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Farmers do not be a sitting duck to fraudsters

28 Mar 2021 at 08:11hrs | Views
Harvest time is upon us, a time of plenty. Fraudsters are on the prowl looking for who to con, taking your agricultural produce without paying a dime for it.

A colleague nearly lost a tonne of top-grade sugar beans to a con artist who claimed to work for a children's home in Bindura.

The promised bank deposit did not show but the messenger driver coming to collect the order presented a fake proof of payment.

On closer scrutiny, the lucky brother raised alarm causing the 'gold finger' to show a clean pair of heels with the speed of three devils.

All efforts to apprehend the pair of would-be fraudsters were in vain since the purported buyer's mobile number was no more reachable. Target produce are but not limited to sugar beans,  maize, cabbages potatoes and even chickens. The tobacco auction floors are opening soon, farmers beware. Last year some hard-working farmers lost their tobacco en-route to the floors after their delivery trucks were intercepted at night.

Avoid nocturnal tobacco deliveries, why move Nicodemusly when day time is sure to come? Still on tobacco, the auction floors will be teaming with sophisticated thieves and ladies of the night. Do not be a sitting duck to tricksters who may talk you into parting with your hard-earned cash.

Seemingly lucrative deals may prove to be a dumb squid after all. That 'Cleopatra' befriending you knows very well you are no 'Mark Anthony', all she wants is your fat wallet.

Some laced cheap drinks will be on sale, causing the gullible farmer to sleep like on the operating table thereby losing the family's annual earnings. Well to be forewarned is to be forearmed, maybe its also time to buy farming inputs for the next season. Wait a minute, shhhhh! Mask up, Covid-19 kills.

Thomas Tondo Murisa. Chinehasha.


Source - Thomas Tondo Murisa
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