I've never had such a terrible day in my 3 years working in finance. I was speaking with someone on the phone who was supposed to give his cc details to pay his overdue bill and just as he was about giving me the details he jokingly asked what nationality i am (obviouosly from my accent) and i unproudly said Nigeria and as if i was a devil the guy hung up immediately.

Until now the fact that the name has been soiled never made meaning to me sort of but that yesterday i felt so disturbed, so bad, so sad. Just wondering if such question should come up again will i proudly say that i am a Nigerian again or decide not to answer as i am not obliged to?

welcome to the club.
i dont see any change to that anytime soon.
Next time, just say, what has my nationality got to do with the bills.

the man owes on his overdue credit card and he's still making yanga.

what a loser.

tpiah:

the man owes on his overdue credit card and he's still making yanga.

what a loser.

The world is owing, so cos he is owing dont make him a loser.
people like him make some people keep a job

Omo it happened to me about a 5 years ago when i was working in call centre - Solution give the caller a different nationality


it is not your fault - Get over it

Fhemmmy:

The world is owing, so cos he is owing dont make him a loser.
people like him make some people keep a job

well, instead of facing his problem, he's busy trying to point fingers at Nigerians. Are they the ones who put him in debt?

He sounds like a loser to me. Did he spend his card on a Nigerian?

unless he's overdue because of a Nigerian scammer, then I dont see why the OP is losing sleep over this matter.

Granted, some Nigerians specialize in credit card fraud. But if he has no evidence the OP's company didnt vet the Nigerians working for them, then what's his problem?

Yeah i understand i am not under any obligation to disclose that if i dont want to, but come to think of it someone asks you what nationality you are and you have to think for a few seconds and say em em that has got nothing to do with my job. I understand when someone ask the question with some sort of racism on his voice but someone just want to be friendly and just ask isnt it a shame and isnt it so disgraceful that you cant proudly answer it. Now i understand why some ppl are having changing the colour of their passpt. So sad.

For once I agree with Tpia - the onigbese is using Nigerian nationality as excuse not to pay his bills?  

@ OP

will the name ever be clean again? Unlikely - if a person has ever been personally scammed by Nigerians, nothing can ever erase that memory. Like some others said, it's not your fault - move on with your life.

ayomifull:

Yeah i understand i am not under any obligation to disclose that if i dont want to, but come to think of it someone asks you what nationality you are and you have to think for a few seconds and say em em that has got nothing to do with my job. I understand when someone asked the question with some sort of racism on his voice but someone just want to be friendly and just ask isnt it a shame and isnt it so disgraceful that you cant proudly answer it. Now i understand why some ppl are having changing the colour of their passpt. So sad.

well, its your Nigerian brothers and sisters giving you a bad name. Neither are their activities going to stop anytime soon because these things are part and parcel of our culture.

Stuff happens. Get over it and move on.

Na today?

debosky:

For once I agree with Tpia - the onigbese is using Nigerian nationality as excuse not to pay his bills?

That's not the point, when i checked d system he later called back and paid up. My problem was the humiliation i felt, of course because i knew the reason why but its quite disturbing and for the first time i felt the impact of those guys who destroyed the name. Well, im trying to get over it sha but how sad!

Now as if that is not enough while just getting over that sad incidence i just called klm to pay for a reservation i did online yesterday topay over the phone the agent i spoke with ''kindly'' told me it is not possible to pay for this flight over the phone but directly on their desk at the airport. I should not have asked why because the answer to my why added to my problem the agent said 'because Lagos is a fraud destination and we have credit card fraud at the moment''

Now i know there is problem with this name and i dont find it funny.

@ayomifull

Have you travelled outside nigeria before?

asha 80:

@ayomifull

Have you travelled outside nigeria before?

Yes mam, i live outside Nigeria.

Poster is just begining. We have seen these things over and over. Grow a thick skin, sis.

ayomifull:

Yes mam, i live outside Nigeria.

I wonder why you should be suprised or shocked at this then.

tpiah:

well, instead of facing his problem, he's busy trying to point fingers at Nigerians. Are they the ones who put him in debt?

He sounds like a loser to me. Did he spend his card on a Nigerian?

unless he's overdue because of a Nigerian scammer, then I dont see why the OP is losing sleep over this matter.

