₦airaland Forum

traeces:
I apologize for the length of this story which is an illustration of the lip service our government has been paying to the encouragement of agriculture and private enterprise in Nigeria.

MY APPLICATION
In July, 2017, I submitted an application for a loan of five million, nine hundred and two thousand naira only (N5, 902, 000.00) at the Makurdi, Benue state branch of Bank of Industry. At the initial stage, I was very impressed by what I thought was the professionalism demonstrated by staff of the bank. I got a call on the 31st August 2017 notifying me of the approval of my loan. You can only imagine how delighted I was at the prospect of such a lifeline to my business considering the loan had a tenor of 3 years, moratorium of six months and purported interest of less than 10% per annum and given that my loan officer gave me the impression that now that the loan had been approved, disbursement was going to be a matter of days or weeks at the most.

I was therefore very surprised to say the least when 2 months down the line, I was yet to receive an offer letter under the pretext that searches were been carried out on my person and on my business. I patiently waited while inundating Bank of Industry Makurdi office with calls and visits. It was not until early November, 2017 that I received a call informing me that the searches came clean and my offer letter was now ready. I went to the office and asked to receive my letter but to my surprise, I was asked to pay a non refundable fee of 1% of the amount approved for me before I could even view the letter. This part sounded almost criminal to me, why won’t I see the terms governing the purported offer before committing resources I did not have? They told me it was the norm and that there was no other way so I went ahead to pay the sum of Fifty Two Thousand Naira (N52, 000.00) being 1% of the sum approved. See receipt of the payment attached.

Thereafter, I received a 6-paged offer letter in which I found ridiculous terms that made me wonder why a government agency whose objective was the encouragement of entrepreneurship could be that devious and self interested. See some details:

1.) The approved loan amount was five million, one hundred and ninety four thousand, three hundred and twenty two naira (N5, 194,322.00). A good percentage of this approved sum was for fees and charges which did not add any direct value to my business and which were at the exclusive discretion of the bank.
2.) The source was FGN (NEDEP) fund.
3.) It was to be discharged towards the procurement of items of equipment and raw material for my business. In other words, I was not supposed to get a kobo in cash, my suppliers were meant to get payment after they had supplied the materials I required.
4.) I also found in addition to other 8 conditions all of which I had met that I was meant to pay another security arrangement of 10% of the approved loan amount being Five hundred and nineteen thousand, four hundred and thirty two naira twenty kobo (N519,432.20)
5.) No legal action could be instituted howsoever instigated and/or sustained by my company against Bank of Industry jointly or severally without first giving BOI a ninety (90) day prior written pre-action notice of my company’s intention to so proceed against Bank of Industry.
6.) Bank of Industry’s ability to accommodate this facility within its legal lending limits was subject to availability of funds. This left me wondering why the bank will approve my application, collect a non refundable fee of 1% of the approved amount without first determining funds’ availability.
7.) The mother of all frauds in the offer letter was that if the loan was not disbursed within 2 months from the date of the letter of offer (31st October, 2017), the Bank of Industry without any consideration of why it was not disbursed reserved the right to review the terms and conditions of offer but if the loan was not disbursed within 3 months from the date of the letter of offer, the letter lapses and all expenses incurred by the bank shall be repaid by my company.
8.) If the offer letter contained unfriendly terms, you can only imagine what the 20 paged loan agreement proper contained. On the whole, the terms of the loan agreement was such that the bank was more than 100% covered while I and my 2 guarantors were made to bear all the risks and every legal obligation/responsibility.

This was the greatest source of my fear as it all meant that the bank could afford the highest form of irresponsibility and recklessness as far as the loan and its disbursement was concerned and not face any consequence whatsoever. However, not only did I need the loan, at this point I had invested so much resource in money, time and energy that I felt the need to see it all through. So I stayed interested nonetheless.

{To be cond} Meanwhile, feel free to share this story or post any similar experience you have had with BOI or any other government agency.

LaudableXX:
You did not read the OP's post well. BOI is NOT giving him a dime! They are only going to pay his suppliers, after they have supplied him with raw materials/inputs on credit.

No working capital will be provided. No money to pay staff salaries, overheads and other expenses.

And they reserve the right to review the terms and conditions 2 months after the offer letter, even if the loan has not been disbursed. Which kain condition be dat one?

muzzol:
Sir, the Asset they are financing is bought with their money...in most cases, the assets are specialised equipment, which is a risk on its own.....Working Capital is granted on rare occasions...

