, collected by the decentralized financial system from its members or its customers with the right to dispose of them within the framework of its activity, on condition that it returns them at the request of the depositors, according to the agreed terms ».
He argues that to be in good standing, it is simply sufficient to acquire legal personality in accordance with the provisions of this decree. For online scams, according to Warrant Officer Koanda, the Central Cybercrime Brigade receives around ten complaints per month.
Be very vigilant about everything that happens on social networks
Furthermore, he invites users to be very vigilant about everything that happens on social networks. “ As for the tontine on social networks, when you see a person who is advertising a tontine online and who is looking for its members, you must try to physically know the initiator of the tontine if you want to participate. Check that the initiator of the tontine has legal documents with recognized representation »he suggests.
He also suggests that any tontine initiator, before launching his activity, must establish signed contracts for all members. References and the situation of the BCLCC in the following video.
It is therefore up to everyone, before giving in, to carefully examine everything that is offered as an opportunity on social networks.
Read also 👉Salamatou Koudougou/Badini, journalist, entrepreneur, tontine mother
Flora KARMBIRI
Burkina 24
❤️ Invitation We would like to express our gratitude to you for your interest in our media. You can now follow our WhatsApp channel by clicking on: Follow the channel
Stay tuned for all the latest information!
advertisement
advertisement
