Truth is mysterious, elusive, always to be conquered. Liberty is dangerous, as hard to live with as it is elating. We must march toward these two goals, painfully but resolutely, certain in advance of our failings on so long a road.

- Albert Camus

Fellow Nigerians.

However hard it is, even if we are not 100% holy, the truth must still be said. It is the minimum expected of us all if we are ever going to make progress as a nation. Be ready to say the truth. We must do this, even if we battle personal guilt. When we say the truth openly, we will do more good and help onlookers and listeners.

Truth is truth: About Sports Betting, Gambling, in Nigeria.

Truth: There's a plague, in our land.


Days ago, when a popular online personality, Reno Omokri, urged the Nigerian government to ban, or at least, regulate the gambling and sports betting industry, we could see uproar online. We saw differing opinions and backslashes. To many, Reno was not to be taken serious. But is that who we are?

Sports Betting now proliferates every nook and crannies of our nation. Nigerian youths have been affected by the ubiquitous phenomenon of gambling in form of sports betting apps.

Question is: is gambling, especially Sports betting doing any good in the lives of young and old Nigerians?


Our answer is NO!

We believe Sports betting has done more harm than any good at all.

We preach it everyday. We wrote many articles on Azà Hub to expose this plague. We even have a package targeted at helping Nigerians with gambling problem to get back on course of their lives. But very few listen.

Why?

Digital Media Making Things Worse!
Have you browsed online media in Nigeria lately? News websites and all! They are all awash with Sports betting apps adverts.

Adverts of Beting9ja, Sportingbet, MySport, Praypesa, BetingKing, BetingBaba, 100ybet, and so on proliferate all the online media.

Even Nigerian forums, disappointing as it is, now displays betting adverts, to make money. I took some screenshot. I'll share.

Online Influncers Are Even Worse!
Comedians, MrMacaroni1, Sabinus, Sydney (the Towel guy) all of them, advocate for and advertise all these betting apps, portraying them as green grasses. As solutions to finacial problems. Encouraging more and more young people to get infected by this plague of gambling.

Little did they know that they may have blood in their hands after another young person Commits Suicide after losing everything to betting. Happens often. But under-reported.


Let Us Tell The Truth
Whatever happened to our value system in Nigeria. I feel we no longer have working conscience.

With what we know about gambling, the chances are low. Before anyone makes headway with sports betting, the lives of 100 others must have been ruined.

That is the hard fact!

Another Brain Drain: The Plague Itself
Betting takes away time, money, resources, ruins families, destroys careers, kills. Why encourage it?

It's an act of selfishness to advertise gambling or advertise the products when we know the evil it can do.

The creativity of many Nigerian youths have been lost due to this menace.

Many are dead. Many turned to drugs to numb the pain.

Government, do something!

Let Us Stand Against Gambling, Sports Betting
Let us enlighten the Nigerian people of the importance of financial literacy, and sensitize them to identify and get rid of bad financial traps. Like gambling.

We have good size of members and we are growing. We hope our voice is heard by the government someday soon, that we are also of the strong opinion that:

Gambling does more harm than good to the people
That Sports Betting is ruining the lives and creativity of our young people
That Gambling is evil.

That gambling should be banned in Nigeria.

We share similar sentiments with Reno Omokri.

Gambling kills. Gambling ruins lives.

#BanGambling
#BanSportsBetting

Source: Aza.ng

Moderators, can this feature?

If tinibu should ban betting in nigeria then he will be the best presido nigeria has produced

It's really sad to see how most of the youths are wasting away in betting shops and online betting apps, betting has done more harm than good yet people pretends not to see that fact.

What these betting company use to deceive most people is the phrase "bet/gamble responsibly" when they know that gambling is highly addictive and very hard to control... You will see a gambler hypocritically defending the act under the excuse of doing it responsibly... Many brilliant, talented and hardworking youth now channel most of their time and resources into gambling cos they sees it as a scheme to get rich quick... So sad . If only the government can ban or atleast, regulate it, and see more of our youth becoming more productive again... Funny thing is, adults aren't left out in this mess too, many family have been shattered as a result of the addiction to gambling...


