According to a joint statement from the two top financial sector regulatory bodies, getting involved with the D9 Club programme will simply lead to people losing their money.
“BoT and CMSA believes that D9 is operating contrary to sections 171A, 171B and 171C of the country’s penal code. It is a criminal offence to run and or persuade people to take part in a pyramid scheme,” the statement said.
We should note that illegal pyramid schemes are invented in such a way that the money contributed by the new member is given to another member who joined earlier, and there is no logical explanation on how that money is invested or multiplied.
It is a timely warning to members of the public to avoid being tempted in any way to take part in the D9 Club scheme or any other of pyramid nature. In the same vein we urge the citizenry to report any such venture to the BoT, CMSA or security organs,” the regulators appealed.
According to media reports, the D9 Club has been conducting its business that involves the selling of forms to unsuspecting individuals in Dar es Salaam since January this year.
The venture, known as Amka Mwanamke (AMWA), has taken city residents by storm because it is regarded as an easy way of making money. Amwa operates as both a non-governmental organisation and a business company.
According to its blogspot website and Facebook page, AMWA's mission is to empower women entrepreneurs by equipping them with business skills and providing advice on how to access finance.
Its goal is to build entrepreneurial capacity among small-scale entrepreneurs by training them how to become economically independent. Information available on its website also shows that AMWA has accessed grants from various organisations that fund NGOs in the country.
The funds were used to increase the financial management and administration capacity of the NGO "that focuses in people and in particular, women empowerment," the website says.
AMWA’s owners claim via the blogspot to have also opened a registered company through the Business Registration and Licensing Authority (BRELA) in October last year, under registration number 130089.
The company is a registered taxpayer with TIN number 131-741-189, the owners say. Further information shows that AMWA Company Limited is led by an executive director who reports to a seven-member board of directors.
The targets are people of all genders, especially small-scale entrepreneurs facing capital problems, according to the available information. But a survey has revealed that most of AMWA’s members are women.
The forms that AMWA sells to prospective members are printed with details of the company’s address and names of four previous beneficiaries (people who bought and sold the forms with success).
Also available on the forms are details of AMWA’s bank accounts and the "top position" beneficiary of the programme.
According to a director of AMWA who identified herself as Anifa Simon, the forms have been on sale in the country since August last year.
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