How 27-year-old trader emerged sixth ALAT millionaire 3 years after moving to Lagos in search of greener pastures
Twenty-seven-year-old Somadina Umeh could not contain his joy when he recently received the sum of one million naira from the ALAT by Wema team at his brother-in-law’s shop in the Orile area of Lagos. It looked surreal to him.
Three years ago, when he moved to Lagos from Anambra in search of greener pastures, he didn’t expect to become a millionaire in a short time.
“This is a full-circle moment for me. I left Anambra three years ago and came to Lagos so I can make something of myself,” Umeh said. “My brother-in-law took me in and trained me. Now, three years later, ALAT has given me the opportunity to turn my life around. I can now fully establish myself as my own man.”
The 27-year-old building material dealer is the sixth millionaire and one of the 421 customers who have emerged winners in the ongoing ALAT 5for5 promo.
ALAT began its 5for5 Promo in July 2021 to reward loyal customers, encourage a healthy savings culture and renew relationships with old customers. Since July 2021, ALAT has rewarded over 420 customers monthly with cash prizes ranging from N10,000 to the grand prize of one million Naira. By the end of 5for5 promo, ALAT would have awarded 31.5 million naira in cash prizes to 639 customers.
Since the start of the promo, ALAT has visited various cities (including Benin, Abuja, Akure, and Lagos) to hold the raffle draws, which has so far led to the emergence of 6 millionaires.
According to the Retail Divisional Head, Wema Bank, Dotun Ifebogun, “We introduced this promo to reward loyal customers, encourage a healthy savings culture and renew relationships with old customers. And in the past six months, we have done just that. The response across the country has been humbling.
“So far, we have given over 400 customers an avenue to make a difference with their winnings. We are not only creating financial freedom, but we are also providing financial literacy on how they can spend, save and invest their winnings wisely.”
Ifebogun’s words ring true, especially among the one-million-naira grand prize winners. All six winners have invested their earnings into businesses or personal investments, guided by ALAT.
The first raffle draw held in Lagos and heralded Rachel Adejumo as the first-ever grand prize winner of the 5for5 promo. A trader based in Osogbo, Rachel was elated, as the reward was timely. She was the pioneer winner and set the pace by investing the money to upgrade her business. Another trader, Zainab Ayoola, who won in November, also upgraded her business from a small-scale bread seller to a store owner while caring for the expenses of her teenage daughter.
Osun State civil servant, Aderemi Comfort Ajuwon, was having a conversation with her husband in August when she received a call from a Wema Bank representative informing her that she had won 1 million naira in the 5for5 promo. Her initial thought was that she was about to be duped by a con artist. However, after confirming that she had truly won one million naira, she used her winning to complete her building project, something she has in common with September’s raffle draw winner, 44-year-old Alade Rafiu.
A bashful Alade was happy when he visited the Wema Bank branch in Agege with friends and family. He had lost his phone a few days prior to the draw and had to be contacted through one of his friends who denied knowing him, fearing that his account had been hacked and used for fraudulent activities. He thanked ALAT for giving him the opportunity to become a landlord.
Edikan Israel Jumbo the youngest of ALAT’s one million naira winner is a 24-year-old youth corps member who had heard about the promo but didn’t believe she stood a chance at winning. Jumbo is currently looking forward to the end of her NYSC service so she can begin her life as an entrepreneur, thanks to ALAT.
Most of the previous winners were Wema Bank customers who had transitioned to using the ALAT app for its versatility, the December grand prize winner, Somadina Umeh, however, had downloaded the app from the Playstore because he liked the aesthetics.
Apart from the six millionaires, other Nigerians across various walks of life have been privileged to win up to 2 million Naira worth of cash prizes in the course of the ALAT promo, including students from the University of Lagos and Obafemi Awolowo University.
The 5for5 promo will continue till March as ALAT has made plans for 213 more customers to emerge.
