Cameroon: Get-Rich-Quick Virus Grips Numerous Citizens

Many people believe that they can make great fortune through gambling, yet this is rare in Cameroon.

Rédigé par Cameroon Tribune (Yaoundé) le 20/08/2009

Monique N. who lives in the Mendong neighbourhood is excited. She was seen last Saturday brandishing a piece of paper. It was a

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ticket of one of the gambling companies in the country. On the ticket were four figures: (4,6, 12, 18) indicating that she had won the sum of FCFA 250,000. She ran to one of the stands by the roadside to confirm her victory. It was right. She won the right placing of figures. She could not wait for Monday to receive her prize. According to her, she has been into gambling for the past five years and last Saturday was her first time of winning such an amount of money. She is however determined to put in all the money in the game in order to win more.

Another fervent player, Johnny, a businessman in Yaounde has gone bankrupt because he spent a greater part of his money in gambling with the hope of winning much money. He however continues to gamble, hoping that he will one day bounce back. Gambling has thus become a phenomenon in the society. It is fast becoming an incurable disease as many people get attracted into it daily. It suffices for people to watch advertisements on television and also watch posters to get convinced. Many people believe that they can make great fortune through gambling, yet this is rare in Cameroon. The frenzy caused by the different games in gambling has got a grip on thousands of Cameroonians such that they are ready to put every thing at stake, hoping to win a great fortune. Since the liberation of the sector, it is commonplace to find casinos, machines, jackpots, etc in big towns. These have overflowed the market of late. What has raised eyebrows is the fact that the practice has extended to villages and the suburbs. Once one person wins a game, there is the tendency of playing again to make further gains. Even when he loses he believes he can still win and so he goes on playing as many times as possible.

The ways in which people get contaminated to such games are many and varied. Some are attracted to these games through the success stories of friends or relatives. They feel they will also make it because others have won. But in most cases the reverse is true. Some companies have young men and women who go about wooing people to buy lottery tickets at affordable rates (FCFA100) and after scratching the ticket the person wins the sum of FCFA 100,000 or FCFA 20, 000. As consolation prizes, people win the sum of FCFA 400 or FCFA 2500. The groups of ticket hawkers are found in supper markets and even in some offices.

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