Choki Wangmo | Tsirang
Just as ponzi scheme called Tallwin Life Plan is making rounds among Bhutanese, the victims of the QNET ponzi scheme are running from pillar to post seeking help from different agencies. Law enforcers, on the other hand, are struggling to tackle such scams.
Tashi, a de-suup, heard about QNET from her childhood friend, Sangay while on border duty last year. The friend told her that she would easily earn Nu 40,000 in a month if she registered as her downline member. Tashi was excited.
QNET is a Hong Kong-based business owned by Qi Company. It is claimed to be a multi-level marketing business and e-commerce-based direct-selling company. A person has to pay Nu 120,000 to become a member or independent representative (IR).
Times were challenging for Tashi, a high school graduate whose family’s expenses had increased in recent years. Tashi wanted to help her parents and pay her sister’s college fees. Her salary wasn’t enough.
She did not know the business but trusted her friend. She registered as her friend’s downline member in January last year. She attended a four-day training but did not yet know the terms and conditions of the business. She sat for a two-hour interview.
Two months after signing an agreement, she made a payment of Nu 120,000. She borrowed the amount from her uncle and mother.
She waited for the returns as promised by her Sangay. After four months, Tashi was impatient and asked her friend. Sangay told her not to expect…