G8Arthur:
God bless you my brother for sharing your experience . I have not gone as far as u have with BOI but from what I am experiencing now, I feel that I will withdraw.
U can approach a lawyer for advice on how to, if posible withdraw ur commitment if u do not trust them.
This is my guess, you are also free to investigate and proof me wrong. BOI is n ot a Govt agency. It's called BOI limited. Some elites that have money made it look like it's govt establisment. They are just crafty.
With all the green colour and the rest u think is nigeria government owned.

Henrysat:
As a staff of the Bank, I can assure you that if indeed you've been dealing with the Bank all you need to get this issue resolved is a call to the customer care unit. No staff of the Bank is allowed to collect a penny from you until you accept the offer letter. Kindly drop your complaint with the customer unit 07002255264/customercare@boi.ng

LaudableXX:
Ehn? What is the point of buying expensive assets or machinery, without a dime to spend as working capital? Won't those machines lie idle? Or do you now expect him to go back to commercial banks to borrow working capital at an ungodly 25% to 30% interest rate? That is how you people kill SMEs in this country, with your lip service!

traeces:
What then will you say about this independent opinion which I just stumbled across:


"There is massive corruption in the Federal government's Bank of Industry (BoI). The fraud runs into billions of naira. The Bank not only trades with cheap government funds meant to support industries and industrial development in Nigeria, it is also defrauding Nigerian industrialists of their hard earned earnings.
If in doubt, the federal government should direct its public service monitoring agency, the Servicom, to ask for a comprehensive listing of all loan applications approved by the BoI and see what percentage of the supposed loan approvals for industries, were ever disbursed within even six months. It should be noted that these are businesses which are qualified and have been duly adjudged, so by the Bank, which goes ahead to collect as much as 14% of the approved loans in upfront cash, but never disburses for as long as two years, without any reasons.
What is worse, is that apart from funds from the federal government through the Central Bank, the BoI is also collecting billions of naira from state governments across the country, for partnership funding for business expansion for small-scale industries in the states and for years, not a dime of such funds are disbursed to any intended beneficiary. The pertinent question may be, who is benefiting from the difference between the five to 10% supposed interest rates to SMEs and the 25% to 35% interest rate commercial Banks are apparently rationing out the funds meant for long term investments for hundreds of businesses, as massive short term loans, to a handful of traders and importers of finished goods.
As a result of this large scale development banking fraud, the economic recovery projections of the government will always be wide off mark. Virtually all federal government ministries and the government's economic indices monitoring agencies, will be basing their economic growth projections on funds already given to the BoI, without knowing that such funds are never released to intended beneficiaries for years.
There are reasons to believe the Central Bank is probably complicit in this evil. The government will be shocked at what will be discovered if it opens up a web portal for example, for disappointed Nigerian businesses, to forward proof of BoI's failure. Such disappointed small, medium or large-scale industrialists should be asked to also detail how much they have paid into special BoI accounts for years, without getting any loans. Yet a chunk of the payments BoI collects from loan-seeking industrialists are non-refundable. The refundable part of the deposits the BoI is fraudulently collecting, are refunded after upwards of two years at less than 10% interest per annum, when even Bank to Bank lending in Nigeria, is at almost 20% for onward lending to end users at as high as 35%.
To be fair, this fraudulent way has probably been the way the BoI had always being doing business. That much is obvious when it is realised that the bank, despite its very low customer base, the Bank had always been competing with major commercial banks in the profits it has been declaring for the past several years."

O'seun Ogunseitan
http://www.itrealms.com.ng/2017/11/bank-of-industry-and-fraud-within.html?m=1

It is about beaming the public search light on the massive corruption being carried out with reckless abandon at BOI. Nothing else.

deenee:
Pls go to the boi website and read it very well. Yes what he does as bdsp is very much legal and names of approved bdsp is on the boi website.

Even cbn works with bdsp on thirty anchor borrowers and cbn. Msme programs for appraisal and post monitoring and evaluation.

