Merit system will inhibit noobs in keeping up bounty programs, if the program bounty has a high rank requirement at least jr.member to be a participant, be it airdrop or bounty campaign. So as those who are resourceful with the farming account will succumb and be useless to create multiple accounts.
Merit system is really great and can remove a very large number of people (mostly bots) who are currently abusing the bounties everywhere. But about the higher ranks, as you mentioned, such as Jr. Member and above is still worthless as they can still abuse them by "buying" more accounts. And I believe that they'd have made enough to drop a shit worth of BTC off their pockets and buy those cheap Jr. Member accounts, hire some manpower and give them pennies to use their accounts and rank up, be it potential accounts or current Jr. Member accounts and above.
At least this way will reduce this forum with someone who abusing the bounties everywhere.
Creating 500 new accounts (rank newbie) will be easier than the bounty cheater to buy 500 jr.member account.
Just time and process will make bounty cheating dwindle or even disappear.