Granted, some Nigerians specialize in credit card fraud. But if he has no evidence the OP's company didnt vet the Nigerians working for them, then what's his problem?

So he shd not be worried after all he/she heard on the news is how bad Nigerians are with people's cc info?
Common, let us be real, even me, a Nigerian guy is careful giving my info on the phone or on the internet.
Let us not blame anyone at all, but our Nigerians bros and sis that has made the good ones looks bad.

Fhemmmy:


So he shd not be worried after all he/she heard on the news is how bad Nigerians are with people's cc info?
Common, let us be real, even me, a Nigerian guy is careful giving my info on the phone or on the internet.
Let us not blame anyone at all, but our Nigerians bros and sis that has made the good ones looks bad.

Being careful is not the same as dropping the phone in a rude manner - he could request to speak to another operative if he wanted to. Besides, he should trust his financial institution since she didn't call him up to solicit anything but was doing her job legitimately on behalf of the institution.

ayomifull:

Now as if that is not enough while just getting over that sad incidence i just called klm to pay for a reservation i did online yesterday topay over the phone the agent i spoke with ''kindly'' told me it is not possible to pay for this flight over the phone but directly on their desk at the airport. I should not have asked why because the answer to my why added to my problem the agent said 'because Lagos is a fraud destination and we have credit card fraud at the moment''

Now i know there is problem with this name and i dont find it funny.

KLM is saying that in this day and age? They must be backward - if the likes of Virgin Atlantic and British Airways gladly accept card payments, who are they not to accept?

Anyways, I was opening a paypal account the other day, and the website (in the UK) asked for my nationality and Nigeria is intentionally NOT on the list
I just chose some silly country and continued with my registration.

No one can make me feel inferior - if they try it, I will reel off a list of their own countrymen who've been indicted for fraud.

ayomifull:

I've never had such a terrible day in my 3 years working in finance. I was speaking with someone on the phone who was supposed to give his cc details to pay his overdue bill and just as he was about giving me the details he jokingly asked what nationality i am (obviouosly from my accent) and i unproudly said Nigeria and as if i was a devil the guy hung up immediately.

Until now the fact that the name has been soiled never made meaning to me sort of but that yesterday i felt so disturbed, so bad, so sad. Just wondering if such question should come up again will i proudly say that i am a Nigerian again or decide not to answer as i am not obliged to?

 Like someone said, no be today. Our reputation worldwide is soiled and will take decades to repair. So far I have never hesitated to proudly state my nigerian roots. If someone wants to stereotype me that's their problem.

 and honestly sometimes I casually and lightheartedly enjoy the 'fear/respect' I get from other african nationals . . .   wetin concern me  

debosky:

Being careful is not the same as dropping the phone in a rude manner - he could request to speak to another operative if he wanted to. Besides, he should trust his financial institution since she didn't call him up to solicit anything but was doing her job legitimately on behalf of the institution.

Maybe the guy got scared.
Maybe all he has heard made him think, the faster you hung up the lesser the chance of his info being stolen.
I do admit, he doesnt have to hang up, but that only show you how scary "Nigeria" sounds to people.

Fhemmmy:

Maybe the guy got scared.
[b]Maybe all he has heard made him think, the faster you hung up the lesser the chance of his info being stolen.[/b]I do admit, he doesnt have to hang up, but that only show you how scary "Nigeria" sounds to people.

ROTFLOL

ayomifull:

That's not the point, when i checked d system he later called back and paid up. My problem was the humiliation i felt, of course because i knew the reason why but its quite disturbing and for the first time i felt the impact of those guys who destroyed the name. Well, im trying to get over it sha but how sad!

Thanks for clearing that up. I wonder if none here owes a dime to another!


I had the similar experience a couple of years ago, while working as a sales clerk as one of the major banks here. Now it is not your fault, so you should not blame yourself. Also, do not blame the man for hanging up as it is possible he may have been a victim of 419 himself. Just take some time to compose yourself and get rid of that guilt( if any), continue your work. 

In my case, the lady asked me to call my supervisor so she could confirm she just gave away her information to someone legit and she was nice about it. My Manager almost had to give her own SSN to the lady to assure her we were legit. She finally had to give her direct number to the bank before the lady finally calmed down. Roflmao!!