Jeez people don't even read again at all.

deenee:
I have read both and even the comments from others and this is my final conclusion. The op didn't do his own due diligence before applying for the loan because everything he has complained about is on the boi website. They have stated it clearly that they won't give direct cash but rather pay directly to suppliers and the fees he is complaining about are also clearly stated on their website so it funny that he is complaining about it.

deenee:
Sir I think you need to go and read how intervention funding works

traeces:
What then will you say about this independent opinion which I just stumbled across:

"There is massive corruption in the Federal government's Bank of Industry (BoI). The fraud runs into billions of naira. The Bank not only trades with cheap government funds meant to support industries and industrial development in Nigeria, it is also defrauding Nigerian industrialists of their hard earned earnings.

If in doubt, the federal government should direct its public service monitoring agency, the Servicom, to ask for a comprehensive listing of all loan applications approved by the BoI and see what percentage of the supposed loan approvals for industries, were ever disbursed within even six months. It should be noted that these are businesses which are qualified and have been duly adjudged, so by the Bank, which goes ahead to collect as much as 14% of the approved loans in upfront cash, but never disburses for as long as two years, without any reasons.

What is worse, is that apart from funds from the federal government through the Central Bank, the BoI is also collecting billions of naira from state governments across the country, for partnership funding for business expansion for small-scale industries in the states and for years, not a dime of such funds are disbursed to any intended beneficiary.

The pertinent question may be, who is benefiting from the difference between the five to 10% supposed interest rates to SMEs and the 25% to 35% interest rate commercial Banks are apparently rationing out the funds meant for long term investments for hundreds of businesses, as massive short term loans, to a handful of traders and importers of finished goods.

As a result of this large scale development banking fraud, the economic recovery projections of the government will always be wide off mark. Virtually all federal government ministries and the government's economic indices monitoring agencies, will be basing their economic growth projections on funds already given to the BoI, without knowing that such funds are never released to intended beneficiaries for years.

There are reasons to believe the Central Bank is probably complicit in this evil. The government will be shocked at what will be discovered if it opens up a web portal for example, for disappointed Nigerian businesses, to forward proof of BoI's failure. Such disappointed small, medium or large-scale industrialists should be asked to also detail how much they have paid into special BoI accounts for years, without getting any loans.

Yet a chunk of the payments BoI collects from loan-seeking industrialists are non-refundable. The refundable part of the deposits the BoI is fraudulently collecting, are refunded after upwards of two years at less than 10% interest per annum, when even Bank to Bank lending in Nigeria, is at almost 20% for onward lending to end users at as high as 35%.

To be fair, this fraudulent way has probably been the way the BoI had always being doing business. That much is obvious when it is realised that the bank, despite its very low customer base, the Bank had always been competing with major commercial banks in the profits it has been declaring for the past several years."

O'seun Ogunseitan
http://www.itrealms.com.ng/2017/11/bank-of-industry-and-fraud-within.html?m=1

It is about beaming the public search light on the massive corruption being carried out with reckless abandon at BOI. Nothing else.

LaudableXX:
You are the one that needs a clearer understanding of how BOI operates, and how intervention funding is supposed to work. Did you read his post properly, before you even passed your comments? Of what use is 'intervention funding,' if such funds are never released to the applicants or prospective beneficiaries, who have actually qualified for it?

Or didn't you see this part, in his post or you just chose to deliberately ignore it, in order to make your snide remarks? kindly pay particular attention, to the portions highlighted in bold type.

LaudableXX:
You are the one that needs a clearer understanding of how BOI operates, and how intervention funding is supposed to work. Did you read his post properly, before you even passed your comments? Of what use is 'intervention funding,' if such funds are never released to the applicants or prospective beneficiaries, who have actually qualified for it?

Or didn't you see this part, in his post or you just chose to deliberately ignore it, in order to make your snide remarks? kindly pay particular attention, to the portions highlighted in bold type.

LaudableXX:
You are the one that needs a clearer understanding of how BOI operates, and how intervention funding is supposed to work. Did you read his post properly, before you even passed your comments? Of what use is 'intervention funding,' if such funds are never released to the applicants or prospective beneficiaries, who have actually qualified for it?

Or didn't you see this part, in his post or you just chose to deliberately ignore it, in order to make your snide remarks? kindly pay particular attention, to the portions highlighted in bold type.