But I doubt our government will do something about it, cos some of the bigwigs among them own or have shares in those betting companies, aside that, if majority of our youth becomes productive and useful for themselves, who will do the vote buying, election thuggery, and the likes when it's time for election?

Nice Writeup.
Nothing but the Truth.

Wawelexy:
It's really sad to see how most of the youths are wasting away in betting shops and online betting apps, betting has done more harm than good yet people pretends not to see that fact.

...

But I doubt our government will do something about it, cos some of the bigwigs among them own or have shares in those betting companies, aside that, if majority of our youth becomes productive and useful for themselves, who will do the vote buying, election thuggery, and the likes when it's time for election?

Valid points.

The government makes a lot of money in taxes from the betting companies. If you visit the nogeria betting regulation website, you will see a long list of approved betting apps companies, getting longer day by day.

It's a menace and it's destroying the youth.

At Aza.ng Hub, we advocate for financial sanity and literacy. And we want more people to join us.

People like you who know and speak the truth.

Lets start from there: CALL A SPADE A SPADE!

AzaHub:


Valid points.

The government makes a lot of money in taxes from the betting companies. If you visit the nogeria betting regulation website, you will see a long list of approved betting apps companies, getting longer day by day.

It's a menace and it's destroying the youth.


At Aza.ng Hub, we advocate for financial sanity and literacy. And we want more people to join us.

People like you who know and speak the truth.

Lets start from there: CALL A SPADE A SPADE!

Rubbish! The Professor who won 50+ millions on betting football games few years ago had and still has financial Sanity and Literacy.

Tesenak20:

Rubbish! The Professor who won 50+ millions on betting football games few years ago had and still has financial Sanity and Literacy.

Just one person won 50million naira? What about the 50 million people that have lost their millions and thousands of naira? They collected 100m Naira from you guys and give out 20m Naira for thousands of people to share... Can't you see the game plan

Wawelexy:



Just one person won 50million naira? What about the 50 million people that have lost their millions and thousands of naira? They collected 100m Naira from you guys and give out 20m Naira for thousands of people to share... Can't you see the game plan

Who are they?
Did Stock favour everyone who invested?
Has Cryptocurrency favoured all that invested?
Has Foreign Exchange favoured all that invested?
I guess your type prefers people coming to lick their feet for pittance in the name of giveaway.
Has BigBrother Naija favoured everyone? Has Who wants to be a Millionaire favoured the greater Majority?

I don't see any point made in support of banning sports investment(Real time football betting).

Tesenak20:

Rubbish! The Professor who won 50+ millions on betting football games few years ago had and still has financial Sanity and Literacy.

Brother, if only you knew what you're talking about well.

THE HOUSE ALWAYS WINS.

I exposed many things at Aza.ng about sports betting in Nigeria. You need to see them.

I am wary of what I say here because even NL advertises them.

We're in 2 different worlds.

Sorry.

Being a professor does not mean one is financially sane.

Also, your Prof told you what he won, not what he lost.

I once.met a betting addict and I begged him to do something for me:

TAKE DAILY RECORD OF ALL YOUR WALLET LOADING. 100 naira, 200, like that like that


Within 3 weeks, he got back to me:

Before he win 5k, had had lost 100k.

Case closed.

I was able to help him afterwards.

He has his life back now.

We at Aza.ng can help you, or anyone with gambling problems. Seriously

Tesenak20:

Who are they?
Did Stock favour everyone who invested?
Has Cryptocurrency favoured all that invested?
Has Foreign Exchange favoured all that invested?
I guess your type prefers people coming to lick their feet for pittance in the name of giveaway.
Has BigBrother Naija favoured everyone? Has Who wants to be a Millionaire favoured the greater Majority?

I don't see any point made in support of banning sports investment(Real time football betting).

I did my research well. If I give you facts and figures, you will have a rethink.

