Sports’ Betting in Akwa Ibom: An Exposé

…the good, bad and ugly revealed

…CEO, Agents, Stakers speak

 By Ofonime Honesty

A genre of sports’ betting generally referred to as ‘White Paper’ is presently enjoying widespread popularity and success in Akwa Ibom State. This special report dissects the issue in all ramifications.  

Sports’ betting has been in existence in Nigeria for several decades. The consensus belief is that the Britons introduced the draw-based betting system generally regarded as coupon, to Nigeria at the onset of their colonial expedition. Coupon enjoyed monopoly in the betting market till the late 70s when lottery (lotto) and casino games gained prominence. The status quo remained unperturbed till 2010 when online sports betting became domesticated in Nigeria.

Nigeria’s embrace of the 21^st century’s digitalization agenda led to the introduction of mobile phone technology and popularization of the hitherto unpopular computer technology. Barely few years later, Nigerians were connected to the web.

Presently, one of the offshoots of the web technology is online sports betting. Brands like Surebet, Citybet, Nairabet, Bet9ja, ParknBet, Atlanticbet, Merrybet,1960bet, bet360 and a host of others have become  household names. 

By simply walking into a betting shop or from the comfort of one’s home, office or wherever, a person can place a bet on any sport listed on betting sites. Sports available for bet are football, tennis, cricket, basketball, boxing, dog race, horse race etc.

There is also the online virtual soccer league where computer programmed soccer teams compete on a 20-team league. Someone can place a bet on one or more matches played at a particular round which lasts barely two minutes. The virtual matches are relayed via a customized decoder and monitored on television screens at respective betting shops.  

On daily basis, people emerge from betting shops clutching slim tickets emblazoned with fixtures, codes and keys. The oft used keys are stated inter alia: Home Team to win is represented by 1, Away Team to win is represented by 2, Draw is represented by X, Any team to win is represented by 12, Both Teams to Score is represented by GG or BTS. There are several other keys used in placing bets.    

Checks reveal that sports’ betting arrived Akwa Ibom State towards the end of 2013. Presently, barely three years later, its effect hereabout has been magnificent. Betting shops exist in all the Local Government Areas of the state. In places like Uyo, Eket and Ikot Ekpene, virtually every street plays host to at least one or two betting shops.

Taking into cognizance the fact that Nigeria’s economy is drowning, many see betting as the best route to financial freedom.   

THE GOOD

The hope of winning thick wads of cash has made betting shops to invariably become a Mecca for people especially youths. A couple of years ago, Professor Godwin Ighalo of Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma, Delta State, staked a paltry N800 on 1960BET and won a whooping Fifty Eight Million, Nine Hundred and Forty Five Thousand, Five Hundred and Fifty Three Naira (N58, 945, 553). During the cheque presentation, the don revealed that he has been placing bets for over 25 years but he always believed that one day, ‘luck would shine on me’.

Prof. Ighalo is one in a long list of persons said to have won humongous amount of money via sports’ betting.

Sometimes, with a minimum of 100 Naira, someone has the hope of winning millions of Naira. A ParknBet agent in Uyo, Sunday Samuel, had this to say: “If you are lucky, 200 Naira or even 100 Naira can fetch you money you wouldn’t have earned in one or two years. In November, someone won 2.4 million Naira here. Let me show you the winning ticket (takes this reporter to a corner of his shop where the ticket is pasted). People win substantial amount of monies on almost daily basis. So, sports betting or white paper -as it is popularly known- is here to stay, the society has embraced it. If you are privileged to have an indepth knowledge of leagues and teams across the globe, you stand a chance of winning, but some people do place bet without running background checks on teams - in most cases they win because sometimes shocking results do occur. It all depends on luck.”

A bet9ja agent in Uyo, Ubong Uko, stated thus: “I recommend sports betting to anyone who is passionate about sport. This thing is a reward for loving sport. I am a fan of Arsenal Football Club, now I match my passion for the club with the hope of winning money for myself. I bet on almost all the matches involving Arsenal; I bet on other matches too. And I have been winning.

