70 Companies/Individuals Meet Criteria To Do
Genuine Business With NLA As Stakers
The Head of Public Relations of the National Lottery Authority (NLA), Mr Goodfellow Dei-Offei, has confirmed that 70 individuals and companies who submitted their pre-qualification applications have been considered for licensing to operate Lotto/Lottery in the country.
They formed part of the 140 individuals and companies who applied to be considered for registration and subsequently, licensed to operate and sell Lotto/Lottery in the country.
Mr Dei-Offei who was speaking in a live interview programme with Oheneba Nana Asiedu on Wontumi TV/radio and Wontumionline in Kumasi stated that the selected companies and individuals went through “a rigorous vetting process before having their requests approved.”.
“The criteria they had to meet included the submission of a police report from for us to be convinced that one does not have any criminal record,”he told the host.
He continued that in addition a request was made for the number of writers one has as part of the requirements so that there can be no situation where a winner cannot be paid because the writer cannot be located.”
According to Mr. Dei-Offei, lottery is a money business so one should also have enough money when the winners claims exceed the sales of coupons sold at a particular time.
It may be recalled that in the notice that heralded the widely publicized registrations exercise which lasted between 8th – 31st of September 2021, the NLA cautioned that after its expiry, “any unlicensed person or entities found using and selling Lotto/Lottery products would be dealt with in accordance with the laws of Ghana.”
He therefore stressed that the door has been shut to those who failed to apply.
Explaining the motive, Mr. Dei-Offei said that the re-registration became necessary because of two principal reasons. One is that the licenses of the operators have long expired.
He explained further,“ The activities of fraudsters who are devising various schemes to defraud unsuspecting members of society have become worrying and pose a big challenge and this needs to be immediately addressed.”
He said the some of the reports which are being investigated by the Police are threatening to undermine the integrity of lottery in the country and this has to be stopped.
He said in one instance the scammers succeeded to defraud a victim to the tune of 500,000 thousand Cedis.
“They even tried their prank on my boss and that should tell you how daring the scammers can be.” He revealed.
He continued that the NLA is keen at saving the integrity of the lottery in the country and would therefore not sit down for fraudsters to rock the boat of one of the companies which lay the country’s golden eggs’.
“Lottery is a game of money and integrity and before one is authorized to operate as an agent of NLA we have to be sure that he will not bring the whole industry into disrepute.”He said.
Mr. Dei-Offei said that after the licenses have been issued for the operators to go about their activities, a massive public education would be mounted on the plans by the Sammy Awuku ‘s administration to revamp the lotto industry “
“This is when we shall need the media most as well as members of the public who would volunteer information to enable us smoke out those devising various means to cheat the system.”The NLA PRO emphasized.
Mr Dei-Offei appealed to members of the public to be wary of fraudsters because lottery is strictly a game of chance.
Fraudsters who have taken undue advantage of the ignorance of a section of the public are always devising new diabolic schemes to outsmart the authorities.. Four of such fraudsters were recently arrested in the Volta Region in an operation jointly organized by the NLA and the police .
The scammers were identified as Godwin Agbenyefia alias Demon aged 19, Reuben Abusah alias Last Burial aged 20, Kelvin Kwame Abouzi alias Kartel aged 20, and Kingsley Adelekey aged 21.
The NLA has always insisted that it does not run a system where stakers register to be given lotto numbers and wished the public would acknowledge that those running such programmes on the various social media platforms are scammers.
“Our winners draw is open to the general public for witnessing” Mr. Dei-Offei stressed.