Brother, if you're betting, you are pouring your little teaspoonful of value into their oceans of excesses. Yet the game is never in your favour.

Sorry bro.

Your eyes will open one day.

But please don't get depressed too much.

Tesenak20:

Who are they?
Did Stock favour everyone who invested?
Has Cryptocurrency favoured all that invested?
Has Foreign Exchange favoured all that invested?
I guess your type prefers people coming to lick their feet for pittance in the name of giveaway.
Has BigBrother Naija favoured everyone? Has Who wants to be a Millionaire favoured the greater Majority?

I don't see any point made in support of banning sports investment(Real time football betting).

I already said it, one of them is here already..... Can you tell us how much you have lost and how much you have won with sincerity....

Wawelexy:



I already said it, one of them is here already..... Can you tell us how much you have lost and how much you have won with sincerity....

He cannot tell us those facts and figures. Gamblers don't keep record of their staking and losses, but they only remember few.moments of their winnings until they reach their doom.

Bro, before you win 50k, just.know you have lost 1 million.

On most cases.

Quit now

AzaHub:

He cannot tell us those facts and figures. Gamblers don't keep record of their staking and losses, but they only remember few.moments of their winnings until they reach their doom.

Bro, before you win 50k, just.know you have lost 1 million.

On most cases.

Quit now

Exactly! May God help those engrossed in the act. But before God helps you, you need to help yourself by having a great determination to quit.

While I understand your point, it is not going to end anytime soon.

The house always wins, true but when the stories of the few lucky people (for example someone won ₦3m with just ₦600 a few days ago in my area) goes viral, the gamblers notice and they become motivated to try harder.

NSNO:
While I understand your point, it is not going to end anytime soon.

The house always wins, true but when the stories of the few lucky people (for example someone won ₦3m with just ₦600 a few days ago in my area) goes viral, the gamblers notice and they become motivated to try harder.

But how I wish we can calculate how much the N600 guy had lost before that time both in financial terms and time invested, plus opportunity cost too.

3m is too little.

So sad, he will lose all the 3m back to betting

It's a plague

I knew a barber who won 1.5m after so.msny years too.

After the winning finished, his situation got worse.

Much worse.

AzaHub:

But how I wish we can calculate how much the N600 guy had lost before that time both in financial terms and time invested, plus opportunity cost too.

3m is too little.

So sad, he will lose all the 3m back to betting

It's a plague

I knew a barber who won 1.5m after so.msny years too.

After the winning finished, his situation got worse.

Much worse.

did u know that dis betting put food on my table everyday.u don't do research.whatever Reno says u think is right.at least,we gamblers are not stealing from anyone.it is our hard earned money.mind ur business.

Wawelexy:



I already said it, one of them is here already..... Can you tell us how much you have lost and how much you have won with sincerity....

Telling you this does not unbias your bias myopic view.
I have won more than I have lost.

lolu2019:
did u know that dis betting put food on my table everyday.u don't do research.whatever Reno says u think is right.at least,we gamblers are not stealing from anyone.it is our hard earned money.mind ur business.

Did I hear you say it was your hard earned money?

AzaHub:
Moderators, can this feature?

God bless whoever wrote this article,I pray his or her generation will never be named among those shackled by gambling 🙏👍👌
These betting companies are making so much money,that more and more are inspired to join the train of betting companies in Nigeria.
I have read horrible stories here on nairaland on by first hand victims of how their lives was ruined by gambling.
I hate gambling or betting or whatever,with so much passion. I have never played it and don't even know how it works. I have never downloaded any of it's Apps.
Many young souls are trapped in that beast called betting. Damn I'm mad.

AzaHub:


Did I hear you say it was your hard earned money?

I go steal am nah.see talk.that is how some of u will go to who wants to be a millionaire.And u will not be able to win 200naira.if u don't use ur talent in dis world,it will be hard for u to make it.Gambling is normal quantitative reasoning we studied in primary school.the whites only make school harder by creating higher institutions.