A Surebet agent who craved anonymity stated that apart from giving people the opportunity to win big, sports betting offers a platform for employment. 

Hear him: “I am a graduate of Physics from College of Education, Afaha Nsit. After waiting in vain for white collar jobs, I decided to venture into this business. As you can see (referring to this reporter), I have employed two ladies, I pay them monthly. From being a job seeker, I am now an employer.”

In a chat with this reporter at Citybet shop located at Abak Road in Uyo,   two guys bared their minds on the issue. First to speak was Callistus Umoh: “Sports betting is a giver of hope. With an extra 100 Naira in my pocket, I have the hope of winning big money. To avoid being addicted, I don’t bet with huge amount of money. And I have been winning sporadically.”

Another client simply identified as Emeka joined: “White paper is the best. Unlike MMM, Ultimate Cycler and the rest of them, white paper is not a scam. We use our knowledge of football to win money. Just yesterday, I won N17,000 Naira by staking N200.”

When quizzed on the risk of losing money often, Emeka replied thus: “Life itself is a risk. You (referring to this reporter) are a journalist, and I know that journalism is a risky profession. So, there is an element of risk in everything.”

Citybet is one of the leading sports betting brands in Nigeria. Its Head Office is located in the oil-rich city of Eket, Akwa Ibom State. CEO of the outfit, Dr. Iboro Titus James, in a chat with this reporter disclosed that the importance of betting companies cannot be ignored.

Hear him: “Government should be thankful to betting companies for alleviating the load of unemployment. We pay salaries to our employees thus helping government to fight unemployment. Sports betting has also helped in reducing crime because the youths, instead of committing heinous acts because of hardship and lack of jobs, resort to walking up to a betting shop to forecast matches and placing bet with as little as N 100.

“People have been winning millions of Naira on Citybet by staking just N100. In fact, just yesterday, two guys won a million Naira each with as little as N 100 and N 200 respectively. Here are the tickets. We enrich our clients because they are the reason why we exist”, he concluded.

THE BAD

It is not a perfect sail as far as sports’ betting is concerned. As this reporter conversed with clients at bet9ja shop at Oron Road in Uyo, a man walked in. After eavesdropping for a while, he joined our conversation.  His name is Emmanuel Ebong, a lecturer in a private polytechnic in Uyo.

Mr. Ebong had this say: “To me, sports’ betting is an opportunity to become financially better. I am a lecturer but I don’t depend solely on my salary. I am into other legitimate businesses. I place bets when I receive set of predicted draws from forecasters. I pay for them, sometimes they pan out accurately, sometimes they don’t. It is all about luck.”

He later revealed the predicted draws: Hull City vs. Everton, Liverpool vs. Manchester City, Stevenage vs. Colchester, Forest Green Rovers vs. Torquay United, Southport vs. Wrexham, Halifax Town vs. Darlington and Stockport vs. Harrogate. Mr. Ebong wished everyone good luck even as he went ahead to place the bet with N500. This reporter placed the bet with N100. The potential winning as inscribed on my ticket totaled N182,162. All the matches drew except Liverpool vs Manchester United and Southport vs Wrexham. Liverpool won 1:0 while Southport won 3:2. But for the two matches which failed to deliver, this reporter would have smiled to the bank with N182,000.

Being a form of gambling, the losing aspect of sports betting scares many from participating in it. Some say the ratio of losers is greater than that of winners.               

When one loses bets frequently, there is a tendency of continuing the betting habit with the hope of hitting jackpot. This leads to addiction which is a problem of its own. The damaging effects of gambling on an individual and society are well documented.

Also, though companies indicate on their websites that only persons above 18 are allowed to bet, in reality, underage persons throng betting shops on daily basis to place bets.

A Nairabet agent, Orji Orji, disclosed that some of his clients are addicted to betting.

Hear him: “I know people who place bet with their salaries. Some borrow substantial amount of money and place bet with it. Some even place bet on credit, a trend we strongly kick against because if the bet is lost, the staker may be discouraged from paying the debt.” 

Speaking further, Orji listed other major problems to include, burglary and high cost of petrol/ printing papers.

