The decades-old “Nigerian scam” that started as snail mail telling the recipient he/she can share in the ill-gotten wealth of an African despot, continues to evolve.
As a warning, here are some of the latest iterations of the old scam.
Ditebogo Dimati and Charles Makani, purportedly transactions officers, foreign payment department, UW Credit Union, sent separate e-mails on the same day with the same message:
“As instructed by my branch manager, funds have been transferred to your bank account, please find attached payment slip for your ref, alternatively you can download the remittance receipt via the secure dropbox link below and log in with your e-mail as it’s confidential.”
Another message “From: Money System Subject: Re: [Ticket C-6738-923891134] your account,” asks me to check my balance in this link rozwoj-osobisty-krakow.cba.pl/system-file/system/subscribe/drex.htm, which suggests the link is based in Krakow, Poland.
I have passed on this new scam to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.
Feedback
I continue to receive feedback on my column story about streets and sidewalks.
Shelby Payne says that on Chino Roces Ave. Makati, business process outsourcing (BPO) agencies or call centers are doing their recruiting on sidewalks.
“At McDonald’s Chino Roces corner Buendia… about six people stand around with IDs… asking any passerby if (he/she) needs a job… if they get a person (interested), they go inside McDonald’s where they actually rent space to interview the person… They take up about four to five tables and, believe it or not, they pay McDonald’s P5,000 for the use of the tables,” Payne claims.
“You will also find them on just about every major street here in Makati,” Payne adds, as he asks the city government to act on the problem. In Ortigas, he notes, recruiters “harass people walking along the streets.”
Josie Prudencio of Quezon City says that, in Tandang Sora Ave., Yellow Hat Hardware uses the sidewalk as parking area for its delivery trucks or customers’ vehicles. On Visayas Ave. corner Tandang Sora, one lane is reserved as parking space for “customers of Bayan Palengke,” while jeepneys wait for passengers on the opposite lane.
A Manila resident says, “I’ve noticed that almost all Barangay Halls in the City of Manila are erected either on sidewalks or, worse, the street. DILG (Department of Interior and Local Government) must do something to correct this.”
A reader who works in Makati suggests that authorities should review all existing traffic rules and regulations and implement them immediately, including the Metro Manila Development Authority ordinance banning tricycles on major roads.
She adds, among other things, that the expanded truck ban should be implemented throughout the metropolis. Jeepneys with stainless steel bodies and which do not have headlights at night should not be allowed on the road.
Smoke-belching vehicles and those without taillights should be kept off the streets. Motorcycle drivers who do not use helmets, have more than one other person on their vehicles, who have young children as passengers, and who wear slippers should be arrested. Trucks with only four wheels, when they should have six or eight, should be banned.
She stresses very strict enforcement of loading and unloading regulations. Education/information campaigns should be conducted to inform people of traffic rules. Perhaps a company can pay for the printing of a traffic information booklet.
Send letters to The Consumer, Lifestyle Section, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 1098 Chino Roces Ave. cor. Mascardo and Yague Sts., 1204 Makati City; fax 8974793/94, or e-mail [email protected].