Boi does not collect 14percent interest upfront and this is on record. The moment I saw that part of the report I just didn't bother with the rest of the report. Again I will say that I am not holding fort for Boi but the op should have done his due diligence well and also ensure that the check list is in place and properly implemented

because again a lot of what he is claiming is what is on their website

deenee:
Boi does not collect 14percent interest upfront and this is on record. The moment I saw that part of the report I just didn't bother with the rest of the report. Again I will say that I am not holding fort for Boi but the op should have done his due diligence well and also ensure that the check list is in place and properly implemented

because again a lot of what he is claiming is what is on their website

deenee:
Again I will tell you categorically that boi does not collect upfront interest of 14percent......qed!

LaudableXX:
And I repeat...you are not in a position to know this! Are you a staff of BOI or one of its' BDSPs?

deenee:
And I say yet again they don't charge 14 percent fees upfront if you know any body that has a boi Lona and has been charge fees of 14 percent upfront inbox me I will personally take it up with. Boi. Even banks don't charge upfront fees of 14 percent!

People just push false information up and down without verifying

LaudableXX:
So it is the 14% that is worrying you? The fact that BOi has neglected to put in place measures to ensure that funds are disbursed promptly to SMEs after they have met the requirements, does not bother you? The fact that their ineptitude, lip service and lackadaisical attitude to the growth of SMEs, has caused those SME organisations to suffer a loss of income, does not bother you? The fact that they keep changing the rules every 2-3 months to the detriment of such SMEs, does not interest you? Everyone can see how glaring your hypocrisy is. Abeg, swerve!

deenee:
I made a big mistake joining issues with you. So if an existing rule does not work they should not change it. So because boi is trying to ring fence the transaction to reduce the risk they are now incompetent. Ask your self what happened to the cbn msme fund. Anchor borrowers for farmers commercial agric guarantee scheme. Nigerians are very bad borrowers and this is the reason why most intervention funds dont work. We have only heard one side of the story why not hear from boi before trying to drag them down?

Same boi that disbursed over 1 billion other corpers at single digit interest rate and all was not pad back. Nigerians that love to borrow with the intention not to pay back?

Una sabi lie, o!

LaudableXX:
Guy, your post now shows you are a paid agent of BOI. NYSC mobilises just about 300,000 graduates annually! In 2016, they could only mobilise 260,000 corpers. So who are the 1 billion corpers that BOI disbursed money to? Which states where they posted to? Which universities did they attend? Why didn't BOI prosecute and arrest those corpers that defaulted, or their guarantors? Una sabi lie, o! This is a new month...try and repent!

If you and your BOI caucus feel Nigerians are such bad borrowers, then what da heck are you all doing inside BOI? Why is BOI even in existence? Let them close it down and disband everybody, since you people feel Nigerians are such bad borrowers who do not pay back! Nansense!

deenee:
I meant overall 1 billion naira. Error is due to auto correct. If only you are not biased then you will know this. Original post corrected and this is my last post on this thread. I wish you people the best of luck!

deenee:
I meant overall 1 billion naira. Error is due to auto correct. If only you are not biased then you will know this. Original post corrected and this is my last post on this thread. I wish you people the best of luck!

deenee:
I made a big mistake joining issues with you. So if an existing rule does not work they should not change it. So because boi is trying to ring fence the transaction to reduce the risk they are now incompetent. Ask your self what happened to the cbn msme fund. Anchor borrowers for farmers commercial agric guarantee scheme. Nigerians are very bad borrowers and this is the reason why most intervention funds dont work. We have only heard one side of the story why not hear from boi before trying to drag them down?

Same boi that disbursed over 1 billion naira to corpers at single digit interest rate and all was not pad back. Nigerians that love to borrow with the intention not to pay back?

edoman2016:
I agree with you. Nigerians are bad borrowers, most especially men. There is no doubt Bank of Industry is a reputable bank. My problem with your bank is that it is slow and complex in loan application process but it can be improved upon. You guys are doing a good job to the real sector of Nigerian economy.

traeces:
Your assertion about Nigerians is to say the least both bogus and baseless. Without the right systems, creditors everywhere will always risk losing their money.

What we are saying is that it is unacceptable for BOI to arbitrarily approve loans it has no intention or capacity to disburse, collect 1% non refundable appraisal fee and go to sleep until the offer letter lapses. In 2012 when I got a loan from 1st bank, the day I received my offer letter was the day my account was credited. Why will BOI give an offer letter and fail to disburse 6 months afterwards?