I definitely know of the "Not being able to pay with a credit card" experience too. I happen to make purchases with HP with no problem but the day I called to have a machine shipped to Nigeria, I was told I would have to go to another HP reseller to pay with my credit card. I did not know if to laugh or cry and it so happened the person I was talking to happened to be somewhere in India. Roflmao!!

Like Kobojunkie has said, dont take it personal, it has nothing to do with you.
So just dust it off and go about your daily duty.
Good luck.

ayomifull:

I've never had such a terrible day in my 3 years working in finance. I was speaking with someone on the phone who was supposed to give his cc details to pay his overdue bill and just as he was about giving me the details he jokingly asked what nationality i am (obviouosly from my accent) and i unproudly said Nigeria and as if i was a devil the guy hung up immediately.

Until now the fact that the name has been soiled never made meaning to me sort of but that yesterday i felt so disturbed, so bad, so sad. Just wondering if such question should come up again will i proudly say that i am a Nigerian again or decide not to answer as i am not obliged to?

should have said Ghanaian or Senegalese. Get with the times.

ThiefOfHearts:

should have said Ghanaian or Senegalese. Get with the times.

So the name nigeria is no longer saleable?

I wonder how come some of us don't see what the poster is trying to say. To be honest, even I won't give my credit card details to a Nigerian over the phone!!! only in cases where the person in question is my friend ad even at that, I have to be careful.

The truth is a few people have spoilt the name of the country and as such, rubbed mud on a lot of others. It is so bad that when you even introduce yourselves to some citizens of poor countries in the world even in Africa, the first reaction you get is a general laughter, then they try to cover up by saying some funny things and massaging your ego.

For me, I do not think I will be hapy walking around carrying some other country's passport or tagging my self with any country except the one I was born in and I am proud of. We have our short comings, our leaders are thieves, some of us followers are scums, and I understand that this may view the way people look at me but everytime I have the opportunity, I will defend NIGERIA in all ways I can!

asha 80:

So the name nigeria is no longer saleable?

So u just finding that out?

But i will never pretend to be from a different country though, i remember a Nigerian for life, and i will challenge any nationality for that.

ayomifull:

Now as if that is not enough while just getting over that sad incidence i just called klm to pay for a reservation i did online yesterday topay over the phone the agent i spoke with ''kindly'' told me it is not possible to pay for this flight over the phone but directly on their desk at the airport. I should not have asked why because the answer to my why added to my problem the agent said 'because Lagos is a fraud destination and we have credit card fraud at the moment''

Now i know there is problem with this name and i dont find it funny.

at least she added "at the moment".

so you didnt know your countrymen and women have given the name a problem before?

In any case, I dont see what moaning will achieve here?

proudly9ja:

I wonder how come some of us don't see what the poster is trying to say. To be honest, even I won't give my credit card details to a Nigerian over the phone!!! only in cases where the person in question is my friend ad even at that, I have to be careful.

thank you. I myself have been scammed by fellow Nigerians before and likewise many of my friends and relatives have experienced the same.

People suppose shine eye.

However, the man is stupid because some other nationality or even someone from his backyard can also scam him. That's why he should have just faced his debt payment unless he's been 419ed by a Nigerian before.

If I'm Nigerian and working at a reputable finance organization, I expect any customer who is worried about being scammed, to check with the manager or superviser instead of acting local.

tpiah:



at least she added "at the moment".

so you didnt know your countrymen and women have given the name a problem before?

In any case, I dont see what moaning will achieve here?

u mean oh

asha 80:

So the name nigeria is no longer saleable?

Unfortunately, things are not as easy when wearing the "Nigerian" badge. I notice people from other nationalities do not get the same stare I do when I mention where I am from. Some poeple politely say something like "You ascent seems different" but you can easily figure out that the expression on their faces tells a different story. Roflmao!!!

proudly9ja:

I wonder how come some of us don't see what the poster is trying to say. To be honest, even I won't give my credit card details to a Nigerian over the phone!!! only in cases where the person in question is my friend ad even at that, I have to be careful.

You are endorsing irrational behaviour - have UK nationals not committed fraud? Should I then refuse to give out my account details to UK nationals on the phone?  

She didn't call out of the blue - she works for a reputable company with whom he has dealings so all the caller needed to do is request verification of her identity if he was in doubt - request to speak to a supervisor or something else. SIMPLE.

Simply dropping the phone is a silly and infantile response.