Citybet CEO, Dr. Iboro James, had this to say: “We don’t encourage addiction. We advise people to bet wisely. No sane person should bet with all his money.”

Dr. James highlighted the administrative challenges faced by his outfit. His words: “Operating this kind of business in Nigeria is challenging because business requires electrical power. In Nigeria, you know that public power supply is very unreliable. So, we set aside huge funds on daily basis to provide alternative power supply with generators. Citybet shops spend up to N 19,000 per month on running generators. Here at the head office, we spend more.”

He enumerated other challenges faced to include burglary, insincerity of agents as per remitting monies accrued to the company as well as other logistics like high cost of renting shops, computers and printing papers.

The Citybet CEO however called on government to formulate policies that will help entrepreneurs reap dividends of their investments, highlighting that sports betting companies have helped government in minimizing unemployment and crime.

On his part, Editor-in-Chief of Cradle Newspaper, Mr. Emmanuel Effiong, had this to say: “It betrays common sense to accept the fact that Nigerian youths have resorted to gambling as a means of livelihood. This is an indictment on our leaders and the youths themselves.  Sports’ betting is making youths to become lazy. Imagine habouring the belief that with N 100, one can win up to a million Naira. What a deceptive reasoning!”

THE UGLY

The ugly side of sports’ betting is somewhat disheartening. Narrating his ordeal in the hands of a ‘spiritualist’, Mr. Akanimo Hanson Essien had this to say: “Recently, I bought a copy of a sports daily (name withheld). On one of the pages, a particular advertorial caught my attention. A man claiming to be an all-seeing seer from India claimed to have cures for several diseases as well as winning codes for pools and online sports’ betting. I immediately dialed the number, and was directed to pay N15,000 to a bank account. After payment, I was sent eight codes. When that round of matches was concluded, none of the games panned out as predicted by the spiritualist.

“I became furious and called the spiritualist and demanded a full refund of my money. The ‘spiritualist’ responded angrily and vowed to kill me if I continue disturbing his phone line”, Mr. Essien concluded.

Essien’s story underlines the desperate measures adopted by Nigerians when it comes to sports betting.

Some resort to selling properties and stealing for the sake of placing bets. And when the bet it lost, frustration sets in. The frustration sometimes leads to suicide.

Recently, many were shocked when news broke that a man named Uchenna committed suicide in Uyo.

This is how Daily Trust reported it: “A man identified as Uchenna has reportedly killed himself by hanging in his room along Abak Road in Uyo, Akwa Ibom state capital, after his hope of winning money from sports betting crashed.

“Uchenna was a perpetual sports gambler and this time around borrowed N22,000 from his boss in the hope of replacing it when he wins. Roommate of the deceased, Ifiok, said Uchenna had been lamenting since after losing the money and got himself into a terrible state of mind.

Ifiok said, “I went out to buy something from Plaza (the city center) and on getting back, I found that everywhere was locked.

“I knew Uchenna hadn’t gone out and I wondered what must have made him to lock up himself. I tried to open the door for several minutes without success until I had to force it open. I then found him hanging from the ceiling fan in our room and his eyes had popped out.”

On this, Citybet CEO, Dr. Iboro Titus, offered advice: “Sports betting is not worth dying for. Why should anyone even contemplate staking money he knows will be hard to replace if the bet is lost? Betting companies have good intentions, which is why a company like Citybet always take time to enlighten our clients. We speak against any perceived excesses. As for those who win, we counsel them against reckless spending. Please, Nigerians should avoid participating wrongly in sports’ betting.”  

SUMMARY

While sports’ betting is a blessing to some, it has proved to be a curse to those who are too desperate to hit jackpot. Given the fast pace at which betting shops are springing up and the high level of acceptance among the populace, there is need for relevant authorities to regulate its operations to avoid avoidable repercussions.

The statistics says it all. 35 percent of Nigerians indulge in sports betting daily. According to News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), about 60 million Nigerians between the ages of 18 and 40 years spend up to N1.8 billion on sports betting daily.

Therefore, sports’ betting industry deserves special attention.