Nigerians must demand probity and responsibility from BOI. It is after all our bank and our money. Those in the bank's employ aren't doing us any favor by doing the job they were employed to do.

Adaeze Udo Ekwueme: Last week I had the honour of presenting and leading a class discussion on my case study "Dangote Cement Plc: Crossing the Waters with Concrete Steps" during the globalisation module of the MSc in Major Programme Management at Said Business School, Oxford. Little known facts about Nigeria that surprised the cohort:

1. From 1960-1987, Nigeria had a higher GDP than China and India.
2. Nigerian tourists are the second highest spenders in the UK (number 1 is tourists from Gulf states and number 3 is Chinese tourists).

Unfortunately, the negative perception of Nigeria, means a lot of companies are ignoring the country as an investment destination, citing that Nigeria is not part of their expansion strategy, whereas some of those that have focused on Nigeria have grown to billion dollar companies, such as Dangote Cement and MTN. Too early to tel,l but I hope my lecture and case study can contribute to changing the narrative of the environment in Nigeria and Sub Saharan Africa, no matter how small a change. https://www.linkedin.com/in/adaeze-udo-ekwueme-5993b69/detail/recent-activity/shares/

CBN INTERVENTION FUNDS AND THE RESURRECTION OF THE BANKERS EQUITY FUND
Published on December 18, 2017 | Mazi Sam Ohuabunwa

In the last several years, the CBN has been very active, in playing an enviable developmental role in catalyzing the growth of the economy, and seems to be intensifying this role in recent times. One can not fail but appreciate the continuous effort of the CBN, some times in concert with the Federal Ministry of Finance to provide lump sums of money dedicated to several sectors of the economy at subsidized interest rates.

Because of the challenges of Nigeria's commercial banks, they have proven unable, incapable or unwilling to provide funding for the SME sector especially the manufacturing & Agric sub sectors or long term funds for infrastructural development and very often in recent history, the CBN has intervened.

There was the 235 Billion (originally 200 B) Naira CBN intervention fund for the Manufacturing refinancing and restructuring facilities of Bank's loans. The objectives were to fast track the development of the manufacturing sector of the economy by improving access to credit to manufacturers; to help improve the financial position of the DMBs, and to increase the output, generate employment, drive the revenue base and increase foreign exchange earnings for the industrial sector.

There was the 300 billion Naira CBN Power & Airline intervention fund( PAIF), which aimed to fast-track the development of the electric power projects, especially in the identified industrial clusters in the Country and fast tracking the development of the Aviation sector of the Nigerian economy.

There was the 220 Billion Naira, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises development fund( MSMEDF), launched in August 2013 to enhance the access of MSMEs to financial services and to increase their productivity and capability to create wealth with focus on the Agricultural value chain, services, cottage industries, artisans and trading and commercial services. There have been the 200 billion fund for indigenous Pharmaceutical manufacturing companies; 100 billion Naira for Textile Industry Bail out; the 32 Billion Entertainment intervention fund; the 300 billion Hotel and Leisure sub sector funds.

Recently we now have the Commercial Agriculture credit guarantee scheme( CACS);Agricultural credit guarantee scheme fund( ACGSF); Nigerian Incentive- based Risk sharing system for Agricultural lending ( NIRSAL); Small, Medium Enterprise ( SME) Credit guarantee scheme( SMECGS); and the CBN Anchor Borrowers Program, all dedicated to unleashing the agricultural potentials of the Country. With this list, it can be seen by all that the CBN is very determined to end the perennial complaint from entrepreneurs and businessmen in Nigeria- Lack of access and affordability of funding. But certain questions and issues arise.

First is, how many of the targeted audience are aware of these beautiful interventions?. How are CBN and its partners-BOI and DMBs marketing these opportunities? Many operators in the SME sector claim ignorance. Second is, how many operators have applied and how many have been successful. Many SME operators claim that it is easier for a camel to pass through a needle's eye than for them to benefit from these laudable programs and facilities.

What is the overall impact of all these interventions? The CBN needs to provide regular update of who is getting what and what the impact is on the economy. Third question is , how many of these programs are still running? Many operators in the SME sector do not know which program is active and which one has been discontinued.

True the CBN has done well in establishing these schemes and funds, but they have not done well enough in monitoring and reporting success. I recommend that the same way they have asked MDBs to publish their utilization of the Forex bought from CBN weekly in National dailies, they need to demand same for the utilization or disbursement of funds from the several intervention funds.

