News:
February 1, 2023
The Director General of the National Lottery Authority (NLA) Samuel Awuku has said the management and board have put in efforts to deal with fraudsters who send unnecessary messages to Ghanaians claiming to have lotteries winning numbers.
According to him they are dealing with a whole organised group of decorators who are motivated by evil and do not have a limit on who they want to scam.
Me as Director General, sometimes they can create a platform add you to it, you exit they add you and tell you they can give you winning numbers. We have reported the matter to the NCA and the national security and we have made some tremendous effort in dealing with this.
He made this revelation on Tuesday, January 31, 2023 when he appeared before the Public Account Committee (PAC) to answer some questions on work done by the Auditor General and pointed out that, eighteen (18) people were arrested last year and some are also standing trial at various stages; but it is an everyday matter dealing with the their dictators and believes, if there is one agency which is going to benefit from the sim card registration is NLA, he added.
This issue came up when the Member of Parliament for Ningo-Prampram Samuel George Natty, asked a human interest story as to how the NLA is dealing with fraudsters who send messages and call Ghanaians to give the NLA winning numbers.
In addition, he told the committee that those who send message and call cannot tell where the person is operating from. “One of the people we arrested had about five hundred sim cards; they send the message and take off the sim card. We believe that these crusade should not be left to the NLA alone.
And added that they have been embarking on sensitization programmes to demystify the perception that there is strong room where winning numbers are produce from, it does not exist, so if you recall we have started an exercise; we were at the Kwahu East to perform live draw.
In addition we have been to cape coast festival last year and they have been to the Volta Region last year for a live draw.
To us in NLA its a game of chance, but to others its a game of skill. They think they have some magical powers to work out one or two sometimes when you are driving in town they will tell you your car number dropped.
For instance in December 8 and 9 of last year president Kuffours birthday dropped twice and there are times that we lose, so its a game of chance and we need the support of MPs to help with the education that today its a game of chance.
Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com