We need to be assured that the stated objectives are being met and that the right people are accessing the facilities and benefitting from the concessions. All of us know that in Nigeria, the corrupt elite have perfected ways to grab every benefit and subvert the intended benefactors and at the end frustrate every good effort by government. CBN must stand up against this possibility. https://www./cbn-intervention-funds-resurrection-bankers-equity-fund-ohuabunwa

traeces:
I apologize for the length of this story which is an illustration of the lip service our government has been paying to the encouragement of agriculture and private enterprise in Nigeria.

MY APPLICATION
In July, 2017, I submitted an application for a loan of five million, nine hundred and two thousand naira only (N5, 902, 000.00) at the Makurdi, Benue state branch of Bank of Industry. At the initial stage, I was very impressed by what I thought was the professionalism demonstrated by staff of the bank. I got a call on the 31st August 2017 notifying me of the approval of my loan. You can only imagine how delighted I was at the prospect of such a lifeline to my business considering the loan had a tenor of 3 years, moratorium of six months and purported interest of less than 10% per annum and given that my loan officer gave me the impression that now that the loan had been approved, disbursement was going to be a matter of days or weeks at the most.

I was therefore very surprised to say the least when 2 months down the line, I was yet to receive an offer letter under the pretext that searches were been carried out on my person and on my business. I patiently waited while inundating Bank of Industry Makurdi office with calls and visits. It was not until early November, 2017 that I received a call informing me that the searches came clean and my offer letter was now ready. I went to the office and asked to receive my letter but to my surprise, I was asked to pay a non refundable fee of 1% of the amount approved for me before I could even view the letter. This part sounded almost criminal to me, why won’t I see the terms governing the purported offer before committing resources I did not have? They told me it was the norm and that there was no other way so I went ahead to pay the sum of Fifty Two Thousand Naira (N52, 000.00) being 1% of the sum approved. See receipt of the payment attached.

Thereafter, I received a 6-paged offer letter in which I found ridiculous terms that made me wonder why a government agency whose objective was the encouragement of entrepreneurship could be that devious and self interested. See some details:

1.) The approved loan amount was five million, one hundred and ninety four thousand, three hundred and twenty two naira (N5, 194,322.00). A good percentage of this approved sum was for fees and charges which did not add any direct value to my business and which were at the exclusive discretion of the bank.
2.) The source was FGN (NEDEP) fund.
3.) It was to be discharged towards the procurement of items of equipment and raw material for my business. In other words, I was not supposed to get a kobo in cash, my suppliers were meant to get payment after they had supplied the materials I required.
4.) I also found in addition to other 8 conditions all of which I had met that I was meant to pay another security arrangement of 10% of the approved loan amount being Five hundred and nineteen thousand, four hundred and thirty two naira twenty kobo (N519,432.20)
5.) No legal action could be instituted howsoever instigated and/or sustained by my company against Bank of Industry jointly or severally without first giving BOI a ninety (90) day prior written pre-action notice of my company’s intention to so proceed against Bank of Industry.
6.) Bank of Industry’s ability to accommodate this facility within its legal lending limits was subject to availability of funds. This left me wondering why the bank will approve my application, collect a non refundable fee of 1% of the approved amount without first determining funds’ availability.
7.) The mother of all frauds in the offer letter was that if the loan was not disbursed within 2 months from the date of the letter of offer (31st October, 2017), the Bank of Industry without any consideration of why it was not disbursed reserved the right to review the terms and conditions of the offer but if the loan was not disbursed within 3 months from the date of the letter of offer, the letter lapses and all expenses incurred by the bank shall be repaid by my company.
8.) If the offer letter contained unfriendly terms, you can only imagine what the 20 paged loan agreement properly contained. On the whole, the terms of the loan agreement were such that the bank was more than 100% covered while I and my 2 guarantors were made to bear all the risks and every legal obligation/responsibility.

This was the greatest source of my fear as it all meant that the bank could afford the highest form of irresponsibility and recklessness as far as the loan and its disbursement was concerned and not face any consequence whatsoever. However, not only did I need the loan, at this point I had invested so much resource in money, time, and energy that I felt the need to see it all through. So I stayed interested nonetheless.

{To be cond} Meanwhile, feel free to share this story or post any similar experience you have had with BOI or any other government agency.